May 22--The American Heart Association (AHA) recently released a study announcing the rankings of cities in terms of heart health -- Florence was ranked 126 out of 130 cities surveyed.
According to Dr. James Dedonis -- a cardiologist at Advanced Cardiology Consultants and chief of medicine at Carolinas Hospital System -- part of the problem could be that although Florence residents have left the fields, their stomachs have not.
"The folks who grew up in this area, their diets probably evolved from very high labor-intensive work," he said. "They needed lots of calories to get through the day, but they did not have the same lifestyle requirements that we do today."
Dedonis said a high-calorie diet combined with a lack of exercise has created a recipe for disaster. He said the recent rash of heart-friendly campaigns in the area are a step in the right directions, though.
"Myself and several other cardiologists here have given talks to the public to help raise awareness as well," he said. "We're getting more of a fitness culture here in town. But as of right now, there are still no real good commuter bike paths (in Florence.) But I think that trend is starting here and will be continuing."
Arielle Riposta -- AHA director of marketing and communications for the Midlands and the Upstate -- said she was disappointed to see the results for Florence come in so low, but she knows measures are being taken to improve the ranking in the coming years.
"There are several ways to improve those rankings for the next study," she said. "Eating healthy, getting physical activity, and knowing their numbers (regarding) blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose and weight is a great start."
She said the study ranked 200 cities across the nation based on how each city scored on a scale of one to four -- one being a standout example of how other cities should be and four being that area needs improvement.
"They included cardiac death, diabetes diagnosis, obesity and smoke-free legislation, among other things," Riposta said. "Specifically, Florence actually ranked at the bottom in areas like smoke-free legislation, healthy eating and getting regular exercise."
She said one of the easiest ways to change the ranking of Florence is to begin making healthier dietary choices.
"It's something that is so simple, healthy eating," she said. "When you go out to eat, just make better choices."
Riposta said it is important for people to look at the findings not as a negative, but as something they can improve upon.
"It's not about focusing on the fact that this study pointed out (a negative)," she said. "It's about healthy living and making yourself heart healthy -- turning that negative into a positive. We have a lot of work to do and it can be done as long as we are proactive about it."
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