Wear Red Day - Friday February 5, 2010
Yesterday I went to the doctor. Nothing is wrong but I needed to take care of something that I've been putting off for awhile. As usual, the nurse took my blood pressure and I was a little anxious. All of the women in my family are hypertensive - my mother, my aunt, my grandmother and my great aunt. Although my great aunt and grandmother are no longer with us, they both suffered as a result of their heart disease.
Every time I have my blood pressure checked I worry. I don't want to be in the same boat as the other women in my family and have to take medication to keep my blood pressure down. Of course, this worrying can skew the results and my pressure was 140/80. If you don't know, that is pretty high. The nurse attributed it to my activity before having it taken and she didn't seem very concerned. I just hope that when I have my physical on the 19th that my pressure will be normal.
In addition to my genetic predisposition I have reason to be concerned. Did you know that cardiovascular disease kills approximately 450,000 women each year? That is about one every two minutes! And, more women die of heart disease than the next five causes of death including cancer. And 90% of women have one or more risk factors for developing heart disease!
The good news is that heart disease is preventable. 80 percent of cardiac events in women may be prevented if women make the right choices for their hearts, involving diet, exercise and abstinence from smoking.
All of these facts are highlighted on the American Heart Association's Go Red For Women website. And I am in full support of raising awareness about heart disease among women, especially since I know I am at risk. The fact that I've embarked on a healthy lifestyle including exercise and watching the things that I eat certainly can help diminish my risks for heart disease.
This Friday, February 5th I will be joining thousands of women and wearing red for National Wear Red Day. I will be at Blissdom wearing the outfit I have on in the photo above. Perhaps you can join in and wear red too. Most of us are at risk, help raise awareness and better yet, still living a fit and healthy lifestyle to prevent heart disease!
Every time I have my blood pressure checked I worry. I don't want to be in the same boat as the other women in my family and have to take medication to keep my blood pressure down. Of course, this worrying can skew the results and my pressure was 140/80. If you don't know, that is pretty high. The nurse attributed it to my activity before having it taken and she didn't seem very concerned. I just hope that when I have my physical on the 19th that my pressure will be normal.
In addition to my genetic predisposition I have reason to be concerned. Did you know that cardiovascular disease kills approximately 450,000 women each year? That is about one every two minutes! And, more women die of heart disease than the next five causes of death including cancer. And 90% of women have one or more risk factors for developing heart disease!
The good news is that heart disease is preventable. 80 percent of cardiac events in women may be prevented if women make the right choices for their hearts, involving diet, exercise and abstinence from smoking.
All of these facts are highlighted on the American Heart Association's Go Red For Women website. And I am in full support of raising awareness about heart disease among women, especially since I know I am at risk. The fact that I've embarked on a healthy lifestyle including exercise and watching the things that I eat certainly can help diminish my risks for heart disease.
This Friday, February 5th I will be joining thousands of women and wearing red for National Wear Red Day. I will be at Blissdom wearing the outfit I have on in the photo above. Perhaps you can join in and wear red too. Most of us are at risk, help raise awareness and better yet, still living a fit and healthy lifestyle to prevent heart disease!
Comments
See you there!!!
I hope that your pressure comes down soon... keep working out and doing as well as you have been.
Have fun at Blissdom - wish I was going.