Amy's Blog

The Power of Red

February is when we celebrate heart disease awareness. We loudly proclaim the "Go Red" theme. But as a spokesperson for "Nashvillegoesred.org"  it's my job to keep the message front and center year 'round.  Did you notice how many people had heart attacks or serious heart events last month?  Some you wouldn't be surprised to hear about;  former Vice President Dick Cheney and former president Bill Clinton. Both have had previous heart problems.  But then the beautiful Canadian skater's mother died suddenly from a suspected heart attack right before her daughter's Olympic performance.

 These are just a few of the thousands of people who were touched by heart disease that we've heard about. What about all those people we DON'T know whose lives are cut short because they didn't know. Didn't know they were at risk. Didn't know they were harboring clogged arteries, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or even had a family history that put them at higher risk.  I know I'm at a higher risk because my father died at age 50 of a heart attack so I've gone through various screenings at Saint Thomas Heart.  So far my results have been good.  I know my numbers for blood pressure, cholesterol and my body mass index. Do you know yours?  Even though mine were well within the normal range, I decided to go ahead and have three more tests; tests that can save your life.  Earlier this week I went to Saint Thomas and had the stroke screening,abdominal aortic aneurysm screening along with the peripheral arterial disease (PAD) screening.  If you have to have any medical tests, these must be the easiest!  No pain, no worries.  With the stroke screening, ultrasound technology is used to visualize the inside of your carotid arteries.  Plaque can build up along the walls of a diseased artery and restrict blood flow to the brain or break off and become lodged in the blood vessel, causing a stroke.   An abdominal aortic aneurysm is a "ballooning" of the wall in the abdominal aorta.  Like strokes, AAA's are most often caused by plaque buildup.  The majority of people with AAA's have no symptoms.  The good news is that AAA's can be identified in minutes via a painless, non-invasive ultrasound screening.  Peripheral arterial disease is a condition where the arteries of your legs become narrowed with plaque or cholesterol that restricts the flow of blood.  Having plaque in the legs often indicates there's plaque in other areas of the body. At any time, that plaque can rupture and clots can form, cutting off blood supply leading to a heart attack or stroke.  Once again, these can be ticking time bombs in our bodies that we can easily find out about with these quick and painless tests.

     I would strongly suggest you talk to your doctor about these three tests, and consider having them done.  And one final thought. Even if you don't like the color red, you don't have to wear it.  It can simply be a state of mind. A passion for health and wellness to give you the best life possible!

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