Show your big heart

Join the fun, sign up to volunteer as a Big Heart Appeal street collector and help save lives.

Staying well with heart failure

My Heart Check

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Our purpose: to stop all people in New Zealand dying prematurely from heart disease and enable people with heart disease to live full lives

175,000

people are living with heart disease

That's more than one in 23 adults [1]

1 in 3

Almost 1 in 3 deaths in NZ are caused by cardiovascular disease

It is the leading cause of death in New Zealand and includes heart, stroke and blood vessel disease [2]

90 mins

Every 90 minutes a New Zealander dies from heart disease

Many of these deaths are premature and preventable [2]

$90m

The Heart Foundation has invested into research since 1968

I have a heart condition

I want a healthy lifestyle

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News & Stories

13 November 2023 in Media Releases

Full force of volunteers needed to fight heart disease: Become a Big Heart Appeal street collection volunteer

Big-hearted volunteers will be out in full force in February 2024 as part of the Heart Foundation’s biggest fundraiser of the year, the Big Heart Appeal, which kicks off once again on streets across New Zealand.

Funding transformative heart research – new research grants announced

A phone-sized defibrillator for community first responders, investigating whether AI can prevent a catastrophic heart event, and understanding the impact of ultra-processed food on heart health are just three of the many research projects awarded funding by the Heart Foundation today.

Heart surgeon leading clinical research to prevent catastrophic aortic dissections

Cardiothoracic surgeon and researcher Mr Nishith Patel has been awarded the 2023 Foundation100 Fellowship from the Heart Foundation. During the tenure of the fellowship, Nishith plans to better understand a life-threatening condition known as aortic dissection, which is believed to be more common in New Zealand compared to other countries.