        The Carlyle and District Lions, CFY Girls Group, Moose Mountain Lodge, and Cornerstone Family and Youth brought the Heart and Stroke Foundation’s Big Bike to Carlyle on Tuesday, June 20.
               Together they raised a total of $5,317.50 prior to the touring of the Big Bike, which also earned them a VIP title.
               Top fundraisers included Wayne Wilson with $725, Ron Paul with $535, and Lorri Matthewson with $515.
               The Heart and Stroke Foundation explains heart disease as conditions, which affect the structure and function of the heart. Strokes occur when blood stops flowing to any part of your brain, which damages brain cells – effects of a stroke depends on the part of the brain damaged and the amount of damage done.
               According to their website, 9 in 10 Canadians have at least one risk factor for stroke or heart disease and approximately 80 percent of premature stroke and heart disease can be prevented through a healthy lifestyle – healthy eating habits, being physically active and living smoke free.
               Lifestyle risk factors include: unhealthy weight – increased weight can mean high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes, which are all risk factors for stroke; unhealthy diet – food fuels your body and can affect your health; not enough exercise – inactive people have double the risk of heart disease and stroke – being active helps your heart, brain, muscles, bones, and mood, just make sure the type of activity is appropriate for your ability; smoking – quitting smoking makes a significant difference in risk of stroke; alcohol – heavy drinking and binge drinking are risk factors for high blood pressure and stroke; recreational drug use; birth control and hormone replacement therapy – estrogen can increase the risk of a heart attack, stroke, or mini-stroke the Heart and Stroke Foundation states; and stress – high stress levels or prolonged stress affects cholesterol and blood pressure.
               The Heart and Stroke Foundation is dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke. They aim to improve peoples’ lives, to help them reach healthy lifestyles free of heart disease and stroke, and have been doing so for over 60 years. Part of this has been funding life-saving research, which has led to breakthroughs in heart transplant surgery and revolutionary stroke treatments. (www.heartandstroke.ca)
