Susanne Logstrup, Director of the EHN was invited to speak on “What has been the experience of advocating legislative approaches to promote healthy eating in the European Union”, by the Norwegian Cancer Society.

Susanne Logstrup, Director of the EHN was invited to speak on “What has been the experience of advocating legislative approaches to promote healthy eating in the European Union”, by the Norwegian Cancer Society. Please find here below her presentation.

The aim of the EConDA project (Economics of Chronic Diseases) is to aid member states to develop, select and implement more cost effective policies to improve chronic disease prevention and impact upon populations with the highest rates of premature deaths from chronic diseases and reduce health inequalities.

Agenda, summary report and presentations made at the Steering Committee meeting of 9 April 2013

On 21 March, both the ENVI and IMCO Committee held a debate in the European Parliament on the Tobacco Products Directive.  The summary of both meetings can be found here.

On 28 March, the European Heart Network published a report on "Reducing children's exposure to marketing of foods and drinks that are high in fat, salt or sugar.

Here is a list of the studies and papers referred in the EHN Paper on Rehabilitation Programmes. Click on their names to access them on the initial publishing website. European Guidelines on cardiovascular disease prevention in clinical practice (version 2012) Leal J, Luengo-Fernandez R, Gray A. Economic Costs. In: Nichols M, Townsend N, Scarborough P, et al. European CardiovascularDisease Statistics 2012 edition.: European Heart Network; 2012,Brussels, European Society of Cardiology, Sophia-Antipolis Ostir GV, et al. Patterns of change in depression after stroke. J Am Geriatr Soc 2011; 59(2):314-320 Foley et al, The Efficacy of Stroke Rehabilitation, The Evidence-Based Review of Stroke Rehabilitation, August 2011 Horgan F, et al. From prevention to nursing home care: a comprehensive national audit of stroke care. Cerebrovasc Dis. 2011 Smith S, et al. The cost of stroke and transient ischaemic attack in Ireland: a prevalence-based estimate. Age Ageing. 2011 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services The National Audit of Cardiac Rehabilitation, Annual Statistical Report 2011, British Heart Foundation, 2011 Piepoli et al, Secondary prevention through cardiac rehabilitation: from knowledge to implementation, European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention and  Rehabilitation 2010. Piepoli et al, Secondary prevention through cardiac rehabilitation: physical activity counselling and exercise training, European Association of Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation, 2010. The National Audit of Cardiac Rehabilitation, Annual Statistical Report 2010, British Heart Foundation, 2010. Langhorne et al, Estimating the impact of stroke unit care in a whole population: an epidemiological study using routine data, J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2010 The European Cardiac Rehabilitation Inventory Survey (ECRIS), Prof Birna Bjarnason-Wehrens, German Sport University Cologne, 2010 Cardiac rehabilitation: clinical effectiveness and utilisation in Belgium – Supplement KCE reports 140S Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre, 2010 Saka et al, Cost-Effectiveness of Stroke Unit Care Followed by Early Supported Discharge, 2009 Kruse M. et al 2009: Short and long-term labour market consequences of coronary heart disease: a register-based follow-up study.European Journal of Cardiovascular Prevention & Rehabilitation Guidelines for Management of Ischaemic Stroke and Transient Ischaemic Attack 2008, European Stroke Organisation, ESO Wood DA, et al. Nurse-coordinated multidisciplinary, family-based cardiovascular disease prevention programme (EUROACTION) for patients with coronary heart disease and asymptomatic individuals at high risk of cardiovascular disease: a paired, cluster randomized controlled trial. Lancet 2008 The Irish Heart Foundation’s National Audit of Stroke Care, 2008, Irish Heart Foundation, Dublin Lavie et al, Adverse Psychological and Coronary Risk Profiles in Young Patients With Coronary Artery Disease and Benefits of Formal Cardiac Rehabilitation, 2006, Arch Intern Med. 2006 Langhorne P, et al: Early supported discharge services for stroke patients: a meta-analysis of individual patients' data. Lancet 2005 Leons et al, Cardiac rehabilitation and secondary prevention of coronary heart disease, Circulation. 2005 Apr 5;111(13):1717. Duncan et al, Management of Adult Stroke Rehabilitation Care, American Stroke Association, 2005. Zwisler, et al. (2005). Cardiac rehabilitation services in Denmark: Still room for expansion. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health World Health Organization 2004. Global Burden of Stroke. Part three: the burden. The Atlas of Heart Disease and Stroke, WHO, 2004 Taylor RS,et al. 2004. Exercise-based rehabilitation for patients with coronary heart disease: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. American Journal of Medicine Gordon et al, Physical Activity and Exercise Recommendations for Stroke Survivors, 2004, Circulation, 2004 Cheuk-Man Yu et al, A short course of cardiac rehabilitation program is highly cost effective in improving long-term quality of life in patients with recent myocardial infarction or percutaneous coronary intervention, 2004 Clinical and cost effectiveness of cardiac rehabilitation presented to the group developing the NICE guideline: Secondary prevention in primary and secondary care for patients following a myocardial infarction, Angela Cooper, Royal College of General Practicioners, 2004   Other papers of interests An Early Appointment to Outpatient Cardiac Rehabilitation at Hospital Discharge Improves Attendance at Orientation, Pack et al, 2013 Facilitators and Barriers in Cardiac Rehabilitation Participation: An Integrative Review, Rose et al, American College of Nurse Practitioners, 2011 Cardiac rehabilitation uptake following myocardial infarction: cross-sectional study in primary care, Cupples et al, British Journal of General Practice 2010 Cardiac Rehabilitation in Finland, Finnish Heart Association, 2007 Cardiac Rehabilitation uptake and its determinants in the Netherlands, van Engen et al, 2012.      

On the 25th of January, the European Heart Network published its paper on cardiac and stroke rehabilitation programmes. This paper aims at providing information to stakeholders about rehabilitation programmes for patients that have suffered a cardiac event or a stroke.

Please find here under the report of the third patients seminar, which took place in Brussels on the 02 and 03/10/12.

In a report on "A children's Future Fund", Sustain UK outlines how a Children’s Future Fund, funded by a sugary drinks duty, could pay for programmes to improve children’s health and protect the environment they grow up in.

On the 12th of December 2012, the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) organised a workshop on cardiovascular data registries and standards.

The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) organised a workshop in Brussels on cardiovascular data registries and data standards.

The European Heart Network adopted its paper on eHealth, focusing on the implications for cardiovascular patients of the recent development of eHealth applications.

The European Heart Network adopted its paper on eHealth, focusing on the implications for cardiovascular patients of the recent development of eHealth applications.

Today, 19 December 2012, the long-awaited proposal for a revised Tobacco Products Directive was finally adopted by the European Commission. Health Commissioner Borg should be congratulated for his quick move.

