BLOOD pressure monitors can be borrowed by adults for free under a new council initiative launched in libraries across Leicester.
The city council has made 100 devices available for loan across all city libraries, and members can borrow them free of charge for up to three weeks at a time.
It is estimated up to 24,000 people living in Leicester could have high blood pressure and not know it. Around one in three adults in England are affected by the condition.
High blood pressure could cause health conditions such as heart attacks, strokes and heart failure. The condition is treatable through lifestyle changes – such as eating a healthier diet or quitting smoking – or with medication.
The free loan scheme aims to encourage more people to check and monitor their blood pressure levels. The equipment is quick and easy to use at home.
Cllr VI Dempster, assistant city mayor for health, said: "The only way for a person to know their blood pressure is to get a blood pressure check. People with high blood pressure usually have no obvious symptoms and feel fine, but the condition is a major risk factor for serious health conditions.
“Knowing your blood pressure could be the first step to reducing your risk of heart attack or stroke. This free loan scheme aims to make it as easy as possible for people to check and monitor their own levels, quickly and easily at home.”
The local scheme has been developed by the city council’s public health team and libraries service to make borrowing a blood pressure monitor from a city library is as simple as borrowing a book.
If you’re not already a library member joining is quick and easy too.
The new blood pressure monitor loan scheme launches on Wednesday 23 September with a public drop-in at Leicester’s Central Library, from 10am until midday.