[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 5345]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        HEART DISEASE IN AMERICA

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                             HON. JOE BACA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 5, 2003

  Mr. BACA. I would like to take the opportunity to thank Congresswoman 
Julia Carson for helping bring awareness to heart disease. Heart 
disease is America's number one cause of death. That fact alone is 
distressing but coupled with the fact that many cases of heart disease 
are preventable makes the issue catastrophic. Approximately 108 million 
Americans are overweight. 44 million are obese. This nation has got to 
do better about taking care of our health not only for our own lives, 
but also for the lives of our children.
  Children in America are learning bad habits. They are not being 
exposed to the proper diets or the necessary physical activity. Too 
often children sit idle throughout a school day and then return home to 
once again sit idly in front of a TV playing a video game. We need to 
learn the lesson that stimulation of the muscles and body are just as 
important as stimulation of the mind. Cases of heart disease will only 
continue to increase until we make a conscious effort to offer better 
nutrition in schools, access to health education, and more access to 
physical activity.
  This month is American Heart Month and the American Heart Association 
wants us all to learn the warning signs of a heart attack, because so 
often people ignore the signs and the situation becomes fatal. This 
message is important and we should help bring more attention to this 
life saving information. However, we should not rely on warning signs 
alone to save our lives. Prevention is essential.
  Heart Disease is not an issue that can be ignored by certain segments 
of the population. It is not a Caucasian disease, an African-American 
disease or a Latino disease. It is a disease that affects everyone! It 
is the leading cause of death for all Americans! That is why we must 
all come together to make a change collectively!

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