172: The Relaxback UK Show with Mike Dilke - Heart Health & getting comfy on the sofa with back pain172: The Relaxback UK Show with Mike Dilke - Heart Health & getting comfy on the sofa with back pain
UK Health Radio Podcast
Conversation centres on practical heart health, from understanding cholesterol to using at-home tests and workplace schemes, alongside a clever sofa cushion designed to ease back pain without making a home look medical. It focuses on simple tools and design tweaks that might make long-term health and daily comfort more achievable.
44:46•16 Jun 2026
Heart Health Checks and Sofa Comfort: Practical Help for Your Heart and Back
Episode Overview
- Cardiovascular disease is linked to around one in four deaths, yet many adults aged 40–74 have never had their cholesterol checked.
- An at-home Healthy Heart Programme combines a simple finger-prick test, app guidance and pharmacist consultations to explain results and support lifestyle changes.
- Workplace schemes offering free heart checks can uncover hidden risk in people who assume they are fit, and help them act years before a serious event.
- Simple habits such as more exercise, healthier eating, and being mindful of smoking and alcohol are still the core tools for protecting heart health.
- The Sittingwell cushion provides ergonomic lower-back support while looking like a standard scatter cushion, helping people with back pain sit more comfortably on deep sofas or even in bed.
“"About one in four deaths are caused by a cardiovascular disease in one way or another."”
First up, superintendent pharmacist Phil Day shares what he calls some "very scary statistics" on cardiovascular disease, including that "about one in four deaths are caused by a cardiovascular disease in one way or another." He breaks down the difference between good and bad cholesterol using a fun taxi analogy, explains why so many people over 40 have never had their cholesterol checked, and talks through an at-home Healthy Heart Programme using a finger-prick test, app support and follow-up calls with pharmacists.
In this eye-opening episode, you'll learn about two everyday health issues that quietly cause a lot of misery: heart disease and back pain on the sofa. The Relaxback UK Show keeps things chatty and practical, making it ideal for anyone curious about simple ways to protect long-term health without medical jargon. You'll hear how this is being rolled out through workplaces like Royal Mail and why early prevention can change your “heart age” and future risk.
The second half shifts to a very familiar problem: trying to relax on the sofa when your back is screaming. Therapists Lorna Kennard and Rachel Wall explain how many of their chronic pain clients either avoid sofas altogether or find they trigger pain.
Rather than invent a whole new sofa, they created the Sittingwell cushion – a back support designed around ergonomics but disguised as a normal scatter cushion so it blends into your living room instead of shouting "special medical device".
They talk through how the foam shape, padding and fabric were refined with a design student to support the lower back properly, why deep sofas are such a problem, and why some customers even take their cushion abroad because they "couldn’t be without" it.
If you're trying to look after your heart, ease chronic pain, or just want to sit comfortably without making your living room look like a clinic, this conversation might spark a few changes in your daily routine. What small tweak could you make today that your future self might thank you for?
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