32 studies on food taxation and published in OECD countries have been examined by a New Zealand research team. The systematic review of simulation studies investigates the estimated association between food pricing strategies and changes in food purchases or intakes (consumption) (objective 1); Health and disease outcomes (objective 2), and whether there are any differences in these outcomes by socio-economic group (objective 3).

The European Heart Network adopted its position paper on the European Commission proposal for a Regulation on Clinical Trials. The proposal published this summer reviews the current Clinical Trials Directive, and aims at improving clinical research in Europe.

The European Heart Network adopted its position paper on the European Commission proposal for a Regulation on Clinical Trials. The proposal published this summer reviews the current Clinical Trials Directive, and aims at improving clinical research in Europe.

On 13 December 2012 EHN organised a fundraisers' webinar on the subject of donations (most important source of income for most heart foundations).  The focus was on direct mailings.  Two presentations were given, by Aidan Stacey from the Irish Heart Foundation, and Kristina Sparreljung from the Swedish Heart Lung Foundation.

On the 22nd of June, the British Chamber of Commerce in Belgium convened a meeting of its Task Force on Health, Social Affairs and Consumers to discuss the current EU health-related issues.

Report prepared by the National Heart Forum on food taxation.

On 29 June 2012, the National Heart Forum organised a national meeting in the UK to disseminate the outcome of the publication Nutrition, Diet and Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Europe.

First interim evaluation report of the EuroHeart II project.  

Agenda, report and presentations from the Steering Committee Meeting held on 13 November 2012.

Please find here the report and the presentations from the CEECs meeting in Slovakia, held on 17 October 2012.

Preliminary conclusions from the Eatwell project (EU funded project on Interventions to Promote Healthy Eating Habits) are that governments should put taxes on unhealthy foods and earmark the money to promote healthier choices.

The European Chronic Disease Alliance (ECDA) is informal alliance of 11 not-for-profit organisations, representing over 100,000 health professionals and patients, which was created in 2010. The objective is to reverse the alarming rise in chronic disease by providing policy recommendations based on current evidence.  ECDA's recommendations address in particular the four major risk factors – tobacco use, poor nutrition, physical inactivity and alcohol consumption.  The European Heart Network is a founding member of ECDA.   More information on the European Chronic Disease Alliance can be found via this website.

On 18 October 2012, the Slovak Heart to Heart League and the European Heart Network organised a regional workshop in Smolenice, Slovakia, in the framework of work package 7 of the EuroHeart II project.

Report prepared by the Irish Heart Foundation as a Pre-Budget Submission 2013.

The evaluation of the School Fruit Scheme (SFS) in the European Union, published this week, is a welcome push for public health.

In its response to the WHO discussion paper on a Global Monitoring Framework and Voluntary Global Targets for the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases, EHN calls for these targets to be adopted globally.

The third meeting of the EHN Patients Seminar, in the framework of EuroHeart II Project, took place in Brussels the 02nd and 03rd of October 2012.

Please click on the document below to read the draft minutes of the 2012 EHN Annual General Assembly, held in Leuven, Belgium.Also, please find below the Evaluation Report of the EHN Annual Workshop in Leuven 2012.

On its website, the WHO has put together several interesting articles on food taxation.

On 29 September 2012, the European Heart Network and the European Society of Cardiology launched the new European Cardiovascular Disease Statistics 2012.  Figures show significant drop in mortality, but the scale of the problem is huge and will increase

On 29 September 2012, the European Heart Network, the European Society of Cardiology and the Oxford University Health Promotion Research Group published the European Cardiovascular Disease Statistics 2012. This report arises from EuroHeart II project, which receives co-funding from the European Union in the framework of the Health programme. The sole responsibility for the content of the report lies with the author. The Executive Agency for Health and Consumers is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained herein.

Leaders in cardiovascular disease prevention and control have published a paper calling on governments to adopt at the end of 2012 a set of global targets to curb NCDs, and avoid millions of premature deaths worldwide.

EHN's contribution to the public consultation on the post-2015 framework of the European Commission.

EHN's response to the public consultation on policy options and their impact assessment within the framework of the review of the EU regime for the fruit and vegetables sector.

EHN was invited to attend the 62nd Session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe, in Malta from the 10th to 13rd of September.

On the occasion of the 62nd session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe,

Overview of EHN activities in 2011.  Please find here the EHN Annual Report 2011.

A recent paper published in the European Journal for Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation (EJCPR) reviewed the published evidence on the major modifiable CVD risk factors: food, physical inactivity, smoking, and alcohol.

On the occasion of World No Tobacco Day 2012, the Smoke Free Partnership published today a new report revealing how tobacco companies worked to prevent the strengthening of European tobacco legislation such as improvements to tobacco labelling and the removal of misleading terms such as ‘light’ and ‘mild’.

Following European Commission's conference 'The CAP towards 2020 – taking stock with civil society', the European Public Health and Agriculture Consortium (EPHAC) expressed its disappointment on the content of the debates and stressed the need for the CAP reform to be partnered with a broader civil society.

This section of EHN's website provides helpful ideas and tips on how to use social media. The section is divided in different categories (links, case studies, guidelines, presentations and list of EHN Members' accounts).  

  Here you will find a link to useful sites that can inform how you might choose to use social media in your work. This includes reputable blogs, groups and websites that may be of use.   -  Beginner's Guides to Social Media - Mashable  

This section presents links and documents highlighting practical examples of work using social media from within the charity sector across Europe and blog posts from members who can outline their campaigns and their involvement.   - Hard & Fast Campaign of EHN member the British Heart Foundation: click here - Heart Attack Campaign of EHN member the Irish Heart Foundation: click here - MEP Heart Group Valentine's Day Campaign: click here    

Here you can find a range of templates and guidelines used by EHN members around social media that you can feel free to read, adapt and recycle them for your purposes if you find them useful.   - British Heart Foundation Social Media Guidelines and Tips. - Irish Heart Foundation Communications' Strategy and Social Media Guidelines, please see below.

Here are presentations given by member charities or specialists in relation to social media activity that may be of interest.   - Dr Charmaine Griffiths: "How integrating new media into communications can improve results". - Mr Steve Bridger: "Helping your organisation find its social voice", please see below.

