Story Created:
Mar 7, 2008 at 8:03 AM EDT
Story Updated:
Mar 7, 2008 at 11:50 AM EDT
MISHAWAKA — When Indiana’s first lady Cheri Daniels did a program on heart health at Indiana University, her daughter, a senior, and some friends went to the health screening.
Daniels said two of her daughter’s friends had very high cholesterol readings.
“They are active,” she said. “They’re not overweight. But their food choices are horrible.”
And that’s the reason, Daniels says, women as young as college age need to start getting health screenings.
The first lady was in Mishawaka Thursday for a speech at Windsor Park Conference Center that was part of a Health and Wellness for Women program sponsored by MFB Financial.
Daniels said heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women, as well as men. She said it can strike somebody who is thin and exercises often.
So she urged her audience to “get your numbers.”
Those numbers are cholesterol, blood pressure and triglycerides.
If any of those numbers are too high, people need to do something about it. They may need to change their diet, exercise more or take medicine, according to Daniels.
She said women’s symptoms of heart attacks are different from those men often have. Daniels said that while men often have crushing chest pain, women may experience extreme fatigue or have flu-like symptoms.
She said one in 2.6 women die of heart disease. The first lady asked women to “be bold” about taking care of their health and “help me make Indiana a heart-healthy state.”
She said more information is available at www.in.gov/inshape/
Friday, Mar 7 at 3:27 PM Claire wrote ...
This is a great initiative for the First Lady to promote. Kudos to Cheri Daniels!