Almost 3,000 people died from heart disease in the first three months of this year, 10 per cent more than during the same period last year.
The Irish Heart Foundation (IHF) yesterday expressed concern at the figures which come from data compiled by the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
Deaths from heart disease in the Republic had been decreasing steadily over the past 20 years and Dr Brian Maurer, a consultant cardiologist and medical director of the IHF, said it was too early to be sure whether the rise in heart deaths in the first quarter of this year was just a statistical blip.
It could also be, he said, because the population was getting fatter and less fit; the incidence of diabetes was increasing; people were living longer; many were still smoking; and due to the changing ethnic mix in our population.
He urged people not to overeat or drink too much over Christmas. "I think we have to take responsibility for it ourselves. People have to start eating more sensibly.
"They have to start exercising more. We have to get out of our cars and on to our bikes," he said.
According to the CSO, between January and March of this year, 2,937 people died from cardiovascular disease compared to 2,665 in the first quarter of 2006.
More people still die of heart disease (including high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, clots and strokes) every year in the Republic than from any other cause.
However, the numbers dying from the disease had been falling.
In 1984, heart disease accounted for 54 per cent of all deaths and this reduced to 36 per cent of all deaths by 2005.
The chief executive of the IHF, Michael O'Shea, said the latest figures for heart deaths were alarming. "To be effective in the fight against cardiovascular disease, society must take responsibility, starting with the Government, food industry, Department of Transport, Department of Education, Department of Health and the Health Service Executive, Department of Finance and parents," he said.
Mr O'Shea stressed that obesity and smoking were among the biggest causes of heart disease and both were preventable.
"Smoking causes a quarter of all coronary heart disease deaths and 11 per cent of stroke deaths," he said.
Dr Maurer said he would like to see tobacco becoming unaffordable for young people. The 30 cent increase in the price of a packet of 20 cigarettes in the Budget was "derisory".
He suggested that if the price of a packet of cigarettes was raised to €10, it would be a real deterrent.