The 14th World Heart Day was celebrated in Poland on 29 September.
The idea of popularizing basic knowledge of heart diseases, their treatment and prevention methods has already been accepted by more than 120 countries. Just like last year, ASA and its preparations, Novocardia and Sterolea, was the sponsor of the World Heart Day in Kraków organized by the branch of the Polish Cardiac Society in Kraków.
The programme of this year's edition of the World Heart Day concentrated above all on the popularization of active prophylaxis and on the most important health risks in the 21st century: atherosclerosis, hypertension, obesity, stress and depression.
We invited experts to celebrate the day with us in the Marketplace in Kraków; at our stand visitors could ask questions concerning the issues related to the health, heart, diet and physical activity. The following experts answered these questions: Marta Palacz-Wróbel, MD, a physiotherapist, Dr Dawid Bączkowicz, and a dietician, Maria Anna Brzegowy.
During the week preceding the campaign in Kraków, the experts also answered questions asked by the listeners of Radio RMF.
On the main stage, Ms Maria Anna Brzegowy, dietician, organized two quizzes on our behalf dedicated to the heart and to our preparations, Novocardia and Sterolea. All participants were given little souvenirs. The prizes in the second quiz were handed to the participants by DJ Wika, our special guest, who also gave a mini-concert for the Kraków inhabitants. For many years the oldest DJ in Poland has been trying to prove that music and dancing make an excellent combination which can be considered to be a form of prophylaxis, both in the physical and cardiac sense. DJ Wika played several songs about the heart and life, filling the audience in the Kraków Marketplace with admiration, both the elder and the younger ones.
Throughout the day, on the main stage as well as in specially organized centres, the inhabitants of Kraków and its environs could get advice from outstanding cardiologists and cardio-surgeons that came to Kraków from all over Poland.
Just like in the past years, the participants could visit medical stands where they could have an ECG examination and a cardiac ECHO, and have their blood pressure, body weight, BMI, sugar level and cholesterol level tested.
Our company stand was visited by several hundred people, almost 300 of whom had their blood pressure, total cholesterol level and sugar level tested by nurses.
Information materials, diet guidebooks, heart-shaped anti-stress items and red heart-shaped balloons were handed out by two nice ‘Novocardia Hearts’ who reminded everybody to "remember of their hearts, be fond of their hearts, and take care of their hearts".