Women’s Heart Health, An Ongoing Problem

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The NIH urges women to protect their heart health

The Heart Truth campaign celebrates a decade of progress  and continues to inspire heart health action during American Heart Month

As part of American Heart Month, on Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2012,  the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s (NHLBI’s) The Heart Truth  campaign, with the support of the Foundation for the National Institutes of  Health (FNIH), will showcase its signature event, the Red  Dress Collection 2012 at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York City. As part of its 10th  anniversary this year, The Heart Truth has partnered with Million  Hearts, a national initiative of the U.S. Department of Health and Human  Services, to prevent one million heart attacks and strokes over the next five  years.

“Although heart disease is still the leading cause of death  for women, The Heart Truth and other campaigns have made great strides in  raising women’s awareness of heart disease and motivating them to find out  their personal risk and take action to reduce it,” said Susan B. Shurin, M.D.,  acting director of the NHLBI.  “Women can greatly reduce their risk of  heart disease by managing cholesterol levels, controlling blood pressure, not  smoking, and adopting other healthy habits, such as eating well, being active,  and keeping a healthy weight.”

More women are finding out their personal risk for  developing heart disease — in 2009, 48 percent reported discussing heart disease  with their doctor, up from 30 percent in 1997. Data also show that women  who are aware that heart disease is their number one killer were 35 percent  more likely to be physically active and 47 percent more likely to report losing  excess weight than women who were unaware.

A new paper published in the Jan. 26 issue of the New  England Journal of Medicine adds to the substantial body of evidence that  people can reduce their chances of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD)  through lifelong prevention and management of risk factors. In one of the  largest-ever analyses of lifetime risks for CVD, NHLBI-supported researchers  found that middle-aged adults who have one or more elevated traditional risk  factors for CVD, such as high blood pressure, have a substantially greater  chance of having a major CVD event, such as heart attack or stroke, during  their remaining lifetime than people with optimal levels of risk factors. For example, women with at least two major risk factors were three times as  likely to die from cardiovascular disease as women with none or one risk factor  (20.5 percent vs. 6.4 percent).

During American Heart Month, The Heart Truth and its  partners are hosting activities to celebrate a decade of progress and to  continue to urge American women to take charge of their heart health.

National Wear Red Day: Friday, Feb. 3
As part of its milestone anniversary, The Heart Truth will  celebrate the 10th National Wear Red Day, when Americans nationwide wear red to  show their support for women’s heart disease awareness. This year, the  campaign is again encouraging women to take a photo of themselves or a group  and share their heart health action online. For more information, visit  The Heart Truth’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Heart-Truth/6476847301.

In addition, The Heart Truth will co-host a Twitter chat  about heart health with Million Hearts and the American Heart Association from  1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time. To join the conversation, follow  @thehearttruth and look for the hashtag #heartchat.

Red Dress Collection Fashion Show: Wednesday, Feb.  8
The Heart Truth unveils the 10th Red Dress Collection at the  Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City. Kicking off New York Fashion Week, the  Red Dress Collection 2012 Fashion Show will feature more than 18 celebrities  walking the runway in fashions created by some of America’s top  designers. During The Heart Truth’s 10 years of partnership with the  fashion industry, nearly 80 designers and 162 celebrities have participated in  the annual Red Dress Collection Fashion Shows.

The Heart Truth brings the Red Dress Collection to life on the runway with the  support of the FNIH. The Red Dress Collection 2012 Fashion Show is  presented by Diet Coke with partners Bobbi Brown Cosmetics and Elizabeth Arden  Red Door Spas.

“Diet Coke congratulates The Heart Truth on its 10th anniversary. The  highly successful campaign has had our heartfelt support for the last five  years, and we continue to be passionate about its mission to encourage women to  be active and committed to educating themselves about heart health.” said  William White, group director of Coke North America.

