#Have heart in the month of love
METRO - The Heart and Stroke Foundation aims to raise much needed funds to fight heart disease in children with their #Haveheart campaign.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation South Africa (HSF) recently hosted a high-profile auction at Hyde Park where top South African celebrities attended to bid for prized items and experiences.
The auction forms part of the #HaveHeart campaign which aims to raise much needed funds to fight heart disease in children. The funds will help HSF to strengthen current programmes and also expand them to reach even more children and parents.
Favourite personalities such as Robert Marawa, Gareth Cliff, Mark Pilgrim, Lloyd Cele, Lisa Riley and Gerry Rantseli are all in support of the campaign.
“Having been HSF ambassador for four years now, I’m impressed with the creativity of the initiatives such as #HaveHeart and the results yielded from the awareness and donations. It’s rewarding hearing about the positive, tangible change being effected in the lives of ordinary South Africans faced with heart disease and stroke, which ultimately serves our goal; to help save lives.” said Gareth Cliff, radio and TV presenter.
Dr Vash Mungal-Singh, Chief Executive Officer of HSF said, “South African children need our help. Many South African children suffer from inherited heart problems and heart disease caused by infections. Early detection, awareness and treatment are critical, but many children do not have access to appropriate care.
“While some of our children are affected by heart disease through factors that are out of their control, many more are adopting unhealthy habits that place them at risk at an earlier age for obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease,” continued Mungal-Singh.
Children are particularly said to be vulnerable because they are easily influenced by adult’s unhealthy environment. The result is shocking, with up to 23 per cent of children in South Africa being overweight or obese, thus increasing their risk for heart disease, stroke and diabetes from a younger age. A child’s risk can begin even before birth – during foetal development, and increases further during childhood with exposure to unhealthy diets, lack of exercise and smoking.
A healthy lifestyle plays an important role in preventing heart disease and strokes, no matter your age. Adopting heart healthy behaviours early in life is the best preparation for preventing heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer later in life.
Through the campaign, the HSF would also like to encourage the public to take stock of their own lifestyles and incorporate the following tips to get them on the road to a healthy lifestyle.
- Eat Healthy
- Get moving!
- Quit smoking
- Manage your stress
The Heart and Stroke Foundation South Africa plays a leading role in the fight against preventable heart disease and stroke, with the aim of seeing fewer South Africans suffer premature deaths and disabilities. The HSF, established in 1980 is a non-governmental, non-profit organisation and has NPO and section 21 status.
The general public can help raise funds for children faced with heart diseases by dressing in red and donating R20 to save a child’s heart by simply SMSing #HaveHeart to 40306.
Details: Heart and Stroke Health Line 0860 1 HEART (43278), www.heartfoundation.co.za, www.facebook.com/HeartStrokeSA and www.twitter.com/SAHeartStroke
