Digg Story
Stumble It!The American Heart Association is telling women to "Love Their Hearts" as this week starts the "National Heart Month" in the United States. The Lawrence Transit System is doing its part to raise awareness of the event.
The Lawrence Transit System teamed up with the American Heart Association to get the word out on women's heart health. The Transit system provided free rides to anyone wearing any red on Friday, anything from red lipstick, a red handbag or red clothing.
Cliff Galante, a public administrator for the transit system, said that participating in "Wear Red Day" was important for getting the message out to those who weren't aware of the importance of heart health.
"The majority of people, I don't really think they take it seriously and this, and that's one reason why we wanted to try and get the word out and to increase awareness," Galante said.
According to the American Heart Association, coronary heart disease is the number one killer of women over the age of 25, and one woman dies per minute of cardiovascular disease. Because heart disease and failure are so common the U.S., Galante said getting the message out was that much more important.
Some bus riders believe that bus system participation is particularly important for getting a message out.
"It helps promote awareness and it does it through the public transport system and a lot of people get on that," Brian Schwarzer, Lawrence bus rider said.
Wearing red on "Wear Red Day" is an important reminder to women that exercise and eating right are the best ways to prevent heart disease.
Heart disease kills more women yearly than all cancers combined, yet many women aren't aware of this fact. The color red serves as a reminder of heart health.