Under this section you can find a list of EHN member Twitter feeds and Facebook links.   - EHN Twitter account - Belgian Heart League Facebook account - Danish Heart Foundation Facebook account - German Heart Foundation Twitter and Facebook accounts - Hungarian National Heart Foundation Facebook account - Irish Heart Foundation Twitter and Facebook accounts - Italian Association against Thrombosis and cardiovascular diseases (ALT) Twitter and Facebook accounts - Italian Society for Cardiovascular Prevention (SIPREC) Facebook account - Dutch Heart Foundation Twitter and Facebook accounts - De Hart en Vaatgroep Twitter account - Portuguese Heart Foundation Facebook account - Romanian Heart Foundation Twitter and Facebook accounts - Spanish Heart Foundation Twitter and Facebook accounts - Swedish Heart and Lung Association Facebook account - Swedish Heart and Lung Foundation Twitter and Facebook accounts - Swiss Heart Foundation Facebook accounts - Turkish Heart Foundation Twitter and Facebook accounts - British Heart Foundation Twitter and Facebook accounts - National Heart Forum Twitter account - Northern Ireland Chest Heart and Stroke Twitter and Facebook accounts  

Alcohol harms you, others and the society – Why does the EU need an alcohol strategy? – 27 June, European Parliament, Brussels.

On 25 June 2012, the Italian Heart Foundation, the Italian Association Against Thrombosis and Cardiovascular Diseases, and the European Heart Network organised a regional workshop in Milan, Italy, in the framework of work package 7 of the EuroHeart II project.

On the 22nd of June, the British Chamber of Commerce in Belgium convened a meeting of its Task Force on Health, Social Affairs and Consumers to discuss the current EU health-related issues.

The origins of EHHIPublic health became a European Union (EU) policy objective with the adoption of the Maastricht Treaty in 1993 and the Amsterdam Treaty in 1997. Its Article 152 made a high level of human health a constituent part of EU policy making, to be accomplished through cooperation between its Member States and with EU action focused on the prevention of diseases through research and through health information and education. A European Commission public health framework programme, adopted in 1993, led to a variety of health programmes, inter alia on cancer, drugs and AIDS. Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) was covered to a limited extent by the action programme on health promotion, information, education and training.

On the 6th of June, the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) organised its annual conference on 'Restructuring Health Systems: How to promote health in times of austerity?'.

On 23 May 2012 EHN organised its first fundraisers' meeting at its annual workshop in Leuven.

On 29 March 2012, the EHN Board Members had a teleconference call. To read the Minutes of the meeting, please click on the document below.

Please click below to read the agenda of the meeting.

Please click on the document below to read the approved minutes of the 2011 EHN Annual General Assembly, held in Oxford, United Kingdom.

Please click below to read Mrs Løgstrup's presentations at the 2012 EHN Annual General Assembly. These documents relate to agenda item 2. Audited Accounts 2011 and Budget 2013 as well as agenda item 4. Action Plan 2013.  

Please click below to read Dr Hans Stam's presentation in respect of agenda item 9. Strategy and Financial Framework 2014-2018.

Please click on the link to view Charmaine's presentation: How integrating new media into communications can improve results

There is no doubt, across Europe we are eating too much salt - far more than is needed.

On the occasion of World No Tobacco Day 2012, the Smoke Free Partnership published today a new report revealing how tobacco companies worked to prevent the strengthening of European tobacco legislation such as improvements to tobacco labelling and the removal of misleading terms such as ‘light’ and ‘mild’.

Article written by Mike Rayner and Oliver Mytton, British Heart Foundation Health Promotion Research Group, Department of Public Health, University of Oxford.  Published in the BMJ of 15 May 2012.

Please click below to read the final programme of the EHN Annual Workshop and General Assembly, to be held at the Faculty Club on 23-25 May 2012 in Leuven, Belgium.

On the 3rd of May, the European Commission Commission organized a conference on EU Health Programmes: Results and future perspectives.  

On 15 May, Health Consumer Powerhouse presented its latest EuroHealth Consumer Index 2012 (EHCI). The EHCI is the only recurring international ranking of healthcare in EU countries. This meeting, at the European Parliament in Brussels, officialised the results of this year's index, with once again The Netherlands heading the chart.

Please click on the document below to read the speakers' abstracts and biographies in respect of the 2012 EHN Annual Workshop on 23-25 May in Leuven, Belgium.

Please click on the relevant links below to read the supporting documentation in respect of the 2012 EHN Annual General Assembly, to be held at the Faculty Club on 24 May in Leuven, Belgium.

Supporting Document Agenda Item 8. Approval of New Members; and a brief overview of the Faroese Heart Foundation and its activities.

Presentations given by Susanne Logstrup, EHN Director at the EuroPRevent Congress in Dublin on May the 4th.

Tax on salt and voluntary industry reductions in salt content could reduce deaths from cardiovascular disease by 3 per cent in developing countries, according to preliminary data from new Harvard report presented at the World Congress of Cardiology organized by the World Heart Federation (April 2012).

Please click on the relevant links below to read the documents in respect of the 2012 EHN Annual General Assembly, to be held at the Faculty Club on 24 May in Leuven, Belgium.    

Presentation by Susanne Logstrup, EHN Director at the World Congress of Cardiology in Dubai, April 2012.

On 8 December 2011, the EHN Board Members met at the EHN Brussels office. To read the Minutes of the meeting, please click on the document below.

Please click below to read the agenda of the meeting.

Agenda and presentations from the steering committee meeting held on 20 March 2012.

EuropeanVoice, the EU-issues newspaper organised its first health check debate of the year in Brussels this 19/03. The meeting focused on the impact of the economic crisis on public health systems and public health money.

On the 19th of March, the European Heart Network was represented at a workshop organised by the European Parliament on stem cell research...

EHN Policy Officer, Laurent Louette, attended the second technical consultation on the European Action Plan on Public Health Services of the World Health Organisation (WHO), co-organised by WHO Regional Office Europe and EuroHealthNet, a European platform bringing together public health agencies.

On 14 March 2012, the German Heart Foundation and the European Heart Network organised a regional workshop in Berlin, Germany, in the framework of work package 7 of the EuroHeart II project.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) organised a joint meeting of its Patients & Consumers Working Party and Healthcare Professionals Working Party, to discuss related EMA activities. EHN, as a member of the Patients & Consumers Working Party took part in the meeting.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) organised the fourth stakeholders meeting on the implementation of the new pharmacovigilance legislation on February the 27th. EHN, as a member of EMA Patients & Consumers Working Party attended the meeting.

On 29 February 2012 EHN was present at the high level conference on pictorial health warnings and standardised packaging for tobacco products, organised in the European Parliament. Please find herewith the programme of the event and the report of the meeting.

29 February 2012, Brussels “Plain packaging should be introduced in Europe to reduce the appeal of smoking among adolescents, according to public health experts and tobacco control groups. (1)

The European Heart Network works in different policy areas: cardiovascular health, chronic diseases and health determinants (comprising nutrition, tobacco control, physical activity and stress).  Relevant publications, other than EHN's own publications can be found in this section.  EHN's own publications can be found under the heading "EHN Papers".

