Serving with healthy hearts

  • Published
  • By Col. Steve Arquiette
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing commander
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  We are blessed to have so many caring and generous individuals and organizations that support Team Travis -- they all have "Big Hearts."

Last Sunday while I attended a meeting of the 5th District of the American Legion and Auxiliary, these caring big-hearted Americans donated $500 to our Travis Fisher House.

Thank you so much!

We'll be thanking all of our retirees during our upcoming Retiree Appreciation Day in a month or so, but this article won't focus on "Big Hearts," but another aspect near and dear to all of us, that being "Healthy Hearts."

We are all doing a great job supporting the war effort and we need to continue to perform at 110 percent. Your supervisors, coworkers, families and I depend on you to perform to your highest potential. In order to do that successfully, you need to take care of yourself and maintain a healthy heart.

Coronary heart disease is the nation's single leading cause of death. According to the American Heart Association, one in three, an estimated 79.4 million adult Americans, have one or more types of cardiovascular disease. This is a truly astounding statistic, especially considering there are so many ways to be proactive and prevent heart disease.

We continue to focus on our Airmen making quality decisions at work and when it comes to their health, I expect nothing less. Being mindful of a few basic preventative measures will go a long way.

Monitor what you're eating

You can lower your chances of getting heart disease by making quality, healthy decisions when eating. Unfortunately, when people think of healthy eating, visions of tofu and celery sticks come to mind.

You don't have to go hungry or sacrifice taste to eat healthy. It's just a matter of selecting higher quality foods and controlling your portions.

My schedule is quite hectic to say the least, and when I don't plan ahead, I tend to make unhealthy choices. One way I like to combat that is by coming to worked armed with healthy snacks so I am not tempted by high-calorie, high-fat foods. Fast food is not the solution, just an easy way out.

Exercise and watch your weight

Your weight and exercise go hand-in-hand with making quality choices in what you eat. According to the American Heart Association, about 66 percent of Americans age 20 and older, are overweight or obese.

Again, another area that you have direct control over. Chief Master Sgt. Michael Williams, 60th Air Mobility Wing command chief, and I have been emphasizing exercise and physical fitness since day one and we won't be letting up on our expectations. I grow more and more proud every day of the high-quality PT programs all of the squadrons have, and the increase of Airmen out running and working out.

Take advantage of the resources available to you as a military member. We have a top-notch gym with a great staff standing by to help you effectively and safely meet your goals to either lose weight or increase your overall health.

Keep your heart clean

Finally, smoking. It's the number one preventable cause of serious illness such as heart disease, stroke, lung cancer and emphysema.

An estimated 25.1 million men and 20.9 million women put themselves at increased risk of heart attack and stroke by smoking cigarettes.

In the Air Force 25 percent of our Airmen smoke, with Travis' numbers a touch higher at 26 percent.

If you want to quit, our Health and Wellness Center has a program that is adopted from the American Lung Association's Freedom from Smoking program. It is a five-week session that meets once per week for approximately two hours.

They offer a new class each month, focusing not only on dealing with the biological addiction to nicotine, but also focusing on the behavioral (habit and emotional) addiction.

Also, there is a new Web site that has been developed by the Tobacco Control Section of the California Department of Health targeting military personnel, http://www.projectuniform.org/

We have a busy year ahead of us. I need each and every one of you to help keep the planes supporting our troops downrange. Take care of yourself. Take care of your heart.

BE PROUD! BE SAFE!