Go Red For Women Casting Calls

Calling all women who are heart disease survivors!

In case you have never heard of the Go Red for Women campaign, it is a special project from the American Heart Association to bring about awareness for heart disease in women. On Saturday, February 6th, women who are heart disease survivors are encouraged to attend the Go Red Casting Call in many major cities through out the United States. This Casting Call consists of each woman telling her personal story about heart disease in front of local television crews. After reviewing all the candidates, women are chosen from each city to be considered as a national spokesperson for the American Heart Association.

It is empowering and therapeutic to share stories of survival so the Go Red for Women campaign also has a website for women who cannot attend the Casting Call but still want to take part in the process. The website for sharing your story is:

http://www.goredforwomen.org/speakup/default.aspx

In case you are in the Atlanta area, the local Go Red Casting Call is scheduled to be at Macy’s at Perimeter Mall on February 6th. Check out your local American Heart Association chapter website for details in other cities.

New Cause for Heart Disease found in Study

While the buzz over CRP seems to be diminishing, the newest heart screening blood test is turning out to be worth the hype. A British study published just before Christmas has identified what they call the “third type of cholesterol.” The new cholesterol is called Lipoprotein(a) or Lp(a) for short. The molecule itself was discovered back in the 1960’s but the importance of its role in heart disease has only recently come to light.

This new British study has almost definitively linked Lp(a) to a genetic cause of heart disease. One of the scientists involved in the study said, ” This is the most convincing evidence so far that this protein [Lp(a)] is directly part of the pathway that causes heart disease rather than a bystander. If we can target it through treatment, we might expect to lower the risk of disease.” One of the obstacles in making this test mainstream is that they still do not know what exactly increases the risk for heart disease: Lp(a) levels or Lp(a) particle size. There are “small” Lp(a) particles which are believed to mean higher risk for atherosclerosis. In other words, more studies need to be done to further investigate the subparticles of Lp(a). Regardless of size, scientists do know that lowering Lp(a) means lowering heart disease risk. What is the best drug then for lowering Lp(a)? Currently, the best treatment is Niacin which is also used to raise the good cholesterol HDL. Ask your doctor to put you on Niacin or Niaspan so you can lower your future risk of heart disease!

Brittany Murphy Died of a Heart Attack?!

Be careful what you read!! Many people are being misled by the media when they read that this young 32-year-old actress died of a heart attack. For people who actually have heart disease, you should know a little bit more than the lay person off the street! For instance, most people think that a heart attack must be caused by plaque blockages in the arteries (also called Coronary Artery Disease). It is highly unlikely that the young actress had blockages in her arteries. The most likely scenario is that something else caused her heart to have an electrical problem called “cardiac arrest.”

Cardiac arrest is a completely different problem than what most people call a heart attack. A heart attack with blockages in the arteries CAN cause cardiac arrest and death. However, a person can have cardiac arrest without ever having blockages in their arteries. So, don’t be fooled by the media when you hear that a young, healthy person like Brittany Murphy died of a heart attack. Reportedly, the autopsy results are pending a drug screen so this may in fact be a similar case to Michael Jackson and NOT Tim Russert.

The Book is Fully Available!

What To Do When You Have Heart Disease is now fully available for ordering! Soft cover copies are $15.95 plus shipping. You can order a copy through the following link:

iUniverse Ordering Website

E-Book is Now Available!

The electronic version of What To Do When You Have Heart Disease is now available online! Click on the link below to order:

Book Details

Save Money on Your Medicines!

I briefly discussed in my book some ways to save money on your heart medicines. For instance, you might be able to spend less money if you get your prescriptions from more than one place. I'd like to show you all an example of how this works. In this example, I am using pricing options through United Health Care insurance for Medco Mail Order Pharmacy versus Walmart. This means that the person HAS health insurance and is getting their medicines ONLY from mail order or Walmart. The prices are also listed for 90 day supply.


Plavix 75mg prices: Medco $50, Walmart $75
Metoprolol 25mg twice a day prices: Medco $9.38, Walmart $10
Simvastatin 40mg prices: Medco $20, Walmart $48.88
Lisinopril 5mg prices: Medco $20, Walmart $10

Adding up these prices, it would cost $99.38 per 90 days receiving all the pills from Medco only and $143.88 picking them up at Walmart only. However, if you use Medco for ordering the Plavix, Metoprolol and Simvastatin but picked up your Lisinopril at Walmart, you'd be saving $10! That $10 would pay for another 90 days of lisinopril at Walmart!

Another option is to ask your cardiologist if you could substitute Pravastatin for Simvastatin and pick it up at Walmart for only $10. There are so many ways to save money but you have to do the research and work with your cardiologist for the best substitutes. I know it is not an easy task to work out the cheapest solution but I am happy to help you out if you have any questions! :-)

Heart Healthy Christmas Gift Ideas

There are plenty of great gifts available for patients with heart disease. From clothing that supports finding a cure to gift baskets to low-sodium foods. Some of my favorite ideas include a gift certificate to the local cardiac rehab facility or a freshly made meal by a specialty catering store that is low fat and low calorie. Below I've posted some links to websites which offer some new and interesting ideas for specialty gifts:

Heart Disease Clothing
Heart Disease Gift Baskets
Heart Healthy Food Store Website
Healthy Heart Meals Delivered

Of course, an informative book about heart disease is a must-have as well. Unfortunately, What To Do When You Have Heart Disease will probably not be available until just after Christmas. But keep it in mind for January when everyone is vowing to keep their New Year's resolutions!