National Wear Red Day

Are you wearing red today? You should be. Today is National Wear Red Day. We're wearing red today to call attention to heart disease in women. Did you know that while one in every thirty women in the United States dies of breast cancer, a terrible statistic, one in every four dies of heart disease? That's really shocking.

An astonishing 80 percent of women ages 40 to 60 have one or more risk factors for heart disease. Having more than one risk factor dramatically increases a woman’s chance of developing heart disease.

Risk factors are conditions or habits that make a person more likely to develop a disease. They can also increase the chance that an existing disease will get worse. Important risk factors for heart disease are:

* High blood pressure
* High cholesterol
* Diabetes
* Smoking
* Being overweight
* Being physically inactive
* Having a family history of early heart disease
* Age (55 or older for women)

Some risk factors, such as age and family history of early heart disease, can't be changed. For women, age becomes a risk factor at 55. After menopause, women are more apt to get heart disease, in part because their body's production of estrogen drops. Women who have gone through early menopause, either naturally or because they have had a hysterectomy, are twice as likely to develop heart disease as women of the same age who have not yet gone through menopause. Another reason for the increasing risk is that middle age is a time when women tend to develop risk factors for heart disease. If your father or brother had a heart attack before age 55, or if your mother or sister had one before age 65, you are more likely to get heart disease yourself.

While certain risk factors cannot be changed, it is important to realize that you do have control over many others. Regardless of your age, background, or health status, you can lower your risk of heart disease-and it doesn't have to be complicated. Protecting your heart can be as simple as taking a brisk walk, whipping up a good vegetable soup, or getting the support you need to maintain a healthy weight.

First go see your doctor armed with these questions from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute:

What is my risk for heart disease?
What is my blood pressure? What does it mean for me, and what do I need to do about it?
What are my cholesterol numbers? (These include total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, and triglycerides, a type of fat found in the blood and food.) What do they mean for me, and what do I need to do about them?
What are my “body mass index” and waist measurement? Do they mean that I need to lose weight for my health?
What is my blood sugar level, and does it mean I’m at risk for diabetes? If so, what do I need to do about it?
What other screening tests for heart disease do I need?
What can you do to help me quit smoking?
How much physical activity do I need to help protect my heart?
What is a heart healthy eating plan for me?
How can I tell if I may be having a heart attack? If I think I’m having one, what should I do?

Are you ready to make some changes in your life to ensure you are not a victim of heart disease? Are you willing to share the message? Are you wearing red today? If not, go back inside and change!