Feature
February
2
Wear Red, Support Heart Health
by Terry Trahan Jr.
If you’re seeing red this Friday, there’s likely a good reason for it.
As part of its Go Red for Women campaign, the American Heart Association will celebrate National Wear Red Day Feb. 3. That means women across the U.S. will join in wearing red to raise awareness for heart disease.
The AHA started Go Red for Women in 2004 when the association realized that heart disease claims the lives of 500,000 American women annually. Despite this alarming number, women were not paying attention. Much of the population still referred to cardiovascular disease as an “older man’s disease,” so the AHA turned to Go Red for Women to reveal the truth behind these myths and expose heart disease as the No. 1 killer of women.
In 2010, the AHA set a goal of reducing death and disability linked to heart disease and strokes by 20 percent. The association also seeks to improve the cardiovascular health of all Americans by 20 percent by 2020.
Go Red for Women aims to accomplish that goal by educating women on the risks and symptoms of cardiovascular disease, and by increasing awareness that it is a serious condition among the female demographic.
While men have often been the focus of studies and other research projects to better develop treatments and heart disease programs, the AHA has worked to ensure that research now targets women as well. Only 55 percent of women are aware that heart disease is their No. 1 killer, and less than half are properly educated on how to monitor significant risk factors like blood pressure and cholesterol.
Nearly 47 percent of American adults have high cholesterol, according to the AHA. Too much cholesterol in a person’s blood can increase the risk for heart disease and stroke. Cholesterol and other fats can build up, narrow arteries and then be blocked by a blood clot or other particle. This causes the heart or brain to lose its blood supply; the result is a heart attack or stroke.
Starting at age 20, a person’s cholesterol levels should be checked every five years. To keep the levels regulated between checkups, the AHA recommends that the body gets at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity each week.
When it comes to blood pressure, women account for half of all adults with the condition. High blood pressure tends to be silent with no symptoms, but raises the risk of stroke, heart attack, and heart and kidney failure. About 80 percent of cardiac events could be prevented if women learned how to make heart-healthy choices. Neglecting to regulate diet and exercise leads to other serious conditions like heart attack and stroke, the No. 3 cause of death in America. Diabetes is another major concern, as women with diabetes have two to four times higher death rates from heart disease. Those with the condition also tend to suffer from high blood pressure and cholesterol.
In an effort to raise awareness of these conditions among women, Go Red for Women encourages supporters to don red on National Wear Red Day. In 2003, the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, the AHA and other organizations joined in the effort. The NHLBI introduced the red dress as a national symbol for women and heart disease awareness.
Activities take place across the country on National Wear Red Day, and funds collected during these events benefit women through research, education and community programs that directly target heart disease. The AHA’s Go Red Heart CheckUp program has already identified risks for over 2 million women.
If you would like to join Go Red for Women, visit GoRedForWomen.org, where you can learn more about the program and how to make heart-healthy decisions.
