Sir Roger Moore advises fans to learn to check their pulse

Sir Roger Moore assumed he was in good health until he was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat. He tells the Daily Express why it is vital that everyone learns how to check their pulse.

As commander James Bond, Sir Roger Moore set millions of female hearts aflutter. However now the veteran actor is on a mission to prevent his fans having palpitations of another kind.

Long retired from the secret service, Sir Roger has become a tireless charity ambassador and is campaigning to save the lives of people who suffer from an irregular heartbeat. The 82-year-old star is only too familiar with the condition, known as arrhythmia, having collapsed on stage a few years ago.

In a rare interview Sir Roger explains how checking your pulse regularly could save your life. “People should know their pulse as they would their weight,” he says. “If I had been checking my pulse I would have realised my heartbeat was slow and sought help.”

Sir Roger is not alone. About two million people in the UK suffer heart rhythm problems, where the heart beats either too slowly, too quickly or at an irregular pace. Untreated arrhythmia can lead to a heart attack or stroke.

Sudden cardiac arrest caused by arrhythmia results in 100,000 deaths a year.

The former 007 actor lost consciousness on stage in New York in 2003 during a performance of The Play What I Wrote as his wife, Swedish socialite Kristina Tholstrup, watched in the audience.

Unknown to him at the time, he was suffering from bradycardia, an unusually slow heartbeat, which is generally considered to be anything fewer than 40 beats a minute.

“I’d just finished a vigorous song and dance routine and I remember trying to say a line but nothing came out,” says Sir Roger, recalling his collapse. “Then I went down.

“I was playing Marie Antionette in a dress with a big wig, which probably helped limit the damage when I fell. My wife thought at first I was ad-libbing but when the curtain came down she knew something was terribly wrong and came racing backstage. I remember opening my eyes and seeing fellow actor Hamish McColl bending over me and thinking, ‘What are you doing in my bedroom?’ There was a roaring noise in my head but it cleared and I felt okay.”

Sir Roger insisted on finishing the play but paramedics were waiting after the show. He was fitted with an oxygen mask, strapped to a stretcher and whisked to hospitalwhere he was fitted with a pacemaker which keeps the heart at an ideal 60 beats a minute by sending an electric signal to it if the rate drops.

Although he hadn’t really felt unwell before his collapse, within a few days of his operation Sir Roger says he felt noticeably fitter and had more energy, probably due to the rise in his oxygen levels.

Bradycardia can be due to normal causes and commonly occurs in athletes or during a state of deep relaxation.

This is normal and should not usually cause any difficulties. It can also occur when the body’s natural pacemaker, the sinus node, stops working properly.

The sinus node is a cluster of cells in the upper right chamber, or atrium, of the heart. It generates electrical signals that regulate the pace and rhythm of the heartbeat.

If the sinus node falters, a fail-safe system kicks in which is not as effective, meaning blood takes longer to pump round the body. Sometimes the heart will stop briefly, temporarily cutting off oxygenated blood to the brain, leading to blackouts, which is what Sir Roger suffered.

Other types of arrhythmia include tachycardia, where the heart consistently beats more than 100 times a minute at rest. The most common rhythm disorder is atrial fibrillation, which occurs when chaotic electrical activity develops in the heart’s upper chambers and takes over from the sinus node.

Symptoms to watch out for include palpitations, dizziness, fatigue, chest pain, fainting or near fainting. However some people have no symptoms, so a pulse check is vital.

“You can check your pulse at any time but last thing at night after a period of rest is a good time,” says Sir Roger.

Your resting heart rate should be between 60 and 100 beats a minute but there may be reasons why a heartbeat is faster or slower such as age, fitness levels, medications, caffeine or stress.

Dr Matthew Fay of the Atrial Fibrillation Association says anyone with a persistent heartbeat under 40 a minute or above 120 should see their doctor. “I teach all my patients who have had heart attacks or strokes how to take their pulse because it is the best way to detect a problem,” he says.

Sir Roger, who has homes in Monaco, Switzerland and the south of France, says he walks to keep fit and feels very well.

“I was lucky,” he says. “My collapse was a warning. Others may not be so fortunate. Taking your pulse only takes 30 seconds.”

A four-step guide on how to take your pulse can be found at www.knowyourpulse.org which also has a link to a video of Sir Roger demonstrating taking his pulse.

For more information visit www.stars.org.uk and www.heartrhythmcharity.org.uk

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