INCA Company Secretary John Sparrow is setting off on a personal challenge in support of INCA's chosen charity for 2023, the British Heart Foundation and to help raise awareness of heart disease and what can be done to prevent it.

On Tuesday 9th May, accompanied by his dog Scooby, John (himself a heart attack survivor) will be trekking to the 1,345m summit of Ben Nevis before driving 247 miles in readiness to trek to the 997m top of Scafell Pike on Tuesday 10th May prior to driving another 205 miles to North Wales where he then be trekking up to the 1,085m summit of Snowdon. That's the three highest peaks in the UK in just three consequetive days.

In the words of John:

I was delighted to find out that INCA had adopted the British Heart Foundation as its chosen charity for 2023 as it's a cause that's very relevent to me having survived a heart attack some 13 years ago. I know that amazing work they do - they invest around £100m each year into research in all heart and circulatory diseases and the things that cause them - conditions which include heart diseases. stroke. vascular dementia and diabetes. Not only this but they play a major role in raising awarness, in lifesaving education and in helping prevent heart disease in the first place.

What I learnt from my own experience was that in a vast amount of cases (including my own) a heart attack is completely avoidable with just a few general checks on a regular basis so my intention is to either raise a little money to support the BHF in their educational campaigns or to simply inspire someone to get a free blood pressure check or take a simple cholesterol test because thos two simple things could literally save their life.

I was lucky - the heart attack has left some lasting damage but I got a second chance. The whole episode could have been completely avoided tough had I done one of three simple things:

1: Tested my cholesterol

2: Monitored my blood pressue

3: Checked out a very brief abnormal pain that I had experienced a number of times

Any of these would have revealed a problem which could then have been addressed and that's the awareness I want to raise ... the simple message to get tested ... and these days it couldn't be easier! We all know how hard it can be to get a GP appointment but, unless you're checking out a specific symptom, you don't even need to see a doctor.

Most chemists now offer a free bloood presure check - you don't even need an appointment and can just walk in when you're passing. It's completely painless and only takes a couple of minutes. Alternatively, for just a few £s you can now buy a personal blood pressure monitor and check it regularly from the comfort of your own home.

Likewise cholesterol testing kits can be purchased from pretty much all chemists - they only involve a tiny finger prick and a couple of drops of blood.

You can take it to another level if you wish (my own smart watch can take a medical grade ECG in just 30 seconds) but these are usually all you need to identify any potential issue or to simply give you the peace of mind that all is OK. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death globally but, in most cases it CAN be avoided.

And that's waht I'm looking to achieve ... raising awareness either by financially supporting the BHF and the work they do or by inspiring some of the INCA members to get tested and to spread the word across their workforce.