(NC)—Is the woman in your life a champion at juggling work, kids, her partner and parents? Do you think she puts everyone's needs first and hers last? Does she ensure everyone and everything is taken care of at any hour, despite not having enough hours in the day? If your answer to any of these questions is “yes”, it may also be true that she doesn't find time to pay attention to her own heart health.
“Most women don't know that heart disease and stroke is a leading cause of death for women in Canada,” says Bobbe Wood, president of the Heart and Stroke Foundation, and founder of The Heart Truth awareness campaign.
“And moms are used to putting their families' needs ahead of their own. We encourage all women to take action and protect their heart health to make health last, so they can enjoy a long, full and vital life with time and energy for family, friends and personal pursuits.”
This Mother's Day, families can make sure their moms put themselves first by planning a full day of heart-healthy and fun activities, like these:
• Start the day with a personalized message: Send a heartfelt message on a custom Mother's Day e-card, which shares how you're going to help mom make time for her heart—today and every day.
• Serve her breakfast in bed: Mouth-watering breakfast burritos cooked in two minutes and served piping hot in bed could be the perfect healthy start to her day.
• Join her for yoga: Yoga improves circulation, keeps blood pressure levels in check, lowers the heart rate, and improves oxygen supply to the body—a great combination to help achieve better heart health.
• Pamper her with a spa package: There is nothing like relaxing the mind and body to make her feel fitter and more energetic. And a stress-free mind and body is good for heart health.
• Treat her to a healthy family dinner: There are many heart healthy, delicious recipes to choose from, including lamb stew with mini potatoes, salmon BLT or just good old homemade macaroni and cheese.
• Encourage her to seek heart health information: Help your mother learn about prevention tips, warning signs and symptoms, and remind her to ask heart-health related questions of her doctor at her next check-up.
Of course, with mom being mom, she will continue to ensure that groceries are bought, kids are fed and taken to swimming lessons, parents have taken their medication, and she has a stellar presentation for her next meeting. Show her you care on her special day by gifting her a healthy heart using e-cards, recipes and health information from thehearttruth.ca.
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