Officials at the American Heart Association (AHA) have partnered with Queen Latifah and her mom, Rita Owens, for a second year to encourage Americans who live with heart failure (HF) to rise above the condition.
Approximately six million U.S. residents have HF. Every 35 seconds, a new HF case is detected and diagnosed.
The goal of this “Red Steps Challenge” is to help Americans make important, proactive, heart-healthy but small decisions to improve their health. The challenge encourages people to walk six million “red steps” -- in their favorite pair of red socks -- to honor the six million U.S. residents with HF.
Owens has HF. This is why she and Queen Latifah, an award-winning actress, songwriter, singer and television producer, have chosen to promote the Rise Above Heart Failure program.
Participants are asked to wear their favorite red socks and take a picture of their “red steps.” Then they can post their selfie and donated steps on RiseAboveHF.org along with countless other participants. They can also share their photos and steps with their family and friends on their social media accounts, tagging #RiseAboveHF.
“My mom’s heart failure diagnosis was scary and overwhelming, but by educating ourselves about the condition, its symptoms and how to manage it, our whole family has been able to ‘rise above’ HF,” Queen Latifah said. “We’re excited to get America talking about HF and sharing the small steps we can all take toward a healthier heart.”