The European Heart Network is a member of the Smokefree Partnership.   The mission of the Smokefree Partnership (SFP) is the effective implementation of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) . To this end, the SFP works with decision makers to ensure that tobacco control receives adequate political attention at EU level and to promote tobacco control information and policy research at EU and national level, in collaboration with other EU health organisations and tobacco control networks. It also aims to ensure FCTC implementation globally, and is working to release EU funding for tobacco control to counter poverty in developing countries.   More information on the Smokefree Partnership and its activities can be found via this link.

The European Public Health and Agriculture Consortium (EPHAC) is an alliance of public health organisations working for a healthier more sustainable Common Agriculture Policy.  The European Heart Network is a member of EPHAC.   More information can be found via this link.

On February the 9th, EHN was represented at a question time session on the revision of the Clinical Trials Directive, hosted by MEP Glenis Willmott at the European Parliament in Brussels. Please find here below a report of the meeting.

The members of the EHN Screening Task Force are: Dr Angela Brown, Medical Director, Irish Heart Foundation Dr András Nagy, Chair of the task force, President of the Hungarian Heart Foundation and EHN Board member Professor Jan Nilsson, Chairman of the Swedish Heart Lung Foundation Scientific Committee Board Dr Ernst Rietzschel, Cardiologist-Epidemiologist, University of Ghent, Belgium Professor Peter Weissberg, Medical Director, British Heart Foundation Dr Mikko Syvänne, Medical Director, Finnish Heart Association  

The EHN Screening Task Force brings together experts to review the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of programmes aimed at identifying people at high risk of developing and dying prematurely from CVD. The result of the work of the Task Force is a EHN Policy Paper published in January, recommending that the European Commission, as part of a comprehensive EU strategy on cardiovascular diseases, makes a proposal for an EU recommendation on national cardiovascular risk-assessment programmes to be implemented by the EU Member States.   You can find here the list of members of the Screening Task Force and the EHN CVD Risk Assessment Paper and its annexes.

EHN Director, Susanne Logstrup attended with Dr Ineke van Dis, member of the EHN Expert Group on Nutrition this conference convened by the European Dairy Association (EDA) to discuss scientific evidence on saturated fat and dairy. You can find the report of the meeting as well as some policy documents from the EDA here below.

EHN director, Susanne Løgstrup, attended together with Dr Mike Rayner, Chair of the EHN Nutrition Expert Group this EU Platform on Diet, Physical Activity and Health that took place in Brussels on the 09/02/12. Please find here under the report of the meeting in question.  

On February the 7th, EHN was represented as a member of the User Advisory Board of the RenewingHealth Project in the first local users meeting in Treviso, Italy. This meeting took place in the framework of the RenewingHealth Project, a EU co-funded project aiming at bringing together local e-health projects for patients with COPD, Diabetes and CVD. You can find here below a report of the meeting in question.

The Alliance for MRI organised its first Members' meeting of the year, this 25/01/12 in the European Parliament in Brussels, to present the latest updates on the legislative process of the European Commission's proposal of Physical Agents Directive, and the derogations for the use of MRI. Laurent Louette, EHN Policy Officer, attended the meeting.

The wrong end of the stick. The European Heart Network (EHN) expresses its deep concern about a Commission regulation proposing a new claim.

The EHN Charter for European Cardiovascular Disease Patients sets out prerequisites to achieve the aim of ensuring patients a high quality of life, free of avoidable disabilities, and also to allow them to continue their professional lives where appropriate. The document comprises provisions for patients from early assistance in acute cases to treatment, rehabilitation and secondary prevention.   The Charter has been drafted by EHN and its patients' member organisations in the framework of EU co-funded project EUROHEART II, of which the EHN is the leading partner.  Please find here the Charter and its Annex.    

Many of EHN’s members work actively to support heart and stroke patients as well as funding research whose outcome benefits patients. EHN facilitates networking amongst these organisations. Together, the EHN patients’ organisations share research information and formulate positions on EU policies that affect patients.  

The European Heart Network (EHN) paper on cardiovascular risk assessment reviews the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of programmes aimed at identifying people at high risk of developing and dying prematurely from CVD. EHN recommends that the European Commission, as part of a comprehensive EU strategy on cardiovascular diseases, makes a proposal for an EU recommendation on national cardiovascular risk-assessment programmes to be implemented by the EU Member States.

Following the publication by the European Commission of its amended proposal on a revised Directive on Information to Patients for prescription medicines, please find here the response of EHN to this amended proposal.

In this report, submitted to the Human Rights Council of the United Nations, the Special Rapporteur on the right to food addresses the links between health and malnutrition.

Joint letter by EHN and BEUC to the working Group of Nutrition and Health Claims.

Proposal for amendments to the Nutrition Claims Annex of the Health and Nutrition Claims Regulation

Please find here under the report of the second meeting of our Patients Seminar, which took place in Brussels the 30/11/11 and 01/12/11.

Richard Bergström, Director General of EFPIA presented the challenges and opportunities for his association in 2012 in Brussels this 08/12/11.

Report of the 5th meeting of  Users Advisory Board of the RenewingHealth Project, the 06/12/11 in Brussels

On 15 September 2011, the EHN Board met in Budapest, prior to its meeting with the CEECs on 16 September. To read the Minutes of the EHN Board meeting, please click on the document below.

The second meeting of the Patients Seminar, in the framework of EuroHeart II Work Package 8, took place in Brussels on November 30 and December 1.

Report of the meeting organised by EuropeanVoice on the process of Health Technologies Assessment (HTA), on November the 29th in Brussels.

Report of the Third Stakeholders' meeting of the European Medicines Agency on the implementation of the new pharmacovigilance legislation, in London the 20/10/11.

Briefing note prepared by Mike Rayner and Oliver Mytton, British Heart Foundation Health Promotion Research Group, Department of Public Health, University of Oxford.

This section contains documents from meetings organised within the framework of the EuroHeart II project.  Please click on one of the work packages to the left to find more information.

Final evaluation plan for the EuroHeart II project

In November 2011 the European Heart Network published its new report on Diet, Physical Activity and Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Europe. This new report reviews the latest evidence on the relationship between cardiovascular health and what we eat or how active we are.  It also takes a close look at current European eating and physical activity patterns and proposes a series of policy actions.

This new report reviews the latest evidence on the relationship between cardiovascular health and what we eat or how active we are. It also takes a close look at current European eating and physical activity patterns and proposes a series of policy actions.

Please find here the individual scientific reviews from the report on Diet, Physical Activity and CVD Prevention. Fibre Fats Antioxidants Alcohol Fruit and Vegetables Physical Activity Folate Sugars Salt Obesity and overweight

EHN's comments to the Health for Growth programme

Report on the Annual Meeting of the Alliance for MRI, at the European Parliament in Brussels, this 08/11/11. EHN Policy Officer Laurent Louette took part in this meeting.

Presentation made at the ESA Strategy Meeting in June 2009, by Susanne Logstrup, Director of EHN.

