Heart Foundation CEO at Risk of a Heart Attack

Anyone and everyone is at risk of a heart disease. And this is just what NSW Heart Foundation chief Kerry Doyle discovered. She is at risk of a heart attack. The 62-year-old, 'who lives what I preach', exercises every day, is in a very healthy weight range with a BMI of 21 and eats a balanced diet, and has never smoked. Kerry was shocked when blood tests found that her cholesterol has spiked 2 points in just over a year to 7.2. "I do not have a family history of heart disease and these results told me I am a recipient of that family history."

Kerry's father developed high cholesterol levels in his early 60s and died of a heart attack at 76, her grandmother also died of a heart attack at age 81. Prescribed statin medications to get her cholesterol under control, Kerry is vowing to cut back on her one occasional vice - soft cheese, to reduce her heart attack risk. "If I wasn't the CEO of the Heart Foundation NSW and I didn't have a vigilant and committed GP, I would have been a ticking time bomb."