LIMA, OH (WLIO) - Heart disease is the leading cause of death among all men and women in the U.S., claiming the lives of one in four people each year. Now, local experts are educating young children on the importance of healthy habits that will promote good health throughout their lives. Madison Kenjura has the story.
Lima Memorial Health System and the Bath Township Fire Department collaborated to organize an interactive event to educate students on heart health and encourage a heart-healthy lifestyle.
"We're here today from Lima Memorial with Bath Elementary School's kids in first through fourth grade, and we're putting on our Listen to Your Heart campaign. It's a great event where we're able to teach kids a little bit about the anatomy of the heart, how it works, how to listen to their heart, and then, more importantly, how to recognize symptoms of a heart attack or an emergency related to your heart and how they can respond," stated Brian Schied, director of cardiopulmonary services.
Representatives from Lima Memorial and the fire department conducted workshops to educate students about the advantages of maintaining a healthy heart. The workshops included hands-on activities that focused on various topics, such as nutrition, equipping them with knowledge they can utilize throughout their lives.
"Bath Township Fire Department is thrilled to partner with Lima Memorial on this project because, you know, kids are never too young to know what to do in an emergency. And today, we're talking about dialing 911, how to initiate CPR, so it's been a lot of fun, and we hope they're learning some stuff. At this young age, they'll start understanding the importance of making good choices as far as heart health, exercise, and eating right, and then know what to do in case of an emergency. It's been a great day, and we're having a lot of fun," said Joe Kitchen, Fire Chief of the Bath Township Fire Department.
Listen to Your Heart has not only taught these first through fourth graders more about the heart muscles itself but also how to correctly respond in case of an emergency.
