February is American Heart month, and Feb. 1 was the National Wear Red Day. 

Go Red for Women is a broad platform designed to increase women’s heart health awareness.  

According to the National Vital Statistics Report, heart disease is the leading cause of death for women in the United States, killing 289,758 women in 2013. That’s about one in every four female deaths.

Only 54 percent of women recognize heart disease is their number one killer. This is why Go Red for Women has made it their goal to reach and serve as a facilitator for change to improve the lives of women globally. 

At the Jessamine County Health Department, our mission is to promote, protect, and improve the health and wellness of our community.

This mission is carried out through JCHD participating in the National Wear Red Day by wearing red on Feb. 1 to live up to our agreement to promote awareness and improve heart disease in our community.  We do this through our health education programs and the Jessamine County Chronic Disease workgroup.

High blood pressure and high LDL cholesterol are key risk factors for heart disease.  

Other medical conditions such as diabetes and lifestyle choices such as poor diet, physical inactivity and smoking create a high risk of heart disease too. This is where our health educational programs come in to help individuals and the community at large on how to manage those risk factors.  

Health data and community input revealed chronic disease is a health issue in our community and contributes to reasons for a decrease in health outcomes.

Because of this, the Chronic Disease Workgroup, which is one of the four workgroups under the Healthy and Safe Communities Coalition, was recently established. 

The Chronic Disease Workgroup, which is made up of many community partners, works together to reduce chronic disease in Jessamine County.  This workgroup is open to the public, and we encourage the community to join us. 

For more information contact Bruce Crouch, 859-885-4149 Extension 1013 or email brucel.crouch@ky.gov.  Visit us a www.jessaminehealth.org for more information.  

Winnie Atim is the communication coordinator for the Jessamine County Health Department.