keeping women connected - HERLIFE Magazine

herlife | spotlight
Go Red
For
Women
Sulagna (Suzie)
Mookherjee, M.D.,
cardiologist at Albany
Medical Center and
a member of the
American Heart
Association Capital
Region Advisor y Board.
by ann e. butenas
It’s the number one killer of both women and men. In fact, it kills
more women than the next five leading causes of death combined
each year, yet it is something so many women never imagine could
ever affect them. After all, isn’t heart disease most likely to viciously
and unexpectedly attack older, overweight males who suffer in agony
as they clutch their chests in pain before hitting the floor? While most
certainly that scenario can play out, the fact of the matter is that heart
disease is not often the loud and obvious predator we think it is, and
when it decides to prey on women, its approach is frequently vague
and nondescript.
Dr. Suzie Mookherjee, Cardiologist and Board Member for the
local American Heart Association (AHA) chapter in Albany, is very
dedicated to the topic of heart health and stresses the importance of
knowing the warning signs of heart disease, which are frequently, and
sometimes unfortunately, overlooked or ignored, especially by women.
“You don’t want your first warning to be your last,” she said. “I am
big on the preventative side of heart disease, and I encourage annual
physicals so you know your number for blood pressure, cholesterol,
weight and if you are diabetic, your numbers there as well. Diabetes is
not a friend of the heart.”
While Dr. Mookherjee notes we cannot always control the genetic
end of the spectrum, there are modifiable risk factors we can address.
“One of the biggest enemies to the heart is smoking,” she commented.
“Just by ceasing that habit, you can greatly improve the health of your
heart. We cannot control the genes we were born with, but there are
other factors in addition to not smoking that we can control either by diet
and exercise and/or by the use of medications: blood pressure, weight,
cholesterol levels and diabetes. The goal is prevention.”
Among the most common symptoms of heart disease in women
are muscle pain in the back, neck, shoulder or arms; generalized
fatigue; restlessness; unexplained shortness of breath; radiating pain
into the teeth and jaw; nausea, vomiting and just an overall feeling that
something isn’t quite right. “If we learn to recognize these symptoms,
we can empower ourselves,” Dr. Mookherjee expressed. “It’s important
to arm ourselves with the right information and make any necessary
changes in our lifestyle, because the good news is that we can prevent
this insidious killer.”
As we waltz into Heart Health Month this February, the AHA is
on the front lines, raising awareness of heart health while celebrating
the power of women to come together to fight this disease. Katherine
McCarthy, Senior Regional Director of Communications for the
AHA in Albany, is excited to celebrate this month with a host of
opportunities to raise awareness and funds to sustain continued
research to fight heart disease.
“The first Friday in February is designated as National Wear
Red Day. On Friday, February 3, more than 500 work sites across the
Capital Region will celebrate in this special day by wearing red and
drawing attention to the need for women to become more aware of
their own heart health, ” Katherine said. “ We have some amazing
local supporters of this special day, including SEFCU, CDPHP and
MVP. The Palace Theater illuminates its front in red each year, and
last year SEFCU, CDPHP, First Niagara, WMHT and Realty USA all
lit their buildings red on National Wear Red Day.”
It’s not just that first Friday in February that will promote women’s
heart health. Go Red for Women is a year-round campaign that
works tirelessly to actively promote heart health issues for women.
For example, Go Red for Women has already enrolled well over one
million women who are committed to taking better care of themselves.
The hallmark of this initiative is its annual Go Red for Women
Luncheon, to be held this year on May 24 at the Albany Marriott,
where guests will enjoy a variety of seminars and speakers dedicated to
heart health issues.
“This year’s co-chairs are Denise Gonick, the Chief Executive Vice
President of Administrative Services and the Chief Legal Officer of MVP
Health Care, and Lynne Oliker of the YMCA,” said Katherine. “We
anticipate about 500 attendees and the money raised through this event
will go towards funding further research. In the Capital Region alone,
we are currently funding $1.2 million in research.”
12 HERLIFEnewyork.com