Free blood pressure, BMI, cholesterol and diabetes screenings in Greensboro

Publicist Susan Rotante advises that a coalition of healthcare providers will be giving free blood pressure, body mass index, cholesterol and diabetes screenings at various Greensboro locations from Jan. 18 through Jan. 20, in conjunction with Martin Luther King Day and the inauguration of President Obama. Sponsors include UnitedHealthcare, United Health Foundation and the Moses Cone Health System.

The schedule runs as follows:

• St. James Baptist Church, 536 W. Florida St., on Jan. 18, 9 a.m. to noon;
• Koury Convention Center on Jan. 19, 6:45 to 7:15 a.m. and 9:30-10:30 a.m.;
• Gillespie Park Elementary School, 1900 Martin Luther King Boulevard, on Jan. 19, 9-11 a.m.;
• St. James Presbyterian Church, 820 Ross Ave., on Jan. 19, 11 a.m.-noon and 2-4 p.m.; and
• St. James Presbyterian Church on Jan. 20, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

A press release on behalf of the sponsoring organizations states that African Americans have a 1.5-times greater rate of heart disease and 1.8-times greater rate of fatal stroke than whites as a result of a high prevalence of hypertension, according to the American Heart Association. Heart disease, stroke and all other cardiovascular diseases reportedly account for a third of death among African-American males and 38 percent of deaths among African-Amercan females.

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