The upcoming EACH Summit, “Vision to policy: Cardiovascular Health 12 months on” will take place from 11 to 15 December 2023 at the European Parliament in Strasbourg. It represents a unique opportunity to discuss the need for a “cardiovascular health in all policies” approach and bring forward a cardiovascular health plan for the European Union (EU).

The project “A vending machine for a friend’ is aimed at encouraging healthy choices at school and reducing overweight and obesity among young people, as well as contrasting unregulated marketing of unhealthy products targeted to children. On May 18 2023, the results of the pilot project were published in the Journal of Food and Nutrition Sciences.

Hypertension is the leading medical risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), and CVD is the leading cause of death in Europe. Excess salt intake is one of the main causes of hypertension. On World Hypertension Day, the European Heart Network calls for policymakers to support food reformulation initiatives and the implementation of other salt reduction strategies that promote cardiovascular health at the population level.

An international research team received a 10 million euro grant from Horizon Europe and UK Research and Innovation to roll out the HYPERMARKER project.

The HYPERMARKER team, including EHN, will develop and test tools supported by artificial intelligence that allow clinicians to select the best treatment for each individual patient with high blood pressure. The consortium is made up of 12 partners who are world leaders in health data science, patient advocacy and industry.

Wendy Davis is a patient consultant who started collaborating with EHN in 2022 on the EU-funded Horizon Europe project, AIDAVA (“AI-powered Data Curation and Publishing Virtual Assistant"). After experiencing heart failure and undergoing open heart surgery at a young age, Wendy realized the transformative power of Artificial Intelligence (Al) in cardiovascular care and started advocating for patient empowerment in this field.

On 8 March 2023, on International Women’s Day, the European Heart Network (EHN) affirmed its commitment to advocating for gender equity in cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention, diagnosis, patient care, and research. Eight members of the European Parliament collaborated with EHN in spreading awareness on the key areas of gender equity in cardiovascular health, including Frances Fitzgerald (EPP, Ireland), Sirpa Pietikäinen (EPP, Finland), Stelios Kympouropoulos (EPP, Greece), Patrizia Toia (S&D, Italy), István Ujhelyi (S&D, Hungary), Juozas Olekas (Renew, Lithuania) and MEP Heart Group Co-Chairs Maria da Graça Carvalho (EPP, Portugal) and Brando Benifei (S&D, Italy). 

From 28 February to 2 March 2023, the European Heart Network (EHN) will join various CVD and diabetes stakeholders at the European Parliament for the exhibition, “Let’s make a joint health check for CVD and diabetes happen.”

Political resistance against sustainable food policies is threatening to derail the process for an EU Sustainable Food Systems Law. Against this backdrop, 286 organisations have issued an open letter urging European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to ensure the Commission proposal is presented by September 2023, as planned. 

EHN and 10 patient and consumer organisations signed a joint letter addressed to the Executive Steering Group on Shortages and Safety of Medicinal Products (MSSG) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

We are pleased to announce that the European Heart Network is expanding its presence within the World Heart Federation’s (WHF) structure.