2017 Go Red for Native Women

Friday, February 3, 2017

The Oklahoma Division of the American Heart Association has recognized the need to create special outreach efforts in order to better educate our Native community on the risks of heart disease through a specially designed health conference for women. This event is held in conjunction with the American Heart Association's national Go Red for Women movement, which raises awareness among women about their No. 1 health threat - heart disease. 

The beauty and strength of the Native American culture rests in the family, and the heartbeat of the family is the wife and mother. Unfortunately, heart disease and stroke are attacking that heartbeat. As the Native American population grows in number so does the number of deaths related to heart disease and stroke, the nation’s No. 1 and No. 3 killers.

Part of the challenge for the Native American community is to raise awareness about the disease and its risk factors. For instance, Native Americans die from heart disease at younger ages than other racial and ethnic groups in the United States. Additionally, Native women have high rates of diabetes, overweight and obesity, and high blood pressure, which are factors that increase heart disease risk.

Even more alarming is that more women than men die from heart disease every year. However, only 13 percent of American women recognize that heart disease is their leading cause of death and that it kills nearly 500,000 of them each year.

This educational event provides free health screenings and educational classes on heart health related topics. 

The 2017 Go Red For Native Women empowers women with knowledge and tools so they can take positive action to reduce their risks of heart disease and stroke and protect their health.