February is American Heart Month, highlighting the importance of keeping our hearts healthy.
Some signs of heart disease are racing pulse, chest pain or discomfort, dizziness or fainting spells, especially with activity (for example, exercising, sex, or other intense physical activity).
Some people may feel fine but have a heart attack anyway. For them, there usually were no warning signs. But if you had warning signs and ignored them, it’s even more important to watch for other signs.
With this in mind, it’s important to spread awareness about heart health and encourage people to live healthier lifestyles.
Here are some ideas on how you can raise awareness for this month:
Invite Local Experts to Speak About American Heart Month
You can call local specialists and experts to speak about the importance of heart health at your office or community center. This could be doctors, nurses, dieticians, trainers, exercise experts, etc. Discuss the best ways to keep our hearts healthy so we can live long lives.
Hold a Fundraiser
Rather than hosting a formal dinner, you can hold an event that will allow guests to help raise funds for the American Heart Association. For example, you could host a trivia night or fun run where people can donate money or participate in physical activities for this cause.
Promote a Healthy Lifestyle
One of the best ways to raise awareness is to encourage your community to practice healthy habits every day. You can set up a booth at local events or create fliers that highlight the importance of eating right, exercising daily, and never smoking.
Talk to Your Friends and Family
Start a dialogue by asking your friends and family if they’re aware of the importance of keeping their hearts healthy. Also, ask them if they know anything that could affect heart health; many may not know those seemingly harmless things, like being overweight or under stress, affect heart health.
Host an Event at Your Home or a Senior Center
If you’re planning to host something at home, you could invite friends and family over for a meal with heart-healthy snacks or plan a day where everyone wears red in solidarity with heart disease.
If you’re planning to host an event at a senior center, explore ideas on how they could spread awareness for American Heart Month with their residents or what information would be helpful for them to know about heart health.
Give Your Friends & Family Resources to Educate About Heart Health
Create a handout of resources that’s helpful for your friends and family to know about heart health. This includes healthy recipes, symptoms of a heart attack, symptoms of a stroke, signs that someone is under stress, and more.
Get Communities Involved By Planning a Heart-Healthy Event
If you want to get a community involved in spreading awareness for heart health, plan an event that could be open to everyone.
Be Aware of Signs of Heart Disease
Heart disease is often masked by seemingly harmless symptoms, making diagnosing it more difficult. This month, be aware of the signs and know when to go to the doctor if you think you or someone you love may be at risk for heart disease.
Raising awareness about heart health is crucial for this month, especially since 1 in 3 U.S adults die from coronary artery disease every year. The key to living a healthy lifestyle is understanding what risks a person has and how to live with those risks.
Caring Healthcare offers many resources for people to learn about heart health. We educate patients every day on how they can keep their hearts healthy, which includes eating right, exercising daily, and never smoking. For more information, please reach us at 803-772-2231.
