February is American Heart Month. Join NBC 5 and the American Heart Association and learn how to protect your heart. Cardiovascular disease is a combination of heart disease and stroke. On average, cardiovascular disease kills approximately 2,300 people a day. During American Heart Month, The American Heart Association and other organizations are reinforcing the importance of heart health, the need for more research and efforts to ensure that millions of people live longer and healthier.
Now more than ever, obesity is affecting larger numbers of adults and youth. Even at earlier ages, youth are being diagnosed with heart disease. While science is advancing medicine in exciting new ways, unhealthy lifestyle choices combined with rising obesity rates in both kids and adults have hindered progress fighting heart disease.
The good news is that heart disease is preventable, in most cases, with healthy choices. These choices include maintaining a healthy weight, controlling blood sugar and cholesterol, treating high blood pressure, getting at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity a week, getting regular checkups and not smoking.
American Heart Month is vital for awareness, but the American Heart Association urges people to take care of their hearts year-round. Consider the facts:
- Heart disease kills more people than all forms of cancer combined.
- Heart attacks affect more people every year than the population of Dallas, Texas.
- 83% believe that heart attacks can be prevented but aren’t motivated to do anything.
- 72% of Americans don’t consider themselves at risk for heart disease.
- 58% of Americans put no effort into improving their heart health.
American Heart Month is more important now than ever due to the negative impact of Covid-19 on the public’s health. According to recent research, the negative impacts include potential harmful effects on the heart and vascular system.
The Covid-19 pandemic has created a delay or avoidance for hospital visits resulting from heart attacks and strokes. The poor outcomes have promoted the American Heart Association to create a national campaign titled, “Don’t Die of Doubt” www.heart.org/en/health-topics/dont-die-of-doubt. The campaign strives to remind individuals that hospitals are the safest place to go when people are experiencing cardiovascular symptoms.
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The Covid-19 pandemic’s lockdown has also caused more people to engage in unhealthy lifestyle behaviors such as eating poorly, drinking more alcohol and limiting physical activity. All of these unhealthy choices can contribute to heart disease.
Join the fight against heart disease! For more information, visit www.heart.org.
NBC 5 is a media sponsor of the American Heart Association’s American Heart Month awareness campaign.
American Heart Month 2021
February 2021
American Heart Association
www.heart.org
