On Friday, Feb. 5, Kean University hosted the annual Wear Red Day walk event to promote awareness for cardiovascular disease and the importance of a healthy heart. This interactive event allowed students to engage in fun activities from a virtual platform to help spread messages of positivity on how important it is to be physically active.

Wear Red Day is a national holiday to help promote awareness for heart diseases and strokes. Kean University proudly hosted this event in partnership with the American Heart Association's fight against heart disease. Heart disease is among one of the leading causes of death for both men and women across the country. This holiday was created to bring greater attention to heart disease as it was starting to become a major issue for women at large.

Mothers, daughters, sisters, aunts and everyday women are dying at the rate of almost one per minute. In the United States alone, one in every four deaths is related to having cardiovascular disease or a stroke all because of the choices an individual may or may not have control of in their lives. These issues are extremely difficult to overcome and a holiday such as Wear Red Day helps create the support system people need in these difficult times.

Cardiovascular disease is a heart condition that includes diseased vessels, structural problems and blood clots within the body. Some of the health risks associated with this disease include but not limited to:

• Coronary Heart Disease
• High Blood Pressure
• Cardiac Arrest
• Congestive Heart Failure
• Arrhythmia
• Peripheral artery disease
• Stroke
• Congenital Heart Disease

Although students were unable to walk together in person for Wear Red Day, they were able to join in a Zoom room to hear more about what the holiday means. Students who participated in the event also got a chance to perform activities for at least 30 minutes to help increase their heart rates. Music was also played to keep participants engaged in the session while they were walking, exercising, dancing, or simply just doing normal day to day activities such as walking up or down the stairs. Exercising is an essential ingredient to maintaining a healthy lifestyle to help individuals lose weight to feel good about themselves.

The event lasted for almost three hours on Zoom and was a complete success. Students were able to make the best of the virtual walk day to help promote the benefits of a healthy lifestyle making them role models of the Kean community. Participants could also make a donation directly to the American Heart Association's website throughout the month of Feb. to help assist in the fight against heart disease. Donations are voluntary but are helpful against this disease and they can also help with funding research against issues such as high blood pressure and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Even in times like this, students are taking the initiative by showcasing their acts of kindness no matter how far apart they are from each other. Keep checking out Cougar link for more upcoming events in the near future.