Exercise & Nutrition

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Living with pulmonary hypertension (PH) is not just about managing your PH – you also need to stay healthy. This can reduce the chance of your PH worsening. It also provides many other advantages in terms of health, well-being and quality of life.

Movement and physical activity

It’s a common misconception that doing physical activity will make your PH worse, but in fact exercising can help to train your body to cope better with breathlessness if it’s done in moderation and in the right way.

Carol Keen, clinical specialist physiotherapist at the Sheffield Pulmonary Vascular Disease Unit, runs through some common misconceptions about getting active which lead people to think they can’t do any exercise.

For more videos giving you guidance about physical activity, visit our PHocus on Lifestyle website:

Diet and nutrition

Have you ever heard the saying ‘food is medicine’? Here at the PHA UK we have long been advocates of a healthy lifestyle alongside medical treatment – and what we eat plays a big part in staying well.

We understand that the challenges of PH can make food preparation tricky, or affect the choices that you make. Our aim is to help you understand more about nutrition, and to eat well in a way that works for you.

To stay fit and healthy, your body needs a mixture of nutrients and vitamins. The best way to get this is to eat a balanced diet. It is also important to maintain a healthy weight. It can be difficult to manage your weight, especially if PH makes it hard for you to exercise.

To find out whether you are a healthy weight and for guidance on what makes up a healthy diet, visit the NHS’s livewell website.

Expert advice

Our work in this area is led by certified nutritionist Shaun Clayton, with registered dietician Chermaine Kwant – who has her own lived experience of pulmonary hypertension. Our bank of expert articles and videos is available on our sister website.

Hear from the experts

Why eating well matters

PH Consultant Professor David Kiely, Dietician Chermaine Kwant, and PHA UK Chair Dr Iain Armstrong explain why more needs to be done to support people to eat well with PH – and why good nutrition really matters.

Top tips

Small changes to your lifestyle can make big differences in terms of health benefits.

If you exercise less, remember to eat less. If your PH means you can’t exercise, you won’t need as much food as those around you.
Try to get out of the house at least once a day. Even a small walk can help.
Buy healthy foods that you like. Eating five portions of fruit and vegetables a day doesn’t have to be difficult.
Don’t overdo it. Changing the amount of exercise you do is about long-term change; don’t tire yourself out in the first few days.

Questions about nutrition?

When it comes to nutrition, we’re here to help. Send us your questions and our experts will get back to you as soon as possible.

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