User:Afedot1/THT

The Heart Truth&reg; is a campaign meant to raise awareness of the risk of heart disease in women. The campaign is sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, an organization of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. It focuses mainly on educating women aged forty to sixty, as that is the time when the risk of heart disease begins to increase.

Campaign history
The campaign began in March 2001 on recommendation from over seventy experts on the health of women. The research stressed the need to communicate to women about the risk of heart disease, and endorsed The Heart Truth as a means of doing so.

Logo and marketing
The Red Dress&reg;, the national symbol for women and heart disease awareness, was created by The Heart Truth in 2002 to deliver an urgent wakeup call to American women of the need to protect their heart health, and inspire them to take action.

The campaign has also conjured National Wear Red Day, a nation wide event which is held on the first Friday of February annually.

Events
The Heart Truth has joined with the United States Federal Government and fashion industries, in an attempt to appeal to female audiences. Red dresses have been displayed across the country, primarily at New York's Fashion Week. The first Red Dress Collection Fashion Week took place in 2003 when nineteen designers, including Vera Wang, Oscar de la Renta, and Carmen Marc Valvo contributed dresses that were displayed in the Byrant Park Tents. Many fashion shows have been put on in recent years during the Fashion Week festivities; many famous celebrities have participated in walking the aisle, including Jenna Fischer, Sheryl Crow, Natalie Morales, Kelly Ripa, Deborah Harry, Venus Williams, Angela Bassett, Rachael Ray, Valerie Bertinelli, Christie Brinkley, Vanessa L. Williams, Allison Janney, Billie Jean King, Katie Couric, Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson, LeAnn Rimes, Fergie, Ashanti, Eartha Kitt, Valerie Harper, Kim Kardashian, Heidi Klum, Joan Collins and Hillary Duff.

Laura Bush's involvement
Former First Lady Laura Bush was the ambassador for the Heart Truth from 2003 to 2008. She led the federal government in giving women more information relating to heart disease. Bush coordinated many events relating to the Heart Truth, including a White House ceremony in 2004, the Kennedy Center exhibit, the Reagan Library exhibit, and participated in all Fashion Week events dating to 2008.

A signature component of Mrs. Bush's involvement is her communication with women at hospital events featuring those living with heart disease. She promotes the campaign through various media interviews as well.

First Ladies Red Dress Collection
In May 2005, the Heart Truth constructed a special exhibition at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., known as the First Ladies Red Dress Collection. The collection featured seven red dresses worn by America's first ladies Lady Bird Johnson, Betty Ford, Rosalynn Carter, Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Laura Bush. The exhibit was unveiled by Laura Bush, in the presence of many Congressional spouses and Cabinet secretaries.

In February 2007, the Heart Truth moved that exhibit to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, California. There, the exhibit was opened by former First Lady Nancy Reagan along with television personality Larry King and Laura Bush. A conference was held at the library with leaders of the heart disease awareness movement as well as Bush and Reagan.