Heart disease kills more men and women each year than any other illness. It develops from the build-up of plaque, such as cholesterol, in your heart’s blood vessels and can lead to a heart attack, stroke, and other serious health problems.
Unfortunately, most people don’t know they have heart disease until it has progressed too far. Everyone should know their risk factors and the lifestyle changes they can make to reduce their chances of developing heart or vascular problems.
That’s why Franciscan St. James Health offers a free heart risk evaluation on its website: www.StJamesHospital.org.
Upon completion of the confidential, five-minute assessment, participants receive an explanation of their important risks, recommended steps for reducing their risks and links to additional reading materials.
Free Heart Screening with every completed online evaluation
To celebrate American Hearth Month, St. James Health is offering a free heart screening with every online evaluation completed by participants age 40 and over.
“Our heart screening identifies an individual’s personal risk for heart disease, stroke, peripheral artery disease and diabetes,” said Barbara Zeng Kwasny, a nurse practitioner at the St. James Heart and Vascular Institute in Olympia Fields. “Within 30-60 minutes we perform five tests and conduct a one-on-one review of the results.”
A $135.00 value, this screening includes the following tests:
Ankle Brachial Index: This quick, noninvasive way to determine your risk of peripheral artery disease compares blood pressure measured at the ankle with blood pressure measured at the arm. A low ankle-brachial index number can indicate narrowing or blockage of the arteries in the legs, leading to circulatory problems, heart disease or stroke. A high number can indicate calcium buildup in the arteries.
Body Mass Index: This numerical value of your weight in relation to your height is a good indicator of healthy or unhealthy weights for adult men and women, regardless of body frame size.
Waist Girth: Waist girth and excess of abdominal fat (visceral fat) is often more closely linked to increased risk of coronary heart disease and diabetes than BMI.
Fasting Blood Sugar: This test measures blood sugar levels and diagnoses problems with glucose metabolism and diabetes.
Blood Pressure: Accurately measuring your blood pressure is the only way to determine if you have high blood pressure. Understanding and controlling high blood pressure is a key step toward preventing heart disease and stroke.
“In our one-on-one consultations, we often recommend gradual lifestyle changes in small steps to help reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke,” Zeng Kwasny said. “It’s always great to see people have success in reducing their risk because of embracing the changes that we recommend.”
Franciscan St. James Health’s free online heart risk evaluation takes just a few minutes to complete. Visit http://www.stjameshospital.org/ and click the heart risk evaluation on the homepage…it might just save your life.
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