Heart health book published for February

With February being American Heart Month, there is no better time to take steps toward improving your heart’s health and overall well-being through better diet and exercise.

St. Joseph Heart and Vascular Center in Tacoma can help, too. Its 2009 edition of the St. Joseph Heart Diet book is now available online and in print, free of charge, and the center’s online HeartAware quiz is as convenient as the click of a computer mouse.

Losing as few as 10 pounds significantly reduces the risk for both heart disease and diabetes.

“To take off one pound per week, you need to take in 500 fewer calories per day,” says Franciscan Medical Group cardiologist Patrick Reagan, one of several medical experts featured in the book. “Portion control is the best way to lose weight.”

Can a person walk his or his way to a healthier heart? “Absolutely, if you do it right,” advises Cardiologist Raju Patel of the Franciscan Health System, who is also featured in the book.

The 44-page book is packed with medical experts’ answers to frequently-asked questions, as well as recipes. The book can be viewed online at www.FHShealth.org, or ordered at no charge by calling 1-888-825-3227.

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Also, men and women can help gauge their risk for heart disease by taking the online HeartAware quiz sponsored by the St. Joseph Heart & Vascular Center. The quiz, which is online at www.FHShealth.org, takes about seven minutes to complete. Individuals whose answers indicate a high risk for heart disease will be contacted by a nurse for a free heart health screening at St. Joseph Heart and Vascular Center.

St. Joseph Heart and Vascular Center offers the most advanced heart and vascular program in the South Puget Sound region. The center’s expert medical staff provides comprehensive care from diagnosis through rehabilitation. Learn more at www.StJosephHeart.org.

St. Joseph Heart and Vascular Center, which performs more heart surgeries than any hospital in western Washington, is located at St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma. St. Joseph and Enumclaw Regional Hospital are part of the Franciscan Health System.

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