Women in County Roscommon are being urged to sign up for a major online webinar, which is being held for free and is aimed at helping women to take care of their ‘heart health’.
Broadcaster Maura Derrane (53) will lead a group of health experts during the event on this Friday, September 29th. It’s being run as part of the Irish Heart Foundation’s ‘Her Heart Matters’ campaign. The presenter said the webinar will share small but impactful changes that women can make in their busy lives to minimise their risk of heart disease and stroke.
“Last year, 4,656 women died from heart disease,” said Ms Derrane. “In other words, more than a quarter, or 27%, of female deaths in 2022 were as a result of cardiovascular problems.
“Most women lead extremely busy, time-pressured lives, but hopefully this national conversation will encourage women in Roscommon to prioritise themselves a little more and make small, sustainable lifestyle changes, which can make a big difference to their heart health”.
One of the webinar panellists Maura Canning will tell how she was a “walking time-bomb”, who discovered by chance that her blood pressure was sky-high after visiting the Irish Heart Foundation’s Mobile Health Unit during an agricultural conference. Days later, the 52-year-old farmer from East Galway was admitted to hospital.
“By the time I got to the emergency department, the doctors were astonished that I had not had a stroke or heart attack due to my high blood pressure,” she said. “If you don’t look after yourself, nobody else is going to look after you. I take time to do stuff for myself whereas I didn’t for years.
“The expectation is you’re supposed to be the go-to for everything, but that doesn’t work. Women need to look after their own health”.
Irish Heart Foundation dietitian Orna O’Brien said heart disease in women over the years has been under-researched, under-diagnosed and under-treated.
“It’s often assumed that heart disease is predominantly a male problem, but that’s not the case,” she said. “The commonly known risk factors, including smoking and high blood pressure, can be deadlier for women and females also have specific pregnancy and menopause-related risk factors”.
For more information and to attend the free webinar, register on irishheart.ie or Eventbrite.
