NEW YORK, Feb. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- A new Lifetime Women's Pulse Poll

released today, conducted in conjunction with leading national health experts

and organizations, reveals that women are increasingly aware of the dangers of

heart disease and recognize that it is the #1 killer of women, but few

acknowledge their personal risk and most report that dialogue is lacking

between women and their health care providers on this critical subject. The

new poll shows a large window of opportunity to increase awareness of the

importance of reducing risk factors of heart disease, promote action that will

significantly improve women's heart health and encourage conversation between

patients and health care professionals.

 KEY FINDINGS:

 Women are aware of the dangers of heart disease

 * 54% correctly identify heart disease as the leading cause of death

 among women.

 * 43% correctly state that women are more likely than men to die from

 heart disease.

 * 71% believe that women exhibit different heart disease symptoms than

 men.

 Although the odds are against them, few acknowledge their personal risk

for heart disease

 * Nearly nine in ten women (84%) reported to having one or more risk

 factors for heart disease (42% have three or more risk factors), yet

 only approximately one in three (31%) feel that they are personally at

 risk for heart disease.

 * Women from lower income households (under $25,000) are likely to report

 more risk factors than women from upper income households (over

 $75,000) -- 2.9 versus 1.5 risk factors on average. But, having more

 risk factors did not translate into greater personal awareness of risk.

 Women are being screened, but NOT talking to their health care providers

about risks

 * 80% of women said they've been screened for heart disease (by having

 cholesterol and/or blood pressure checked) at least once in the past

 year.

 * Of those who were not screened in the past year, "lack of health

 insurance" (15%) and "lack of time" (12%) were the most common reasons

 cited.

 * Only 30% reported their health care provider initiated a conversation

 with them about their risk of heart disease.

 * Only 26% said THEY initiated a conversation with their health care

 provider about their risk of heart disease.

 * Among women 18-34, only 16% have initiated a conversation with their

 health care provider and only 16% said their provider initiated a

 conversation with them about their risk of heart disease.

 Personal knowledge is high and motivates many to act

 * 68% of women said that they know someone who suffers from or has died

 from heart-related illness.

 * 55% of those women are inspired to get more information or take action.

 * Additionally, 39% of women recognize the "Red Dress" as the national

 symbol for women and heart disease awareness. The National Heart, Lung,

 and Blood Institute (NHLBI) created and launched the Red Dress as the

 national symbol for women and heart disease awareness.

 The survey was released to coincide with National Wear Red Day, a day of

heart health awareness for women across the country, and to launch Lifetime

Television's public education initiative, Don't Skip a Beat, which is a part

of the network's new over-arching women's health and well-being campaign "Our

Lifetime Commitment: Living Healthy."

 Leading experts and organizations on women and heart disease helped inform

the poll's questions, and identified important trends to focus on. The

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's The Heart Truth campaign, Sister

to Sister: Everyone Has a Heart Foundation and WomenHeart: The National

Coalition for Women with Heart Disease all offered valuable insights to help

measure awareness and the depth of knowledge that women have of heart disease

and its risk factors.

 Meredith Wagner, Executive Vice President of Public Affairs, Lifetime

Entertainment Services, said, "We hope this poll, as well as our campaign,

will help further drive the message that women need to become even more

involved in their heart health."

 "It's heartening to see that The Heart Truth and its partners are

succeeding in helping more and more women learn about their #1 killer and

understand their own personal risk," said Elizabeth G. Nabel, M.D., director,

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, part of the National Institutes of

Health. "But we still have more to do to alert women to the seriousness of

heart disease, especially to the dangers of having multiple risk factors."

 "Lifetime and Sister to Sister's partnership was formed with the purpose

of making a significant difference in women's lives by helping them take

control of their heart health. Women will not only learn of their own risk

factors but, more importantly, they will be able to take appropriate action,"

said Irene Pollin, Founder and President of Sister to Sister: Everyone Has a

Heart Foundation.

 Nancy Loving, Executive Director, WomenHeart, said, "These polling results

demonstrate great progress: that women are much more aware of and taking heart

disease more personally. However, they also underscore the fact that we are

doing a poor job reaching women living in low-income communities, where heart

disease is most severe and prevalent. We all need to re-focus our efforts to

better serve these women."

 Lifetime Women's Pulse Poll Methodology:

 Polling was conducted by International Communications Research (ICR). A

nationally representative sample of 508 women age 18+ was contacted via

telephone from January 13th-17th, 2006. Complete poll results available upon

request.

 Lifetime Entertainment Services:

 LIFETIME is the leader in women's television and one of the top-rated

basic cable television networks. A diverse, multi-media company, LIFETIME is

committed to offering the highest quality entertainment and information

programming, and advocating a wide range of issues affecting women and their

families. LIFETIME Television, Lifetime Movie Network, Lifetime Real Women,

Lifetime Home Entertainment and Lifetime Online are part of LIFETIME

Entertainment Services, a 50/50 joint venture of The Hearst Corporation and

The Walt Disney Company.

 Poll Partners:

 The Heart Truth is a national awareness campaign for women about heart

disease sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI),

part of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human

Services (DHHS) in partnership with: Office on Women's Health, DHHS;

WomenHeart: the National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease; American

Heart Association; and other organizations committed to the health and

well-being of women. NHLBI created and launched the Red Dress as the national

symbol for women and heart disease awareness. Coupled with the slogan "Heart

Disease Doesn't Care What You Wear -- It's the #1 Killer of Women", The Heart

Truth and its Red Dress leverages a powerful influence in women's lives --

fashion -- to deliver a very serious and urgent wake-up call to American

women. NHLBI continues to lead the nation in a landmark heart health awareness

movement that is being embraced by millions, and its Red Dress symbol is fast

becoming one of the most recognizable health symbols in the United States. For

more information, please visit http://www.hearttruth.gov/

 Sister to Sister is a 501(c)(3) foundation that is dedicated solely to

bringing free heart disease screenings and "heart-healthy" information and

support to women to prevent heart disease. For more information, please visit

http://www.womansheartday.org/.

 WomenHeart: the National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease is the

nation's only patient advocacy organization servicing the 8,000,000 American

women living with heart disease. It aims to improve their quality of life and

healthcare through education, support and advocacy. Founded in 1998,

WomenHeart is a public charity headquartered in Washington, DC. Visit online

at http://www.womenheart.org/.