Gender inequality,poverty,illetracy and lack of access to health services influence women health  and specially cardiovascular problems.An appropriate action was to   needed to   dispel     the myths and raise  awareness of Heart disease and stroke as no. 1 killer of women.,American Heart Association  created GO RED FOR WOMEN,a  passionate ,emotional and social initiative designed to empower women to take charge of their Heart heath.It makes them aware of their personal risks of developing heart disease and gives them the tools they need to lead a heart healthy life

Prof. Dr. Nusrat Ara Majeed

WORLD HEART DAY IS THE WORLD Heart federation, s biggest platform for raising awareness about cardiovascular diseases.These are the leading cause

o f death globally [. 31 percent of global deaths]

By 2030 more than 23.6 million will die of cardiovascular diseases

Fortunately we can change that because 80 percent of cardiac disease and stroke may be prevented with education and action

WORLD HEART DAY is celebrated all over the world      every year in   last week of September. By now there has been enough  awareness about risk factors and how to combat them by life style  modifications,which includes exercise,healthy food,avoiding stress , no to smoking and ofcourse maintaining   weight ,blood pressure and blood sugar levels.But one very important segment   of society ,the women  ,have been ignored  because of certain  myths ;

That   is    a disease of men and older women. Younger women with these symptoms were ignored, often being dismissed   as cases  of    BROKEN AND BEREAVED HAEART .But it is now proven that this bereaved heart was in fact a diseased Heart

Unfortunately the simple fact of being a woman increases the risk of Heart disease and stroke.

Heart disease claims the lives of 1 in 3 women, that is one third of all mothers, sisters and friends.It continues to be a women’s greatest health challenge.

In 2004 the American Heart Association faced    this    challenge ,Heart disease claimed the lives of 500,000women each year. Yet  both women and their physicians were not paying attention.

Gender inequality,poverty,illetracy and lack of access to health services influence women health  and specially cardiovascular problems.An appropriate action was to   needed to   dispel     the myths and raise  awareness of Heart disease and stroke as no. 1 killer of women.,American Heart Association  created GO RED FOR WOMEN,a  passionate ,emotional and social initiative designed to empower women to take charge of their Heart heath.It makes them aware of their personal risks of developing heart disease and gives them the tools they need to lead a heart healthy life.

GO  RED FOR WOMEN inspires them to make life style changes,mobilize communities and shape policies to save the precious lives  of women

The more a woman knows about Heart disease ,the better chances she has of beating it

The American Heart association,s signature initiative GO   RED  FOR WOMEN is a comprehensive platform designed to create awareness and serve as a catalyst for change to improve the lives of women globally.To achieve this goal we need to understand the meaning on Go red

G- get your numbers  i.e. blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar

O-  own your life style-say no to smoking, exercise regularly,eat heart healthy diet.It is upto   you .no one can do it for you

R-realize your risk.we  think  it will not happen to us,but remember Heart disease kills one out of three women

E-educate your  family

D-don’t  be silent . Tell every woman you that heart disease is no.1 killer

It is important to understand that Heart disease in women can be ,and is different from their male counterparts

Symptoms   tend to be vague  because in women  it is the microvasculature [smaller blood vessels]                that gets  diseased .

Early  recognition of the following symtoms is important

1-dry cough-it could be persistent or episodic.gets worse on lying down

2-upper abdominal discomfort ,indigestion and feeling of heaviness and nausea

3-shortness of breath especially on exertion

4-easy fatigability, pain legs

5 unexplained severe headaches

6-disturbed   sleep ,excessive sweating[ cold sweats]

Ischemic heart disease[heart attacks ,angina]in women is a big problem ,bigger than breast cancer,which was considered to be no. 1 killer,in the past.

Signs,symtoms and pathophysiology  is different from their male counterparts,so are the diagnostic modalities.

So GORED FOR WOMEN is about all women making a commitment to stand together with go red and taking charge of their own heart health as well as health of those they cannot bear to live without.

It is imperative that women learn the   warning      symptoms of heart disease

Pay attention to their symptoms,talk to their doctor and reassess the risk to    lead a  better life

Prof. dr. Nusrat Majeed is the  Chief coordinator Islamabad chapter for GO RED