Celebrity participants in this year’s Red Dress Collection Fashion Show  include: The Talk’s Aisha Tyler; Cougar Town’s Busy Philipps; Grammy  Award-winning singer-songwriter Chaka Khan; Glamour’s Editor-in-Chief Cindi  Leive; supermodel Christie Brinkley; Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps’ mother,  Debbie Phelps; television actress Elisabeth Rohm; host of the popular reality  show Nuestra Belleza Latina Giselle Blondet; Tony Award-winner Idina Menzel;  Discovery Familia’s Jeannette Torres-Álvarez; television and film actress Jenna  Elfman; country music artist Jennifer Nettles; actress and disc jockey La La  (Vazquez) Anthony; Dynasty’s Golden Globe Award-winning actress Linda  Evans; Entertainment Tonight anchor Nancy O’Dell; Bravo’s The Millionaire Matchmaker Patti Stanger; and actress and former  fashion model Rebecca Romijn.*

Participating designers include: Alberta Ferretti, Badgley Mischka, Chris  March, Marc Bouwer, Marchesa, Carmen Mark Valvo, Michael Kors, and Oscar de la  Renta.

Panel Discussion on Women and Heart Disease: Wednesday, Feb. 8

To highlight the progress made and reflect on the  challenging issues still facing the women’s heart health movement, the NHLBI  and The Heart Truth campaign are partnering with the Mayo Clinic and WomenHeart  to conduct a special panel discussion for the media, In the Prime of her Life:  an Update on Women and Cardiovascular Disease, at the Setai Fifth Avenue in New  York City. Panel speakers include Nakela Cook, M.D., M.P.H, of the NHLBI  and Sharonne Hayes, M.D., director of the Women’s Heart Clinic at Mayo Clinic  and associate professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic College of  Medicine. The panel topics include:

Community Action Grants
For the fifth year, the FNIH will award grants to help  communities mobilize efforts to increase heart disease awareness and foster  healthy behavior change, especially in African-American women, low-income  women, and women who live in rural areas. This year, six grants will be  awarded. Recipients are listed below:

  • Northeast District Department of Health,  Brooklyn, Conn.
  • St. Elizabeth Medical Center, Inc., Edgewood,  Ky.
  • North Country Health Consortium, Littleton, N.H.
  • Dallas County Health Department, Buffalo, Mo.
  • Refugee Women’s Alliance, Seattle
  • Divas, Making Our People Healthier (MPH),  College Park, Md.

To date, 31 grants have been awarded by the FNIH as part of  a public-private partnership with the NHLBI in support of The Heart Truth. Funding is provided by the FNIH and partners of The Heart Truth.

The Heart Truth contributes to progress toward the heart  disease and stroke objectives and targets that are set forth in Healthy People  2020, the nation’s health promotion and disease prevention objectives for the  decade. www.healthypeople.gov

Please Note:
*Participants in The Heart Truth’s Red Dress Collection 2012  Fashion Show were confirmed at time of release and are subject to change.

About The Heart Truth
The Heart Truth is a national awareness campaign for  women about heart disease and is sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and  Blood Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of  Health and Human Services. Through the campaign, the NHLBI leads the nation in  a landmark heart health awareness movement that is being embraced by millions  who share the common goal of better heart health for all women.

The centerpiece of The Heart Truth is the Red Dress, which  was introduced as the national symbol for women and heart disease awareness in  2002 by the NHLBI. The Red Dress reminds women of the need to protect their  heart health, and inspires them to take action.

To learn more, visit www.hearttruth.gov.

The Heart Truth, its logo, and The Red Dress are  registered trademarks of HHS.
National Wear Red Day is a registered trademark of HHS  and the American Heart Association.

The National Heart, Lung,  and Blood Institute
Part of the National Institutes  of Health, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) plans,  conducts, and supports research related to the causes, prevention, diagnosis,  and treatment of heart, blood vessel, lung, and blood diseases; and sleep disorders.  The Institute also administers national health education campaigns on women and  heart disease, healthy weight for children, and other topics. NHLBI press  releases and other materials are available online at www.nhlbi.nih.gov.

The Foundation for the  National Institutes of Health
Established by the United States Congress to support the mission of the NIH —  improving health through scientific discovery in the search for cure — the  Foundation for the NIH is a leader in identifying and addressing complex  scientific and health issues. The Foundation is a non-profit, 501(c)(3)  charitable organization that raises private-sector funds for a broad portfolio  of unique programs that complement and enhance the NIH priorities and  activities. For additional information about the Foundation for the NIH, visit www.fnih.org.

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by National Institutes of Health.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of PreventiveMedicineDaily or its staff.

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