Do you know what a leading cause of death is for men and women in the United States? If you guessed Heart Disease you would be correct!* That is why I felt it was so important to raise awareness in my school for both students and staff.
Late winter/early spring in Wisconsin is typically very cold but we lucked out when we chose to take to the streets for our “Walk/Run for Your Heart” event. Our principal kindly agreed to let us end classes a little early so we could go out and get some exercise! I led the festivities off by sharing some important facts about heart health over the loud speaker. Then our entire middle school headed outside for a 1 mile walk. Upon returning to school, we all headed into the gym where a student ambassador was set up as a DJ so we got to listen to music until the school day was done. Fun was had by all and we even got recognized in our local newspaper so our healthy efforts were shared with our community!
Heart disease can often be prevented when people make healthy choices such as doing regular moderate aerobic exercise and eating a healthy diet. In the U.S., someone has a heart attack every 43 seconds. Every 60 seconds someone in the U.S. dies from a Heart Disease related event.* Help make a difference like we did! Encourage people to live heart healthy lives! It’s estimated that my FUTP 60 team and I helped to get 400 people moving that day!!! You can do it too!
Courtney
Summit Ambassador
8th Grade
Wisconsin
*Health claims and statistics were selected from the Centers for Disease Control http://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/about.htm
AT MY SCHOOL WE DID THE SAME FUEL UP TO PLAY 60 APP