A Nation Under Pressure: New Hilo Report Reveals Stark Gaps in UK Blood Pressure Awareness, Behaviour and Monitoring

New evidence shows millions at risk as hypertension awareness falls short across income, age and education groups

LONDON, Dec. 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Hilo - the medical-grade continuous blood pressure intelligence platform from Aktiia - publishes its inaugural UK Blood Pressure Report: A Nation Under Pressure, featuring a comprehensive dual-dataset analysis of UK blood pressure awareness and roadmap of the educational divide.

Drawing on nationally representative polling of 2,000 UK adults and proprietary, anonymised data from nearly 9,000 long-term Hilo users, the report exposes a nation facing a silent cardiovascular emergency – one fuelled by low awareness, delayed action and major socioeconomic disparities.

By combining public attitudes with long-term physiological data, the report highlights not just what people know, but how they behave in real life. This dual view reveals where awareness breaks down, where assumptions don't match medical reality, and where simple changes could significantly improve national heart health and dramatically reduce public healthcare costs.

Key findings include:

• Only 47% of the UK public have heard the term 'hypertension' and understand what it means – despite the condition driving more than half of all strokes and heart attacks worldwide.
• A significant diagnosis gap persists: while just 25% of UK adults report having been diagnosed, government data shows up to one-third are affected - a nearly 10-percentage-point shortfall in diagnosis across the population.
• Almost 40% of young adults (16–24) believe hypertension has obvious symptoms – despite it typically being symptomless.
• Awareness of hypertension's links to conditions such as kidney disease, diabetes and vascular dementia is markedly low.
• Lower-income and lower-education groups consistently show reduced awareness, reduced monitoring and reduced lifestyle engagement, placing them at greater long-term risk.
• More than 70% of the population had not measured their blood pressure in the past month, with younger adults being the least likely to check.
• Hilo's long-term data reveals a striking pattern: the age-related climb in systolic blood pressure typically found in adults over 50 appears to be halted among individuals who monitor their blood pressure continuously. This represents real-world evidence that sustained engagement and awareness can support meaningful behavioural change.

Taken together, these insights point to clear opportunities for improvement in how the UK measures, manages, and talks about blood pressure. As government and healthcare bodies continue to focus on prevention and early intervention, this report adds important evidence on where the gaps are – and where targeted communication and easier access to monitoring could make the biggest impact.

Dr Zoe Williams, GP and Resident Doctor on ITV's This Morning, said: 

"Hypertension isn't something to be scared of, it's something to be aware of. When people know their numbers, they are enabled to make healthier choices. What stands out in this report is how knowledge and monitoring really can shift behaviour. If we can improve awareness in all communities and help people take those small, everyday steps earlier, we can prevent a huge amount of heart disease before it ever starts."

Stefan Petzinger, Chief Executive Officer of Aktiia, said:

"We commissioned this study because blood pressure is our core domain, and we needed a clear, fact-based picture of how the UK understands and manages it. What we discovered was eye-opening. Awareness is low, behaviour change is rare, and millions of people are living with risks they don't fully understand.

A third of UK adults have high blood pressure. It is one of the leading causes of heart attacks and strokes – conditions that devastate families yet are often preventable through early detection and consistent management. The gap between risk and action is profound.

This report is a call for urgency. High blood pressure isn't complicated, it's just not talked about enough. That needs to change, and this report is our contribution to putting the issue firmly on the national agenda."

Josep Solà, Chief Technical Officer and Co-Founder of Aktiia, said:

"By pairing public polling with long-term user data from the Hilo platform, we have been able to create a detailed picture of the UK's blood pressure awareness landscape. What stands out is the consistency: low awareness translates into delayed action, and delayed action increases long-term risk.

Our internal data shows that continuous exposure to one's own blood pressure patterns can have a powerful effect. Users over 50 were able to halt, and in some cases reverse, the age-related rise in systolic blood pressure seen in the general population. That kind of behavioural and physiological change has significant potential for public health.

Education, awareness and accessible monitoring are key. The science makes that clear – and the public polling confirms it."

As a proud Prevention Partner of the British & Irish Hypertension Society (BIHS), Hilo is committed to continuing to contribute data and insight to support the national effort towards mitigating the impact of hypertension, and to help more people take control of their blood pressure earlier.

Notes to Editors

About Aktiia:

Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, Aktiia is the global leader in continuous, cuffless blood pressure monitoring. The company combines advanced optical sensing technology with proprietary algorithms and data-driven insights to empower individuals and clinicians to better monitor and manage hypertension – the world's leading silent killer. Aktiia's technology is clinically validated, FDA-cleared and CE-marked (Class IIa) as a medical device. Its flagship product, the Hilo Band, provides continuous, effortless and accurate blood pressure monitoring through a sleek wrist-worn wearable, integrated with the Hilo companion app. Operating in 12 markets worldwide, Aktiia's mission is to help manage the world's blood pressure through innovation, accessibility and scientific rigor.

For more information about Hilo please visit: https://hilo.com/uk/ 

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