With a self-confessed sweet tooth, Ray Doyle (livestock and environmental services executive at ICOS) was prompted by the Fovember campaign to get his own health checked recently. No one would ever suspect this fit-looking farmer suffers from very high cholesterol and blood pressure.
The tillage and beef man from Ballymore Eustace in Co Kildare is now trying to undo the damage of an unhealthy diet and lifestyle. With a history of heart disease in the family, the 47-year-old is no longer taking his health for granted, making “small changes for big improvements”.
“My father had a quadruple bypass about 10 years ago, so it’s hereditary. He smoked for years too, so that wouldn’t have helped,” he says.
A father himself of four children between the ages of 12 and 19, Ray was surprisingly shocked when the results came back from his health check.
“My BMI is perfect and I’m not carrying any weight, so from the outside I appear to be healthy. I’ve a fast metabolism so I always ate whatever I wanted. My doctor told me: ‘You’ll either get fat on your arse, or fat in your blood.’ In my case, I was getting fat in my blood.
“My blood pressure was 140/90 and my cholesterol was eight, which is very high. My blood pressure should be around 120/80, and my cholesterol should only be around five, so it’s very worrying,” he said.
Ray has now changed his diet, cutting out salt and sugary snacks, and started exercising more. He is also keeping a close eye on his alcohol intake.
“Diet is the big thing for me. For breakfast I used to have tea and toast, but now I have porridge made with water, with some yogurt, blueberries and almonds. I cut out all the salt for my blood pressure and I’m eating lots of healthy fats to promote good cholesterol.
“With the nature of my work, it’s difficult to get exercise in. If I’m not in the office, I’m on the road, or sitting in a tractor or a combine harvester, and the only time I’d get down is to fix something. I cycle to work whenever I can now, maybe two or three times a week, and try to walk at least 20 minutes a day. It will be interesting to see when I go back for my results if anything has improved,” he says.
The free health checks running in the co-op marts around the country this November will test for high cholesterol and blood pressure, and Ray is urging farmers to take the opportunity to rule out any underlying health problems.
“I don’t think farmers are too embarrassed to go get checked – we just think we’re hardy. Mentally, we have this great healthy lifestyle because we’re out in the open air every day.
“We think we’re invincible, but we’re not. I was sowing winter oats last year and I jumped down off the tractor, like I would when I was a young lad, and I completely twisted my ankle. In my head I’m still 17, but my body is 30 years ahead,” he says.
To join Ray and grow for Fovember, visit moteam.co/fovember and sign up today.
Blood pressure
What is blood pressure? Blood pressure is simply a measure of how much force your blood exerts on the walls of your blood vessels when it’s being pumped through your body.
Why is blood pressure important to me? Elevated blood pressure causes strain on the blood vessels in your heart, brain and other organs. Over time, this strain causes damage to these important vessels, and can result in a heart attack, stroke, kidney disease and more.
What symptoms will I notice if I have high blood pressure? Most of the time there will be no symptoms, that’s why it’s important to have your blood pressure checked by your doctor. High blood pressure is easily treated but can have devastating consequences if left unaddressed.
Why do I have high blood pressure? If you answer yes to many of the below questions, it could be an indication that you have undiagnosed high blood pressure and should have it checked. Most of the time there is no single cause – it is usually a mix of genetic and lifestyle factors:
Do any of my family have high blood pressure (siblings or parents)?Am I overweight?Do I eat a lot of salt in my diet?Am I a smoker?Am I generally very stressed?Do I neglect regular exercise?Am I over the age of 55? – Blood pressure increases with age.Do I drink a lot of coffee?My doctor has diagnosed me with high blood pressure, what can I do about it? Luckily, there are a number of ways to tackle it. The best way to do this is through lifestyle changes – get out walking, drop a few pounds and cut back on the salt in your diet. Try not to change everything at once though as this will most likely result in failure and frustration – make one or two changes at a time.
I’ve been started on a blood pressure tablet by my doctor, surely that’s all I need? No. A tablet can help to lower your blood pressure, but most of the time it won’t address the underlying cause. That’s why it’s vital that you try to make lifestyle changes like the ones mentioned above.
