Heart health will be achievable by everyone in Australia by 2050
Goal 2: Create environments and systems that enable healthy behaviours
Goal 2: Create environments and systems that enable healthy behaviours
Heart disease can mostly be prevented if we create environments and systems that enable and empower healthy behaviours.
The most significant preventable contributors to heart disease relate to diet, physical activity, tobacco, and alcohol.2 But many people in Australia live in environments that make healthy behaviours hard.11 Action to enable heart health in all communities will contribute to overall health and wellbeing.
With so many system-level drivers of heart health, it’s not enough to only ask people to make lifestyle changes for heart health – necessary though that is.
We must create heart-healthy environments and communities that give everyone the opportunity to live well, whatever their circumstances.
- Tobacco control will continue to be a priority public health issue in the years to come. Action is also needed to safeguard people from the health effects of vaping.4
- With a growing obesity epidemic in Australia, the connection between heart disease and overweight and obesity needs to be acknowledged and addressed directly.6
- Exposure to air pollution, heatwaves, microplastics, and bushfire smoke increases the risk of heart disease and worsens heart health outcomes.12,13
Actions
2.1 Increase awareness of environmental impacts on heart health and take action to address these
Fund research into emerging environmental risk factors for heart health, such as air pollution, climate change, and microplastics, and ensure its translation into practice.
2.2 Collaborate across sectors to raise awareness of and improve heart health in young people
Develop broad collaborations across health, education, environment, and social services sectors to raise awareness of, and develop prevention programs to address broader heart disease risk factors such as obesity and overweight, particularly among young people.
2.3 Build and advocate for healthy communities, environments, and commercial systems
Promote the establishment of healthy communities, environments, and commercial systems that encourage heart-healthy choices. Focus on exercise, healthy built environments, food and nutrition, food security, labelling, and reformulation through collaboration with government and industry partners
2.4 Act on the environmental, genetic, and epigenetic influences on heart health
Increase understanding of environmental, genetic, and epigenetic factors influencing heart health to guide prevention efforts and inform relevant public health policies.
Goal 1: Advance heart health equity
Goal 3: Prevent, detect, and manage risk early