Your diet has a major effect on your blood pressure and also your tendency to develop heart disease. Most of us can afford to lose a few pounds, and this will reduce the risk of heart disease. Some points to note:

• Vegetarians have low blood pressure, little heart disease and also get less cancer than meat-eaters, so a diet with a lot of vegetables is highly recommended.

• Fats are not all bad for your arteries, although they are all equally rich in calories.

• Fats do not have much effect on blood pressure.

• Of the three major varieties of fats, the worst are the saturated fats, which come from animal (but not fish) fat.

• Polyunsaturated fats are safe and are found in vegetable oils and fish. Fish also contains omega-three fatty acids, which are beneficial for preventing heart disease.

• The best sort of fats are the monounsaturated fats the main sources of which are olive oil and nuts. Olive oil is the basic ingredient of the Mediterranean diet, which is associated with a low prevalence of heart disease.

• Margarine is not a good substitute for butter, even though it contains polyunsaturated fat and no cholesterol. It contains synthetic (trans-) fat which is thought to cause atherosclerosis. Soft (tub) margarine contains less trans-fat than the solid (stick) type.

• People who eat a lot of fish tend to have less heart disease.