Texas Goes Red Friday for Women’s Heart Disease
By John Michaelson
Texas News Service
AUSTIN, Texas – Plenty of folks in Texas will sport a bit more color in their clothing Friday: It’s National Wear Red Day. The American Heart Association-sponsored event encourages people to wear red to help raise awareness that heart disease is the nation’s leading killer of women.
Patty Clements, communications director for the American Heart Association, said chest pain is still the most common symptom among both men and women, but “women are much more prone than men are to also present symptoms such as pain in the back, the jaw, light-headedness, dizziness, heavy fatigue, nausea, vomiting. These are signs that women do need to know about.”
Most cases of heart disease are preventable, Clements added.
Doctors are seeing an increase of heart disease in younger women – and not always those considered high-risk. Jennifer Thorson, St. Paul, was 37 years old and training for her second marathon when she ended up in the hospital.
“One of the most important things about Wear Red Day is that women need to know that they could be at risk, even if they’re younger,” Thorson said, “even if they’re active or they’re in general leading a healthy lifestyle.”
On average, heart disease in America kills one women every minute. Ways to reduce risk include quitting smoking, eating healthy and being physically active.
More information is available at http://GoRedForWomen.org.
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