On Dec. 30, 1963 Lyndon B. Johnson issued the first presidential proclamation declaring February as American Heart Month.  He urged the people of the Unites States, “to give heed to the nationwide problem of the heart and blood vessel diseases, and to support the programs required to bring about its solution.”

In 2004 the American Heart Association initiated the “Go Red for Women” campaign to raise awareness that heart disease is as much a disease of women as it is of men.  Despite these national efforts, heart disease, including coronary artery disease, stroke, heart failure and irregular heart rhythms, remains the number one cause of death in women today.  Fortunately, despite this daunting statistic, heart disease is not inevitable.

What can people do to decrease their risk of ...