Heart and Stroke Foundation Takes Diversity to Heart during Asian Heritage Month

TORONTO, May 8 – The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario announced today its first-ever participation in Asian Heritage Month.

Last year, the Foundation officially unveiled its diversity initiative. “As a Foundation, we are committed to creating a welcoming and supportive environment that embraces difference,” says Rocco Rossi, CEO, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario. “We are an inclusive organization that values, respects and empowers its employees, volunteers and the people that it serves, and responds to the needs of Ontario’s diverse communities through all its mission activities.” According to Canada’s latest census, 23% of the Ontario population are visible minorities. Of those diverse populations, the Foundation targeted four communities where heart disease and stroke are most prevalent: African Caribbean, Chinese, South Asian and Aboriginal communities. These communities were chosen because of their greater than average risk of heart disease and stroke.

“Asian Heritage Month gives us the opportunity to highlight the importance of prevention, control and treatment of heart disease and stroke specifically in the Chinese and South Asian communities,” says Rocco Rossi.

Each community has its own set of risks. According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation, South Asians have a three-five fold increased risk of heart attack and death from heart disease compared to other ethnic groups. “We are also seeing more and more South Asians developing coronary artery disease,” says Amit Suri MD, Senior Science Specialist, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario. “Some studies have shown this condition happening before the age of 40 in men.”

Recent data also shows that the Chinese population now represents Canada’s second largest visible minority group. More than 150,000 Chinese have settled in Canada from 2001 to 2006, making China the country’s largest source of immigrants.

“Heart disease and stroke used to be comparatively rare in China,” says Dr. Chi-Ming Chow, Heart and Stroke Foundation spokesperson and cardiologist. “Statistics from China show that six per cent of hospital admissions in the 1940s and 1950s were due to diseases of the circulatory system, but in the 1990s it rose to 39 per cent.”

As part of Asian Heritage Month’s many celebratory events, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario is the title partner of the first Young Asian Singing Competition. Nine finalists, aged 14-25 have been chosen from many of the GTA’s Asian communities. The final competition takes place May 17 at the P.C. Ho Theater at the Chinese Cultural Centre of Greater Toronto.

Asian Heritage Month has been celebrated in the United States since 1979. In December 2001, Senator Vivienne Poy introduced a motion in the Senate of Canada to designate May as Asian Heritage Month. The Government of Canada officially recognized May as Asian Heritage Month in May, 2002.

The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario is committed to raising awareness of cardiovascular health issues in the South Asian and Chinese Communities. Currently, the Foundation is funding several research studies focusing on the risk of heart disease and prevention in these communities. The Foundation has also developed health promotion materials in primary ethnic languages such as Punjabi, Hindi, Urdu, Tamil, Mandarin, and Cantonese.

For further information: Diane Hargrave, Public Relations, (416) 467-9954, ext. 104, email: dhprbks@interlog.com