By SUE ELLEN ROSS

Staff Reporter

RIVER PARISHES – If everyone joins in the American Heart Association’s current campaign, there will be a sea of red everywhere you look on Friday.

The AHA is sponsoring the “Go Red for Women” national campaign, and medical facilities across the nation are urging women in all walks of life to wear red on Friday, in support of heart disease awareness.

Cardiovascular disease is the number one killer of women in America, a fact that many people do not know. It claims the lives of nearly one-half million women each year.

Cases of heart failure and strokes are on the rise. Fewer young people live healthy lifestyles. Almost two-thirds of Americans at age 40 show some blockage of their coronary arteries by plaque, according to Dr. Mike Magee, director of the Pfizer Medical Humanities Initiative.

He added that more than 57 percent of Americans, men and women both, are in cardiovascular denial.

“Americans do not believe they’re at much risk for this disease, despite the overwhelming evidence to the contrary,” he said.

The ‘wear red’ initiative encourages women to take charge of their heart health by making awareness their top priority. This will enable them to live longer, stronger lives.

Last fall, First Lady Laura Bush brought heart disease awareness to various communities across the nation. She wore a red dress, reflecting the current AHA campaign.

“We all take care of our husbands,” she told one particular group in Kansas City, Missouri. “But we need to take care of ourselves too.”

The Go Red for Women campaign kicks off on Feb. 4 at Macy’s Herald Square, with actress Daryl Hannah as the national spokesperson.

Ten of America’s top fashion designers created the “Little Red Dress” collection as a creative avenue to draw attention to the cause of women and heart disease.