Presentation by Hans Stam, EHN President at the Working Conference and General Assembly of the Stroke Alliance for Europe (SAFE), in October 2009.

Presentation by Hans Stam, President of EHN, at the International Conference on Cardiovascular Diseases Prevention in South East Europe.

Presentation of EHN at the Annual European Nutrition & Lifestyle Conference, March 2011.

Presentation made at the Spanish Heart Foundation roundtable, in Valencia, 21/10/10.

Presentation of EHN at the European Parliament's ENVI Workshop on Nutrition, Diet, Impact on Health and the EU's role, in November 2010.

General presentation of EHN and its activities, available to download.

Presentation of Susanne Logstrup, EHN Director at the EFPIA Workshop on Chronic Diseases in June 2011, presenting the European Chronic Diseases Alliance

Find here all the meetings' reports and presentations made by EHN at public meetings.  

Presentation by Susanne Logstrup, Director of EHN, at the European Health Forum Gastein 2011.

Report of the European Health Forum 2011, 5 - 8 October in Gastein, Austria. EHN Director, Susanne Logstrup gave a presentation in the session on Non-Communicable Diseases

Please find herewith the agenda and presentations given at the Steering Committee meeting of 18 October 2011.

EHN considers that the majority of claims in the working document on the establishment of the list of permitted health claims under the claims regulation’s article 13.1 are not relevant. Please find here the EHN position paper.

On 23 November, the European Heart Network organised a conference on Diet, Physical Activity and Cardiovascular Disease Prevention - A Challenge for Europe. This conference arises from the EuroHeart II project which has received co-funding from the European Union, in the framework of the Health Porgramme. A summary report and the presentations shown during the conference can be downloaded from this webpage.

European Parliament, European Commission and the World Health Organization join to explore the EU’s abilities and commitment to face the global NCDs pandemic, with a focus on cardiovascular diseases (CVD).

The European Commission published today its revised proposal on the ‘Information to Patients’ Directive, setting out the rules on the providing of information on prescribed-only medicines and the role played by the industry in this process.The text will now be debated at the European Parliament and the Council.Please find here the revised proposal and the related press release here:

On 18 May, the EHN Board Members met at the Oxford Barceló Hotel, venue of the 2011 EHN Annual Workshop and General Assembly. To read the Minutes of the meeting, please click on the document below.

Please click below to read the agenda of the meeting.

On 19 September the UN General Assembly adopted a political declaration on prevention and control of non-communicable diseases.

On 13 September 2011 the European Parliament adopted a resolution on the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases.

The EuroHeart II project receives co-funding from the European Union in the framework of the Health  Programme.  The main partner in the project is the European Heart Network - Belgium    

The European Commission has issued this 14/06 a proposal for revising the Directive 2004/40/EC on electromagnetic fields (EMF) and introduced an exemption for MRI from the binding exposure limits proposed in the new directive.

On 16 June, the European Health and Agriculture consortium organised a meeting in the European Parliament on the role of public health in the Common Agriculture Policy in the presence of Commissioner Dalli (Health) and Commissioner Cioloş (Agriculture).

On 5 April 2011, the EHN Board Members met at the EHN Brussels office. To read the Minutes of the meeting, please click on the document below.

Please click below to read the agenda of the meeting.

EHN's response to the concept paper submitted for public consultation on the revision of the Clinical Trials Directive (2001/20/EC).

Please click below to read the final programme of the EHN Annual Workshop and General Assembly held on 18-20 May 2011 in Oxford, United Kingdom.

EHN's response to the concept paper submitted for public consultation on the revision of the Clinical Trials Directive (2001/20/EC).

You can find here the report for the meeting and some of the documents used for the preparation of the first meeting of EHN Patients' Seminar, which took place in Brussels the 28-29/03/11.

The European Heart Network, together with the European Society of Cardiology call for a centralised, comprehensive European cardiovascular diseases registry to ensure effective service planning and quality of care for patients across the EU. This would provide an important and effective tool for a patient-centred health care in the future.

On 17 November 2010, the EHN Board Members met at the EHN Brussels office. To read the Minutes of the meeting, please click on the document below.

Please click below to read the agenda of the meeting.

The concept of Better Regulation is widely supported by many Member States and at EU level it is deemed to be so important that European Commission President, Jose Manuel Barroso, recently announced his decision to personally oversee its implementation.

The first meeting of the EHN Patients Seminar, in the framework of EuroHeart II Project, took place in Brussels this 28th and 29th of March 2011.    

Report of the second meeting of the EHN Screening Task Force, held in Brussels on the 25/01/11.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD), including heart disease and stroke, is the main cause of death and a major cause of disability in Europe. It is estimated that 80% can be prevented. Small reductions in incidence and mortality lead to large health gains and reductions in direct and indirect health care costs. CVD costs the EU economy €196 billion every year and it is the main contributor to inequalities in health. Health gains will particularly benefit less-advantaged groups. The EuroHeart II project will report on and analyse the current situation with regard to cardiovascular and circulatory diseases in the EU. The project will allow a strategic approach that will also help address other non-communicable diseases. The project will provide outputs that can be used to develop Community initiatives to promote cardiovascular health. The EuroHeart II project receives co-funding from the European Union in the framework of  the Health programme.  The sole responsibility for the content of any publications made in the framework of this project lies with the author(s). The Executive Agency for Health and Consumers is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained herein.

The EU Clinical Trials Register was launched today by the European Medicines Agency.

The kick off meeting of the EuroHeart II project took place on 15 March 2011 in Luxembourg.

EHN's contribution to the Commission consultation on "Europe 2020 Flagship Initiative Innovation Union - Pilot European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing"

European Heart Network (EHN) response to “The reform of the CAP towards 2020 - Impact Assessment”.

Please click on the document below to see how the decision making process at EU level works.

Health ministers fail to take a strong stand on mandatory nutrition labelling

On 7 December 2010, the Council adopted Council Conclusions on "Innovative approaches for chronic diseases in public health and health care systems".

On 8 September 2010, the EHN Board Members met at the EHN Brussels office. To read the Minutes of the meeting, please click on the document below.

Please click below to read the agenda of the meeting.

... goes to Chronic Disease Alliance. A broad alliance of ten organizations in the area of healthcare is attempting to improve the prevention of chronic diseases at the European level and to furnish decision makers with basic information for appropriate policy measures.  For its engagement, the Chronic Disease Alliance was presented in Bad Hofgastein on 8th October with the European Health Award 2010.  

In an unprecedented effort to bring prevention of chronic diseases to the top of the EU agenda, the MEP Heart Group, the MEP Group for Kidney Health, the EU Diabetes Working Group and MEPs Against Cancer organised a joint meeting today in the European Parliament, together with representatives of health professionals and health activists at European level. 　 The press release can be downloaded below.

EHN's press release on the occasion of World Heart Day 2010.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has published several dossiers related to taxation of food products.

