New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
Local residents are invited to participate in the 5th annual Love Your Heart Day, happening on Sunday February 9th from 9:00am to 1:00pm. Communities and neighborhoods throughout the City of New Bedford will once again join a growing, national movement to “Love Your Heart”.
More than a dozen locations citywide will offer free blood pressure screenings. Individuals will have a chance to “know their numbers,” learn of any potential risks for harm, and receive educational materials and guidance on what to do to both improve and/or maintain optimal heart health. Each site will be staffed with trained volunteers to administer the screenings.
Lead organizer Dr. Michael Rocha, cardiologist at Hawthorn Medical Associates and Director of the New Bedford Wellness Initiative says that 4 out of 5 heart attacks can be prevented through regular exercise, smoking cessation, stress reduction, and a healthy diet – all of which help to control blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol. Further, he adds that roughly 30% of adults have high blood pressure yet only about 50% have it under control. This can lead to heart attacks, strokes, heart failure and kidney disease. Love Your Heart Day aims to reduce and prevent these issues.
Love Your Heart NB engages various community partners in healthcare, the fire and police community, universities, city government, nonprofits, and the business community. For a list of participating sites and locations, visit www.nbewell.com.
Love Your Heart is an initiative that was originally started by the County of San Diego in California. The event has expanded into communities across the West Coast and South into Mexico. New Bedford remains the first and only location in the East Coast to fully implement the initiative.
