• Jump Rope For Heart engages school age children in community service while promoting the benefits of lifelong heart-healthy life styles.
• By applying civic responsibility, the students help fund critical cardiovascular research and education.
• Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is America's #1 killer.
• Over 70 million Americans -- 1 in 5 male and 1 in 5 female -- have one or more type of cardiovascular disease.
• Every 34 seconds, someone in America dies from heart disease and stroke.
• Cardiovascular disease cause 38% of all deaths in 2002. More Americans die each year from heart disease and stroke than the next sex leading causes of death combined, (Cancer, Respiratory Disease, Accidents, Diabetes, Pneumonia and Alzheimer's disease).
• Approximately 50 million Americans have high blood pressure.
• Ove 10% of pre-school children age 2-5 are overweight. Over 15% of youth age 8-19 are overweight or obese. These figures are nearly 4 times more than those in 1980.
• An overweight child is at increased risk for high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, elevated cholesterol, obstructive sleep apnea, low self-esteem and depression.
• 61% of youngsters 5-19 do not participate in any physical activity outside of school.
• 10% youngsters ages 12-19 have cholesterol levels over 200 - borderline high risk.
• Overweight youngsters have a 70% chance of becoming overweight adults - increasing their risk of heart disease.
• In 2008 the Saratoga students and community will be jumping in February . In 2007 Saratoga had jumped and collected $17,111.08 to help fight cardiovascular disease and stroke.
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• Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:

  *Ask the individual to smile.

  *Ask him or her to raise both arms.

  *Ask the person to speak a simple sentence.

• If he or she has trouble with any of these tasks, call 9-1-1 immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

Created 11/10/00 Updated 5/28/08

Saratoga School District 60C, Morris,Illinois