The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) offered free health screenings and cooking demonstrations at its Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program booth at Firehouse Expo in Baltimore, Maryland. Firehouse.com captured the booth's interactive exhibit on film.
Over 500 firefighters and emergency services personnel received free blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose screenings at the Heart-Healthy Firefighter booth. The NVFC teamed up with L&T Health and Fitness, an award-winning fitness management and health-promotion company, to provide the free screenings.
>> Follow the Video Tour of the NVFC Heart Healthy Firefighter Booth at Firehouse Expo: View in Player Now or Right Click Here and "Save As" to Download WMV (20MB)
Chef Kevin Harris of Food For Love, Inc., performed several cooking demonstrations over the course of the three days to show attendees how to make heart-healthy meals. The demonstrations included Harris' recipes for Never Too Much Garlic Pasta, Pollo y Pesto and Smokey Corn & Crab Chowder. These recipes are available on the Heart-Healthy Firefighter website at www.healthy-firefighter.org.
"The message of the Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program is extremely important for the fire and emergency services," said Maggie Wilson, NVFC's Director of Health and Safety. "Heart attack continues to be the number one cause of all firefighter deaths. It is our goal to reach as many firefighters and emergency services personnel as possible through information and the essential heart-healthy activities promoted in our traveling booth - nutrition, fitness and periodic health screenings."
Reporters from Firehouse.com stopped by the Heart-Healthy Firefighter booth to interview Wilson and take a closer look at the health screenings and cooking demonstrations. Footage from the filming will be available soon at www.firehouse.com.
The NVFC launched the Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program in 2003 as a proactive campaign to reduce the number of firefighter deaths from heart attack through proper nutrition, fitness and health education. Heart attack is the leading cause of firefighter deaths. As part of the campaign, the Heart-Healthy Firefighter booth travels to trade shows and conferences nationwide to increase awareness among firefighters and emergency services personnel about the importance of heart-health. For more information, visit the Program's website at www.healthy-firefighter.com.