On 19 May 2010, the EHN Board Members met at the Royal Marine Hotel in Dún Laoghaire, venue of the 2010 EHN Annual Workshop and General Assembly. To read the Minutes of the meeting, please click on the document below.

Please click below to read the agenda of the meeting.

Report of the first meeting of the EHN Screening Task Force, held in Stockholm, Sweden the 30/08/10.

TobTaxY (making Tobacco Tax TrendY) is a European Commission-funded capacity-building project with the aim of training the public health and tobacco control community on tobacco taxation and smuggling issues. The Smokefree partnership is the main partner in the project and EHN is one of the partners involved in the project, responsible for the organisation of the capacity-building workshops. TobTaxY will run from September 2010 – January 2013.  The purpose of TobTaxY is to build capacity within the public health/tobacco community regarding taxation and smuggling issues. This will be achieved through a multi-stage process:

Please click below to read the revised document.

EHN response to the CAP reform.

Final technical report from the EuroHeart project.

Strong warnings of the dangers of smoking with images of diseased organs should be introduced across the EU to all tobacco packaging as soon as possible, urged the Smoke Free Partnership (SFP) at a conference today. On World No Tobacco Day the SFP also called for standardised packaging of tobacco products by 2012 – removing all logos and colours, along with uniform lettering – so that the pack can no longer be used as a form of advertising to attract new young smokers.

On 25 March 2010, the EHN Board Members met at the EHN Brussels office. To read the Minutes of the meeting, please click on the document below.

Please click below to read the agenda of the meeting.

On 20 October 2009, the Commission adopted a Communication describing actions that the European Commission will take to help address health inequalities.

Europe's politicians put women on 'red alert' for their risks of cardiovascular disease - 27 April 2010

Research and position papers on food information to consumers.

Illicit cigarette trade accounts for 11.6% of all cigarette consumption, equivalent to 657 billion cigarettes a year. EU leadership needed to stub out illegal trade in tobacco.

Spotlights on the Framework convention on Tobacco Control and the EU tobacco policy.  The European Smokefree Partnership (of which the EHN is a member) publishes the Spotlight on the FCTC and the EU tobacco policy.

Women and Cardiovascular Research in Europe.

Presentations and minutes from the meeting of 12 January 2010.

Joint response from the European Heart Network and the World Heart Federation on the Issues Paper on the Role of the EU in global health.

EHN has given its views on nutrient profiles models below.  EHN has also written a letter to MEPs explaining why nutrient profiles cannot be deleted from the 2006 Claims regulation.

On 30 November, the Council of the European Union adopted a Council Recommendation on smoke-free environments.

5000 deaths : A Catastrophic, Regrettable Decision in Belgium.

Brussels, 9 December 2009 - Members of the European Parliament Heart Group (MEP Heart Group) met today, in Brussels, with the Cardiology profession and representatives of national Heart Foundations to evaluate the achievements at EU level in combating Cardiovascular Disease (CVD), and to reveal the need for further action.   See the full press release below.

Report on awareness raising campaings on women and CVD,

On 5 November 2009 the European Heart Network and the European Society of Cardiology organised a conference "Red Alert for Women's Hearts".  At this conference, the report "Red Alert for Women's Hearts" was launched.  This report can be downloaded via this link.

Red Alert for Women's Hearts; Women and cardiovascular research in Europe.  Report prepared in the framework of Work Package 6 of the EuroHeart project. The report addresses the issue of women's representation in cardiovascular clinical research by collecting information on clinical trials and registries in Europe.

Awareness Raising on Women and CVD. Overview of events and activities organised by heart foundations and cardiac societies in the field of CVD prevention for women.  This report was prepared in the framework of Work Package 6 of the EuroHeart project.

Women and Cardiovascular Research in Europe. The full report and the appendices can be found here.             Red Alert for Women’s Hearts Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Appendix 3 Appendix 4 Appendix 5 Appendix 6 Appendix 7 Appendix 8 Appendix 9      

Report on awareness raising campaings on women and CVD, prepared in the framework of Work Package 6 of the Euroheart project.

Combating Heart Disease and Stroke - Planning for a Healthier Europe. Report from the conference 10 September 2009

Combating Heart Disease and Stroke - Planning for a Healthier Europe

World Heart Day Press Release 2009  

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading cause of death in the European Union, accounting for over 2 million deaths each year. Whilst the risk factors and determinants for cardiovascular diseases are well established, an incomplete picture exists of what individual countries have put in place in terms of strategies and actions to address the heavy human and economic burden that these diseases represent.

New research points to huge inequalities in both national prevention policies and levels of cardiovascular mortality seen across the EU.

Cardiovascular disease prevention in Europe: the unfinished agenda. Report prepared in the framework of Work Package 5 of the EuroHeart project.  It gives an overview of national plans, policies and measures impacting on cardiovascular health promotion and cardiovascular disease prevention in 16 countries in Europe.

Minutes and presentations from the Advisory Board meeting of 30 June 2009

Please click below to read the EHN Strategy Paper and appendices, as approved by the EHN members at its Annual General Assembly held in Amsterdam on 14 May 2009.

Cardiovascular Disease prevention in Europe - the unfinished agenda

Presentations and documents from the Advisory Board meeting of 26 March 2009.

Presentations and documents from the Coordinators meeting of 26 - 27 March 2009.

EHN position on cross border health care.

EHN’s response to the European Commission’s amended proposal for the revision of the Information to Patients’ Directive    

Advocacy toolkit on excise duties on manufactured tobacco products.

Presentations given at the Coordinators' meeting of 29 January 2009.

Please click below to read the EHN report A LONG SPOON? Finding the balance between benefits and risks of Heart Foundations' engagements with food industry.

Presentations from the meeting

EAHC press release on the Commission adoption of the School Fruit Scheme. The European Agriculture and Health Consortium’s main objective is to advocate for health promoting agriculture policy in Europe. The European Heart Network, North West Health Brussels Office, National Heart Forum and Heart of Mersey are charter members.

Press release of the European Agriculture and Health Consortium on the Commission adoption of a school fruit scheme.

Press release from the MEP Heart Group which took place on 4 November 2008.

Agenda and Summary of the meeting. Agenda, summary of the meeting and presentations shown at the meeting

Summary of original research from December 2006 - June 2008 on consumer preferences and use of Front of Pack nutrition schemes.

Click on the link below to find the EHN press release, which includes a statement made by EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou, on the occasion of World Heart Day 2008.

On 25 September 2008, the EU Working Group 'Sports and Health' published the EU Physical Activity Guidelines - Recommended policy actions in support of Health Enhancing Physical Activity.

