Heart Month: MyFitnessPal and Heart Research UK launch pop-up heart health clinic with 1-1 nutrition appointments and striking anatomical hearts made entirely from sugar.
To celebrate the start of Heart Month (February), the UK’s #1 food tracking and nutrition app, MyFitnessPal, has teamed up with Heart Research UK to offer free 1-1 heart health checks on 1st February on the Southbank.
Run by Dr Helen Flaherty (PhD), a registered Public Health Nutritionist (AfN) and Director of Health Promotion and Education at Heart Research UK, and hosted within a soundproof booth, the 10-minute, confidential heart health appointments will include a blood pressure check and body composition analysis (shoes and socks will need to be removed during that one!).
Dr Helen will then talk through the results and an average day of nutrition with patients and, via the MyFitnessPal app, alert them to the sugar traps so many of us fall into, suggesting easy and potential alternatives.
Appointment spaces are limited and can be booked via Eventbrite although there will be some opportunities for walk-in appointments. The first 20 appointments will also receive a MyFitnessPal goodie bag.
Directly next to the heart health clinic, two anatomical hearts made entirely of sugar will sit upon a set of scales, representing the UK recommended sugar allowance – up to 30 grams per day or 10,950 a year – and what we are actually consuming on average – 55 grams per day or 20,075; 83% over the recommended allowance!
“Excessive sugar consumption can have serious consequences for heart health”, says Dr Flaherty. “Too much sugar in the diet can lead to weight gain and this can increase your blood pressure and your risk of coronary heart disease (CHD). MyFitnessPal has a staggering 18 million foods in their database so you can easily find the sugar content. This can help us to know just how much we’re putting into our bodies because, more often than not, people just don’t know.”
In 2022, the UK was ranked the 3rd most obese country in Europe, with the World Health Organization (WHO)stating that obesity had reached “epidemic proportions”.
“Most of us don’t realise how much sugar we’re eating because it’s hidden in a lot of foods. Our UK members log the third highest consumption of sugar (behind only Germany and Canada), so we want to make people aware of the health impacts of what they eat, particularly on the heart. If you track your nutrition, you’ll be able to make well-informed choices for a healthy heart, body, and mind.”
Address: 56 Upper Ground, London SE1 9PP
Timings: 10:00am to 18:00pm
Booking Links: Heart Health Consultation with MyFitnessPal and Heart Research UK Tickets, Wed 1 Feb 2023 at 12:00 | Eventbrite
