Wearing Red For Awareness

February is American Heart Month. To raise awareness of the fact that heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health, as well as the American Heart Association, promoted “National Wear Red Day” on Feb. 6.

Go Red For Women® is a campaign powered by the American Heart Association’s research, focused on educating and connecting millions of women of all ages.

A recent press release from the NHLBI focused on the Wear Red campaign, stating:

“Women have tremendous power to reduce their risk of heart disease and lead a longer, healthier life. In fact, by doing just four things—eating right, being physically active, not smoking, and keeping a healthy weight —Americans can lower their risk by as much as 82 percent. Risk factors for heart disease include:

• age (55 or older for women);
• a family history of early heart disease;
• high blood pressure;
• high blood cholesterol;
• diabetes;
• smoking;
• being overweight or obese; and
• being physically inactive.”

The American Heart Association health statistics from Go Red For Women include:

• Cardiovascular disease kills approximately 450,000 women each year, which is about one every minute.
• More women die of cardiovascular disease than the next five causes of death combined, including all forms of cancer.
• Sixty-four percent of women who die suddenly of coronary heart disease have no previous symptoms.

You can find information and resources online at http://www.goredforwomen.org/.