European Heart Network’s response to the European Commission’s consultation on draft Impact Assessment Guidelines

The Tobacco industry - NOT just another industry. Press release of the Smokefree Partnership on the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

EHN position on the Commission proposal on consumer information on food products

On 17 - 18 June 2008, we organised the 2nd coordinators' meeting for work package 5 of the EuroHeart project.

On 3 June, the MEP Heart Group discussed the subject of food labelling.

On 21 April 2008, EHN organised a meeting for its members to determine its lobbying strategy with regard to the Commission proposal for a Regulation on the provision of food information to consumers.

European Heart Network’s response to the European Commission’s Public Consultation on the legal proposal on information to patients

Complementary statistics for EHN members.

Please click on the below document to read an EHN members' activity pack on European activities.

European Heart Network response to the European Commission on the “Green Paper Towards a new culture for urban mobility”

European Heart Network response to “Towards a possible European school fruit scheme – Consultation document for impact assessment”

Interim report on the Launch of the European Heart Health Charter at EU level and in countries in Europe.

CVD is killer number one. Each year, cardiovascular disease (CVD) kills over 4.3 million people in the 53 member states of the World Health Organization European Region and more than 2 million in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU).     CVD is responsible for 54% of all deaths in women across Europe and 43% of the deaths in men, killing more people than all cancers combined.

Major risk factors include diet, overweight/obesity, diet, smoking, lack of physical activity, alcohol consumption, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

The economic cost of CVD.

Recommendations for CVD prevention.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the main cause of death in the EU with over 2 million people dying from CVD every year. Moreover, the statistics published today indicate that there are significant inequalities between Member States and that together, CVD across all Member States is estimated to cost the EU economy €192 billion a year.

Seminar organised in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia on 6 - 7 February 2008.

Questionnaire 1 and presentations made during the coordinators' meeting of 13 -14 November 2007.

EHN Comments to the Commission White Paper on A Strategy for Europe on Nutrition, Overweight and Obesity related health issues

Summary of the advisory board meeting of October 2007

Every year over 1.9 million people die from cardiovascular diseases (CVD) in the European Union. Over 180 000 deaths from CVD are caused by smoking. In order to reduce effectively the risk of CVD from the use of tobacco and nicotine products, such use must be eliminated completely.

On 1 March 2004, The European Heart Network started a 32 month project on "Children, Obesity and Associated Avoidable Chronic Diseases". The aim of the project is to contribute to reducing the obesity epidemic and associated avoidable chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, among children and young people.

This document is essentially a plan for implementation of the priority policy options identified during the consultations carried out at European and national level between November 2005 and April 2006.

On 12 July 2007, the European Parliament adopted a Motion for a Resolution on Action to tackle Cardiovascular Disease.

On 12 July 2007 the European Heart Network and the European Society of Cardiology, with the support of the European Commission and the World Health Organization – Regional Office for Europe, developed the first European Heart Health Charter designed to prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD) in Europe.

European Heart Network’s response to the European Commission’s draft report on current practice with regard to provision of information to patients on medicinal products – Brussels 19 April 2007

European Heart Network’s response to the European Commission’s Consultation Paper on the structure and rates of excise duty applied on cigarettes and other manufactured tobacco.

European Heart Network’s response to the European Commission’s Consultation Paper on the structure and rates of excise duty applied on cigarettes and other manufactured tobacco.

Please click below to read the programme of the joint EHN/ESC session to be held on 2 September during the 2007 ESC Congress in Vienna, Austria.

Please find here the European Heart Network’s response to the EC Green Paper 'Towards a Europe free from tobacco smoke: policy options at EU level'.

European Heart Network’s response to the European Commission’s Green Paper on “Towards a Europe free from tobacco smoke: policy options at EU level”

Please find here the final text of the Heart Health Charter, to be launched on 12 June 2007.

The purpose of this review was to gain insights into the extent to which ‘front of pack’ schemes are used, the way in which such schemes might operate; presentational issues (i.e. the format e.g. traffic lights, descriptive words, symbols); the nutritional criteria used; and whether there has been any developmental research or evaluation.

Presentation by Dr Oliver Gray, Director General, EASA, Belgium.

European Heart Network contribution to Health in Europe: A Strategic Approach - a European Commission discussion document for a Health Strategy

12 non-governmental organisations, representing millions of European citizens from the consumer, health and civil society sectors commend WHO Europe for convening this Ministerial Conference on Counteracting Obesity. We support the range of essential actions identified and the development of a pan-European action plan. But we also wish to stress that there are some priority areas where governments must take immediate action. Please find the NGO statement here.

During the last phase of the project on Children and obesity (from December 2005 to October 2006) a Europe-wide stakeholder consultation on policy options to prevent child obesity took place with a view to achieving consensus on a small number (five) of policy options to be achieved as priorities within the participating European countries as well as at a European level.

Five leading Health NGOs (the European Heart Network, the European Public Health Alliance, Eurocare, the Pharmaceutical group of the EU and the European Respiratory Society) have developed a common position paper on the Commission proposal for Directive on Audivisual Media Services (revision of the Television without frontiers directive).

Please click below to read the report on the EHN special workshop, held in Ljubljana, Slovenia on 12-13 June 2006.

Please click below to read the Statement on the European Strategy for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases on behalf of the European Heart Network (EHN), representing the World Heart Federation, to the fifty-sixth session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe, Copenhagen, 11-14 September 2006

In September 2006, EHN and ESC organised a joint seminar on developments in the EU on diet and physical activity.

For several reasons, the concept of stress has played a much more important role in ideas about cardiovascular disease (CVD) among laymen than among experts. On a theoretical level, stress is more difficult for health care practitioners to define and assess than widely accepted coronary risk factors such as physical activity, tobacco smoking, serum cholesterol and blood pressure. It is also believed to be more difficult to deal with from a societal point of view.

European Heart Network response to “Towards a reform of the common market organisation for the fresh and processed fruit and vegetable sectors – Consultation document for impact assessment”

EHN's response to a Commission Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and the Council amending Council Directive 89/552/EEC.

According to the World Bank, high taxes on tobacco are the single most effective intervention to prevent smoking.

European Heart Network’s response to the European Commission’s Green Paper on “Promoting healthy diets and physical activity: A European dimension for the prevention of overweight, obesity and chronic diseases”.

Lifting the Smokescreen; 10 reasons for a smoke free Europe. This report was commissioned in October 2004. At the time, Ireland had gone smoke free in March of that year, followed by Norway in June. On the other side of the world, New Zealand was due to follow suit in December 2004 and there were rumours from Italy and Malta that comprehensive smoke free legislation was being enacted and would come into force early in 2005. It seemed to the commissioning organisations that times were changing. Smoke free workplaces were no longer confined to the more liberal US states. Could it be possible that comprehensive smoke free legislation could become a reality, not just in small European countries with a strong background in tobacco control, but across the European Union (EU) itself?We decided to find out.  Please find here the full report.

