February: Heart Health, Black History

This month is American Heart Month, and while cardiovascular disease is the underlying cause in one-third of all deaths, Black Americans are more than twice as likely to die of heart disease. Lack of awareness of the condition, and the statistics, is concerning. Recent data show that while 49% of Black women have heart disease, only 20% believe they are at risk.

Note the high rates of heart disease in several urban and rural census tracts across New York state.  Many of those also have a high proportion of Black population.

On Friday, February 5, Go Red to call attention to heart health –  for women, for people of color, for all in our community.

In support of the national Go Red campaign, our partner the Center for Community Health & Prevention is asking employees and supporters to wear red for the public education efforts. Like others, they’ll share photos of participation on their social media accounts on Friday.

Visit the RocHealthData map room to see more details about heart disease and population statistics.