HEALTHY Relationship Building

I've heard people talk about HEALTHY relationships before but this is a different kind of relationship. A relationship that is very important, especially for women and more specifically African American women. Having a HEALTHY relationship with your body can save your life!

Here's why, heart disease is the No. 1 killer in women, and stroke disproportionately affects African Americans. Importantly, African American women are less likely than Caucasian women to be aware that heart disease is the leading cause of death.

Diabetes, smoking, high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, physical inactivity, obesity and a family history of heart disease are all greatly prevalent among African Americans and are major risk factors for heart disease and stroke. What’s more, African American women have almost two times the risk of stroke than Caucasians, and more likely to die at an earlier age when compared to women of other ethnicities.

Here are a few unsettling stats:

Cardiovascular diseases kill nearly 20,000 African American women annually.
Of African-American women ages 20 and older, 49 percent have heart diseases.
Only 1 in 5 African American women believes she is personally at risk.
Only 52 percent of African American women are aware of the signs and symptoms of a heart attack.
Only 36 percent of African American women know that heart disease is their greatest health risk.

Do you know the warning signs of a heart attack?

Heart Attack Signs in Women

1. Uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain in the center of your chest. It lasts more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back.
2. Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.
3. Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.
4. Other signs such as breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness.
5. As with men, women’s most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or discomfort. But women are somewhat more likely than men to experience some of the other common symptoms, particularly shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting and back or jaw pain.

If you have any of these signs, don’t wait more than five minutes before calling for help. Call 9-1-1 and get to a hospital right away.