On 7 March 2006, the European Heart Network and the European Society of Cardiology organised a joint conference on Women's Health at Heart.

The increasing prevalence of obesity among children and adolescents has placed the lifestyle of these age groups on the political agenda. An unhealthy lifestyle during childhood and adolescence, in particular unhealthy eating habits and physical inactivity, increases not only the risk of developing obesity but also, along with smoking, the risk of developing chronic diseases later in life. Lifestyle and Risk of Heart Disease among Children - A Review

European Heart Network position on the Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, The Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on Healthier, safer, more confident citizens: a Health and Consumer protection Strategy and the proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and the Council establishing a Programme of Community action in the field of Health and Consumer protection 2007-2013.

On 29 June 2005, the EU Health and Consumer Protection Directorate-General and the Ministry of Health of Luxembourg organised, in partnership with the European Society of Cardiology, a Heart Health Conference. At the Conference, the Luxembourg Declaration was adopted.

Observations on behalf of the EHN to the Issue Paper for the Audiovisual Conference in Liverpool regarding the Television Without Frontiers Directive.

Fruit and Vegetable Policy in the European Union: its effect on the burden of cardiovascular disease.

Smoke Free Europe makes economic sense. A report on the economic aspects of smoke free policies.

All the founding members of the EU platform on diet, nutrition and health were invited to the dinner debate.  The opening remarks were given by Robert Madelin, Director General, Consumer and Health protection of the EU.  The outcome of this debate can be found in the pdf file below.

The Cancer Research UK, the European Heart Network (EHN), the European Respiratory Society (ERS), the European Association of Cancer Leagues (ECL) and the French Cancer League (LNCC) organised a European strategy meeting on the implementation of smoke free policies, notably smoke free workplaces, in Europe together with the European Network for Smoking Prevention (ENSP).

Smoking continues to be the largest single cause of death and disease in the European Union. The report describes the effects of tobacco use on individual and population health in Europe.  It also shows how all Member States in the EU are touched by the production, manufacturing, distribution and sale of tobacco products.   It provides information on existing tobacco control policy in the different Member States and how funding for tobacco-control programmes is related to tobacco use.  It also describes how tobacco industry efforts to influence tobacco control policy have been extensive, wide ranging and systematic.   Finally, the report makes a number of recommendations for the future of tobacco control in the EU.

Increasing obesity, especially in children, is being noted with mounting concern throughout Europe. The International Obesity Task Force estimates that approximately 20% of school-age children in Europe are carrying excess body fat, with an increased risk of developing chronic disease. Of these overweight children, a quarter are obese, with a significant likelihood that some will have multiple risk factors for cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes and other co-morbidities before or during early adulthood.

There is a widespread misconception that heart disease is mostly a male disease. Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the main cause of death in both men and women in Europe, causing more deaths than all cancers combined. CVD accounts for 46% of all deaths in women, as compared to 39% of all deaths in men in the EU.

Comments on behalf of the EHN in the context of the reflection process and in particular to the paper 'Partnership for Health in Europe'.

On 1-2 June 2004, the Council of the European Union adopted Council Conclusions on Heart Health.

This report sets out findings and recommendations from a review of European Heart Health Initaitve members' action plans to increase physical activity among children and young people. Please click on the pdf file below to read the full document.

In this paper, EHN sets out its position on the European Commission's proposal for a Regulation on nutrition and health claims. EHN welcomes the restriction of claims to foods that have a specific nutrient profile but finds that the Commission's proposal does not consider the promotion of public health sufficiently.

Please find herewith the document prepared in the framework of the EHHI project on Guidelines for Building National Alliances for the Prevention of CVD.   Please click on the document below to read the full text.

Please find here EHN's comments in respect of the World Health Organization's (WHO) initiative to develop a global strategy on diet, physical activity and health.

Submission on behalf of the EHN in the context of the review of the 'Television without Frontiers' Directive.

Response on behalf of the EHN to a request for information in view of the revision of Council Directive 90/496/EEC on Nutrition Labelling.

The European region, including Central and Eastern Europe, is facing a huge forthcoming burden from cardiovascular diseases. The demographic effect of an ageing population in the West and the deteriorating health and economic situation in the East mean that the European region will be confronted with a large increase in the number of people with CVD in the years to come. Concerted action to prevent CVD is needed. This document provides an up-to-date synopsis of the current consensus of scientific thinking on diet and the prevention of CVD and examines next steps. Below you will find the full report and an executive summary of the report.

Many of the serious diseases of adult life have their origins in a younger age. One of them is obesity, a symptom of an imbalance between caloric intake as food and calories expended through physical activity. This is a strong rationale for encouraging the development of healthy habits among young people. This document sets out specific recommendations for enhancing the uptake of physical activity by children and young people. The recommendations are grouped around the hierarchy of influences on a young person's life, from home and family through school, community and the environment, to national and EU policies.   Children and Young People – the Importance of Physical Activity

It is known that physical activity is an important factor in maintaining a healthy heart. Practising healthy dietary habits and remaining smoke free are other factors that must be considered equally, but this paper is concerned only with physical activity. It sets out the nature of the problem and proposes realistic approaches to solving it. Everyone who has contributed to this paper is adamant on this point: raising levels of physical activity in the population is one key to managing the burden of CVD. An insufficient level of physical activity is an issue of concern to all European Union countries as well as to the candidate countries.  

'Nutrition' claims are messages on food packaging or advertising that draw attention to the nutritional composition of products. 'Health' claims draw attention to their possible health benefits. In this paper EHN suggests a legal framework in which EU legislation on 'nutrition' and 'health' claims could work to promote public health.

The conference 'Winning Hearts - Actions and Policies for a Healthier Europe' was held on 14 February 2000 (St Valentine's Day). Recommendations were made on how heart-healthy considerations can be given their proper place in EU and national policy making. Winning Hearts Report

The Parliamentary Survey (October 1999 - February 2000) was carried out by the European Heart Network and its members in the framework of the European Heart Health Initiative. The purpose of the survey was to get an overview of European politicians' knowledge of the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and their understanding of their role in providing a political environment conducive to the prevention of CVD.   The table of contents include the methodology and main conclusions of the survey and is available to download below.

Raising physical activity levels amongst the general population has been described as 'today's best buy in public health.' A more active lifestyle, even one with low intensity or short-burst types of activity, lowers CVD risks. EHN recommends, among other things, developing an EU policy that enhances physical activity, linked to policies in other relevant areas.

In spite of a widespread belief that cardiovascular diseases (CVD) have been conquered, CVD remains the number one cause of death in Europe, taking more lives than all other causes combined. Of the approximately 1.5 million who die each year from CVD, 15% die before reaching the age of 65. For every person who dies each year of CVD, many more are suffering, either under medical care or living at reduced capacity.   The full document can be downloaded from the pdf file below.