Club Name : HeartDisease Description : The purpose of this group is to raise awareness and general education of Cardiovascular health. I will be posting bulletins of Heart Healthy Recipes, Nutritional tips and interesting research developing. Please feel free to invite others to join, to post any cardiovascular-related news, research or tidbits you come across or any related personal experiences. It is very important for EVERYONE to be aware of Heart Disease - it’s our number 1 killer! The 2005 American Heart Association statistics (*listed stats are for latest year available): Prevalence of Cardiovascular Disease (CVD): 70,100,000 people --High Blood Pressure: 65,000,000 --Congestive Heart Failure: 4,900,000 --Stroke: 5,400,000 --Coronary heart disease: 13,000,000 Coronary heart disease is caused by atherosclerosis (the narrowing of the coronary arteries due to fatty build ups of plaque). It’s likely to produce angina pectoris, heart attack or both. Myocardial Infarction (heart attack): 7,100,000 Angina pectoris (chest pain): 6,400,000 Coronary heart disease caused 494,382 deaths in 2002 and is the single leading cause of death in America today. 13,000,000 people alive today have a history of heart attack, angina pectoris or both. This is about 7,100,000 males and 5,900,000 females. This year an estimated 1.2 million Americans will have a new or recurrent coronary attack. Cardiovascular diseases Claimed 927,448 lives in 2002 (1 of every 2.6 deaths). (Preliminary) Other 2002 mortality: total cancer 557,271; accidents 106,742; HIV (AIDS) 14,095.