Cardiovascular disease is a significant and ever-growing problem in the United Kingdom, accounting for nearly one-third of all deaths and leading to significant morbidity. It is also of particular and pressing interest as developing countries experience a change in lifestyle which introduces novel risk factors for cardiovascular disease, leading to a boom in cardiovascular disease risk throughout the developing world. The burden of cardiovascular disease can be ameliorated by careful risk reduction and, as such, primary prevention is an important priority for all developers of health policy. Strong consensus exists between international guidelines regarding the necessity of smoking cessation, weight optimisation and the importance of exercise, whilst guidelines vary slightly in their approach to hypertension and considerably regarding their approach to optimal lipid profile which remains a contentious issue. Previously fashionable ideas such as the polypill appear devoid of in-vivo efficacy, but there remain areas of future interest such as the benefit of serum urate reduction and utility of reduction of homocysteine levels. The purpose of this review has been to summarize the causes of common cardiovascular diseases and prophylactic measures.