– Dr Jack Halligan, Full Health
With a self-confessed sweet tooth, Ray Doyle (livestock and environmental services executive at ICOS) was prompted by the Fovember campaign to get his own health checked recently. No one would ever suspect this fit-looking farmer suffers from very high cholesterol and blood pressure.
The tillage and beef man from Ballymore Eustace in Co Kildare is now trying to undo the damage of an unhealthy diet and lifestyle. With a history of heart disease in the family, the 47-year-old is no longer taking his health for granted, making “small changes for big improvements”.
“My father had a quadruple bypass about 10 years ago, so it’s hereditary. He smoked for years too, so that wouldn’t have helped,” he says.
A father himself of four children between the ages of 12 and 19, Ray was surprisingly shocked when the results came back from his health check.
“My BMI is perfect and I’m not carrying any weight, so from the outside I appear to be healthy. I’ve a fast metabolism so I always ate whatever I wanted. My doctor told me: ‘You’ll either get fat on your arse, or fat in your blood.’ In my case, I was getting fat in my blood.
“My blood pressure was 140/90 and my cholesterol was eight, which is very high. My blood pressure should be around 120/80, and my cholesterol should only be around five, so it’s very worrying,” he said.
Ray has now changed his diet, cutting out salt and sugary snacks, and started exercising more. He is also keeping a close eye on his alcohol intake.
“Diet is the big thing for me. For breakfast I used to have tea and toast, but now I have porridge made with water, with some yogurt, blueberries and almonds. I cut out all the salt for my blood pressure and I’m eating lots of healthy fats to promote good cholesterol.
“With the nature of my work, it’s difficult to get exercise in. If I’m not in the office, I’m on the road, or sitting in a tractor or a combine harvester, and the only time I’d get down is to fix something. I cycle to work whenever I can now, maybe two or three times a week, and try to walk at least 20 minutes a day. It will be interesting to see when I go back for my results if anything has improved,” he says.
The free health checks running in the co-op marts around the country this November will test for high cholesterol and blood pressure, and Ray is urging farmers to take the opportunity to rule out any underlying health problems.
“I don’t think farmers are too embarrassed to go get checked – we just think we’re hardy. Mentally, we have this great healthy lifestyle because we’re out in the open air every day.
“We think we’re invincible, but we’re not. I was sowing winter oats last year and I jumped down off the tractor, like I would when I was a young lad, and I completely twisted my ankle. In my head I’m still 17, but my body is 30 years ahead,” he says.
To join Ray and grow for Fovember, visit moteam.co/fovember and sign up today.
Blood pressure
What is blood pressure? Blood pressure is simply a measure of how much force your blood exerts on the walls of your blood vessels when it’s being pumped through your body.
Why is blood pressure important to me? Elevated blood pressure causes strain on the blood vessels in your heart, brain and other organs. Over time, this strain causes damage to these important vessels, and can result in a heart attack, stroke, kidney disease and more.
What symptoms will I notice if I have high blood pressure? Most of the time there will be no symptoms, that’s why it’s important to have your blood pressure checked by your doctor. High blood pressure is easily treated but can have devastating consequences if left unaddressed.
Why do I have high blood pressure? If you answer yes to many of the below questions, it could be an indication that you have undiagnosed high blood pressure and should have it checked. Most of the time there is no single cause – it is usually a mix of genetic and lifestyle factors:
Do any of my family have high blood pressure (siblings or parents)?Am I overweight?Do I eat a lot of salt in my diet?Am I a smoker?Am I generally very stressed?Do I neglect regular exercise?Am I over the age of 55? – Blood pressure increases with age.Do I drink a lot of coffee?My doctor has diagnosed me with high blood pressure, what can I do about it? Luckily, there are a number of ways to tackle it. The best way to do this is through lifestyle changes – get out walking, drop a few pounds and cut back on the salt in your diet. Try not to change everything at once though as this will most likely result in failure and frustration – make one or two changes at a time.
I’ve been started on a blood pressure tablet by my doctor, surely that’s all I need? No. A tablet can help to lower your blood pressure, but most of the time it won’t address the underlying cause. That’s why it’s vital that you try to make lifestyle changes like the ones mentioned above.
– Dr Jack Halligan, Full Health
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