According to a Washington State Department of Health report, Renton residents have a nearly 10-year shorter life expectancy compared to other communities in King County.
Motivated by this statistic and the disparities within our region, The Hope Heart Institute developed Renton Take Heart, a comprehensive community-wide intervention, bridging the Teen Take Heart and Women Take Heart programs.
Teen Take Heart™ is an evidence-based cardiovascular health promotion and disease prevention program for high-school students. The Teen Take Heart program develops positive attitudes about health and wellness, creates a learning environment that emphasizes health promotion as a cultural norm, and empowers students to take control over their cardiovascular health.
Students in all three public Renton high schools will go through the Teen Take Heart program, becoming Healthy Heart Ambassadors. These ambassadors will reach out to their community at the Renton Community Health Fair on Saturday, May 13th, at Renton High School, to share what they have learned and inspire others to adopt a healthy lifestyle. At this event, women who attend from the Renton community will be invited into the Women Take Heart program, to learn tips and techniques to incorporate healthy lifestyle behaviors which can reduce their, and their family’s risk for heart disease.
By bridging these two programs and creating a multi-level intervention at the youth an adult level, we are confident we will make an impact on reducing obesity rates across the Renton community and ultimately impacting the life expectancy of Renton residents.
Renton Take Heart is a collaboration between The Hope Heart Institute, University of Washington | Valley Medical Center, Seattle University College of Nursing, University of Washington School of Nursing and the Renton Public Schools.
Thank you to Hope Heart Institute for contributing this article.
