Friday, February 6, 2009, is National Wear Red Day - a day when Americans nationwide will take women's health to heart by wearing red to show their support for women's heart disease awareness. The statistics are alarming:

• Heart disease is the #1 killer of women.


• One in 4 American women dies of heart disease; 1 in 30 dies of breast cancer.

The good news is that both men and women can lower their risk of heart disease by as much as 82 percent by leading a healthy lifestyle. You can join the National awareness movement by wearing red on February 6, and encourage your family, friends, and coworkers to do the same. Anyone can participate by showing off a favorite red dress, shirt, or tie, or Red Dress Pin.

The Heart Truth is a national awareness campaign for women about heart disease sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health, and other partner organizations. The campaign launched the Red Dress as the national symbol for women and heart disease awareness in 2002 to deliver an urgent wakeup call to American women.

If you want to spread the word about The Heart Truth and National Wear Red Day, try the following ideas:

• Wear red on February 6. February 6 is National Wear Red Day!


• Check out the National Wear Red Day Toolkit to find easy tools to support awareness.


• Add the National Wear Red Day widget to your blog or web site.


• On Facebook? Show your support by joining the The Heart Truth Fan page.


• Visit The Heart Truth delicious page for news about the campaign.

The Heart Truth and Red Dress are trademarks of DHHS.