{"id":18120,"date":"2024-08-28T00:02:41","date_gmt":"2024-08-27T22:02:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/world-heart-federation.org\/?post_type=news&p=18120"},"modified":"2024-08-29T16:59:49","modified_gmt":"2024-08-29T14:59:49","slug":"new-report-hong-kong-london-and-madrid-top-city-heartbeat-index-a-heart-health-benchmark-of-50-cities-worldwide","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/world-heart-federation.org\/news\/new-report-hong-kong-london-and-madrid-top-city-heartbeat-index-a-heart-health-benchmark-of-50-cities-worldwide\/","title":{"rendered":"New report: Hong Kong, London and Madrid top City Heartbeat Index, a heart health benchmark of 50 cities worldwide"},"content":{"rendered":"

PRESS RELEASE<\/strong><\/p>\n

Geneva, 28 August 2024<\/strong> \u2013 World Heart Federation (WHF) today launched a first assessment of efforts undertaken by cities to combat cardiovascular disease (CVD), the leading cause of death including premature death, worldwide.<\/p>\n

The City Heartbeat Index reveals a contrast in the different approaches taken to tackle threats to heart health, showing a correlation between high scores and increased life expectancy as well as the inequality created by living in lower income areas.<\/p>\n

The Index is designed to act as a comprehensive benchmark ranking 50 cities globally on their efforts to protect their population\u2019s health with measures including governance, city planning, and health services. The Index also highlights the challenges of comprehensive data collection especially in low to middle-income countries, and the need to implement and assess robust measures.<\/p>\n

Cities in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region dominate the top spots in the Index, with Hong Kong ranked number one as the most effective. Successful policies include Seoul expanding low-emission zones, Beijing\u2019s \u201csmog-free tower\u201d, and Bangkok\u2019s implementation of screening adults over age 21 for diabetes and hypertension.<\/p>\n

Hong Kong was closely followed by London which scored high on introducing city-level policies addressing health promotion and specific health risks such as unhealthy diets, tobacco and air pollution \u2013 notably for expanding its Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) in 2023 to cover an entire urban area, adding bike lanes and banning junk food advertising.<\/p>\n

Madrid ranked #3 on the Index, followed by Berlin and New York City, which are situated in countries with high CVD prevalence, and demonstrate proactive measures to address cardiovascular health in their urban heart health initiatives. Other cities, including Singapore and Toronto ranked high resulting from their excellence in data collection and proactive health measures.<\/p>\n

Paris and Rome are the lowest ranking European cities on the Index, while cities in African and Middle Eastern countries face significant limitations with funding and policy support. However, the strong performance of several middle-income cities, such as Jakarta, demonstrates that success is not solely dependent on financial resources.<\/p>\n

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Top findings of the report:<\/strong><\/p>\n