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Black
Women Come Together to Put Their Health First
by
Leslie Curtis, Director, WIN
Today I give you permission to take better care of yourselves,
cheered Donna Richardson, fitness expert, as she led warm-up exercises
for over 300 Black women and their children and friends at the Franklin
D. Reeves Center in Washington, DC. The warm-up preceded a 1.8 mile walk
and health fair that launched the WIN-sponsored Sisters Together: Move
More, Eat Better awareness program on October 20, 2001.
Sisters
Together: Move More, Eat Better encourages Black women to maintain
a healthy weight by becoming more physically active and eating healthier
foods. NIDDK initiated the program in the nations capital to call
attention to the health risks associated with high rates of overweight
and obesity among African American women. Recent statistics indicate that
more than 50 percent of Black women are overweight or obese, and the numbers
are steadily rising. High-fat diets, super-sized portions, and lack of
physical activity are resulting in extremely high rates of type 2 diabetes
in Black women. Type 2 diabetes increases the risk of heart disease and
stroke.
We
know how tough it is to modify lifelong habits, explained NIDDK
Deputy Director Dr. Griffin Rodgers, Grand Marshal of the Sisters Together
launch. This is precisely why we are not telling Black women to
give up their favorite foods or run a marathon. We hope that todays
walk and other activities will show you how small changes to your eating
and physical activity habits really can help you to feel, look, and live
better.
Following
the walk, attendees were treated to an impromptu stretch session organized
by Ms. Richardson and led by local Black women who are fitness professionals.
The health fair also included tasty, healthy snacks; prizes such as Sisters
Together t-shirts, baseball caps, and pedometers; hand-dancing and
vegetarian cooking demonstrations; and face-painting and balloon art for
the children. The involvement of local organizations, including the DC
Police Department, Mayor Anthony Williamss Office, the Wizards and
Mystics basketball teams, the Anthony Bowen YMCA, and the Kennedy Center,
created links to the local community that made the event a success and
will be key to future successes.
Exhibitors
distributed health materials that addressed how to reduce ones risk
for developing type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, prostate
cancer, and stroke. Sisters Together also disseminated a series
of free publications designed to encourage Black women of all ages to
adopt new exercise and eating habits:
- Celebrate
the Beauty of Youth
- Energize
Yourself and Your Family
- Fit
and Fabulous as You Mature
- Walking
A Step in the Right Direction
Each
publication offers age-appropriate tips for incorporating physical activity
and healthy eating into daily living. Copies are available by calling 1-877-WIN-4627
or by visiting the WIN website at: http://win.niddk.nih.gov/.As
Ms. Richardson signed autographs, she urged women to use the good feelings
and fun that they experienced at the Sisters Together Walk and Health
Fair as a springboard for taking better care of themselves tomorrow, the
next day, and the day after that. We take care of our children, our
mates, and our friends, but we fail to give our health, our well-being the
attention it needs and deserves, said Richardson. NIDDK will continue
to spread the Sisters Together message through future activities
and publications.
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