Et cetera : Heart Awareness Month – Fun Facts

* Your heart beats over 100,000 times a day.

* Your heart pumps about 2,000 gallons of blood each day!

* The heart pumps about 1 million barrels of blood during an average lifetime!

* Women’s hearts beat faster than Men’s.

* The aorta, the largest artery in the body, is almost the diameter of a garden hose.

* Every day, the heart creates enough energy to drive a truck 20 miles. In a lifetime, that is equivalent to driving to the moon and back.

How do we protect & maintain this amazing machine?

* To avoid heart disease, get moving. The risk of heart disease doubles in inactive people versus people who get regular exercise. Join activities like chair exercises, bean bag baseball, Wii bowling, balloon tennis, and stretchy band exercises.

* Taking care of your teeth can have a dramatic impact on heart health. If you develop gum disease, your chances of having a heart attack or a stroke increases by 50%.

* Laughing can be a great workout for your heart. Whenever you laugh, the blood flow in your heart is increased for up to 45 minutes, which in turn improves your heart health.

Most importantly! Heart=Love

* Plato theorized that reasoning originated with the brain, but that passions originated in the “fiery” heart.

* There is a reason the heart is associated with love and emotion. The ancient Egyptians believed that both intelligence and emotion were based in the heart, while the Chinese believed that the heart was the source of happiness.