A longer,
healthier life is everyone’s goal, and there’s no better starting point for a
personal wellness program than good heart care.
That’s
been the core message of the American Heart Association (AHA), as well as its American
Heart Month, an awareness effort that began back in February 1964. (Want to
read the presidential proclamation? Here you go.) At that time, more than half the deaths in America were caused
by cardiovascular disease, and heart disease and stroke remain the leading
global cause of death — more than 17.3 million each year, according to the AHA.
The
statistics are sobering:
• 220.8
people out of 100,000 die from cardiovascular disease
• one
person dies of a heart attack, or has a stroke, every 40 seconds or about 2,200
deaths per day
• stroke accounts
for one out of every 20 deaths in the United States
But
enough of the bad news — heart disease is preventable. How? By making healthy
choices, which can even be easy ones:
• Season
food with spices instead of salt.
• Get in
some physical activity every day, even if it’s just a short walk.
• Make sure
you see your doctor for a regular, annual physical.
Want to
get the word out? The AHA has lots of ways you can spread the news about heart
health. There’s information for use in newsletters, and it’s never a bad idea
to send out a tweet or post to social media about American Heart Month so more people
become aware.
Heart disease
is a killer, and we can help stop it. Be part of the solution for yourself,
your friends and family, and your community.
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