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Announcement: World Heart Day 2011

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World Heart Day
Thursday, 29 September 2011

“One World, One Home, One Heart”
In every HOME around the WORLD, join the fight
to improve your own and your family's HEART health!

This year, on World Heart Day, the World Heart Federation (WHF) and the Philippine Heart Association (PHA) are challenging you to take charge of your family’s heart health and become your home’s advocate for heart-healthy living in order to live longer and healthier lives.

Facts:

1. Every year, 17.1 million lives are claimed by the global burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) – 82 percent of which occur in lower- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

2. The number of deaths due to CVD – especially in LMICs– is alarming and saddening.

3. Global leaders have recognized the urgency to prioritize non-communicable diseases (NCDs) as a public health emergency. The first-ever UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs will be held in September 2011, where global leaders will convene to discuss how to address this growing public health concern.

4. Ahead of the Summit, the World Heart Federation is calling on the global leaders to commit to allocating the necessary resources to combat the world’s number one killer.

5. However, the burden of CVD does not rest only with policy makers and global leaders. Individuals must also prioritize their own heart health and take vital steps to reduce their risk.

6. The majority of CVD is caused by risk factors, such as high blood pressure, cholesterol, being overweight, smoking, lack of physical activity or the presence of diabetes. These risk factors can be controlled, treated or modified through steps taken by individuals within their home-life, such as eating a healthy diet, taking regular exercise and avoiding tobacco.

Calls to action:

1. Ban smoking from your home – Tobacco causes one-fifth of CVD worldwide. The risk of coronary heart disease is cut by half one year after quitting. 15 years after quitting, the risk is nearly the same as someone who never smoked.

2. Stock your home with healthy food options – A healthy diet low in saturated fats, salts and refined carbohydrates, and rich in fruit and vegetables helps prevent CVD.

3. Be active – Just 30 minutes of activity on most – if not all - days of the week can help to prevent heart attacks and strokes. However, in many cultures the home has become a setting in which sedentary lifestyles are adopted, with televisions and computers used regularly as a form of relaxation. Families should limit the amount of time spent in front of the TV to less than two hours per day.

4. Know your numbers – visit your healthcare professional who can measure your blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose levels, together with a waist-to-hip ratio and body mass index (BMI).

Every year, World Heart Day events are run by the WHF and its member organizations in over 100 countries. For this year, the PHA will collaborate with the local government of Cainta, Rizal to celebrate WHD 2011 on 25 September and activities will include:

- Risk Factor Screenings for blood sugar and cholesterol, body mass index, BP monitoring, waist circumference measurement and ECG

- Interactive Lectures on the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle through proper diet, daily exercise, constant check-up and by not smoking.

- Basic Life Support (BLS) demonstration on the proper way to do cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR during emergency cases on people suffering cardiac arrest.

For more information on the celebration of World Heart Day, visit www.world-heart-federation.org.