Wear Red and Reclaim Your Rhythm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:  

Jennifer Johnson

(410) 219-7482 Office

(410) 251-5379 Cell

Wear Red and Reclaim Your Rhythm

Wear red and help raise awareness of women’s No. 1 killer – cardiovascular disease.

(February 2, 2022, Salisbury, MD) Every February is dedicated as American Heart Month in order to spread awareness about heart disease, risk factors, and prevention. About 659,000 people in the United States die from heart disease each year—that’s 1 in every 4 deaths. In 2020 for Wicomico County, heart disease was the leading cause of death and stroke was the third leading cause of death in 2020; COVID-19 was fourth. About half of all Americans (47%) have at least 1 of 3 key risk factors for heart disease: high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and smoking but other risk factors include age, family history, diabetes, overweight/obesity, poor diet, lack of physical activity, and excessive alcohol use. Although some additional risk factors like age and family history cannot be controlled, important steps can be taken to minimize other risk factors.

Here are a few tips to help lower the risk of heart disease:

• Check cholesterol                                                          •   Maintain a healthy diet and weight                         
• Control blood pressure                                                •   Get active
• Quit smoking                                                                  •   Limit alcohol consumption

Join WiCHD, on February 4th, National Wear Red Day® as we wear red to raise awareness of women’s No. 1 killer – cardiovascular disease. On National Wear Red Day, Reclaim Your Rhythm by wearing red, sharing at least one healthy habit you’re prioritizing – it could be around sleep, stress, physical activity or whatever works best for you – and encourage others to do the same.  Submit your name, photo and healthy habit to [email protected] to share on Wicomico County Health Department’s Facebook page. At the end of February, three names of participating Wicomico County residents  will be drawn randomly to win a Go Red prize! You can also show your support by sharing  your Go Red photos on your personal pages using the hashtags:  #WearRedDay and #HeartMonth. Let’s all work together to help those we know and love reduce their risk for cardiovascular disease by building the healthy habits we know work.  For more information on heart disease and American Heart Month, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s page at www.cdc.gov/heartdisease.

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