For Immediate Release
Office of the First Lady
February 4, 2004
Remarks by First Lady Laura Bush in Media Availability - Savannah
St. Joseph's/Candler Hospital
Savannah, Georgia
12:26 P.M. EST
MRS. BUSH: Thank you all for coming out today to cover The Heart
Truth. I hope all of you and your newspapers and your television
stations will go back and cover this and really let women and men know
what their risk factors are for heart disease. But especially get the
word out to women, because women -- one of the reasons there is the
higher death rate of women than men with heart disease is because women
don't seek help fast enough, because they just think of heart disease
as a man's disease.
So that's really the point of The Heart Truth campaign and the Red
Dress Project, the red dress pin that we're all wearing, and the red
dresses designed by American designers that will be introduced next
week during fashion week in New York. And then we'll travel around the
United States to remind people in cities around the United States to
get their risk factors checked, go to the doctor to make sure they
don't have high blood pressure or any of the other factors, besides
making those lifestyle changes that we all know and that I know every
one of your stations and your newspapers in your health reports tell
Americans all the time. But maybe we can encourage more women to make
those lifestyle changes.
I also want to say especially to the Georgia press, thank you for
your hospitality. We're really looking forward to hosting the G-8 here
in June and I know that Mayor Johnson from Savannah has been working
very closely with all the group who is putting together the G-8. And
we're really looking forward to showing our foreign leaders that we've
invited to the G-8 our beautiful country and especially this really
lovely state. We know it will be a really terrific visit.
Okay, any questions?
Q --
MRS. BUSH: Well, I'm going to talk about this, I'm going to talk
about The Heart Truth campaign and visiting this hospital. But then
I'm also of course going to talk about the reasons my husband is
reelected, about his strength and his resolve and the really good job I
think he has done.
Q --
MRS. BUSH: Well, I think that because I have this forum, because I
-- people will come listen to me, I think I have the opportunity to get
the word out, and that's what happened in the story that I told during
the speech about the woman in Kansas City, who heard on the news that
women didn't often have exactly the same symptoms as men. And she had
actually -- her main symptom had been fatigue, extreme fatigue, and she
had gone to the doctor, and he had said her vital signs were fine.
But when she couldn't sleep that night and her symptom was she had
tingling in one finger in her hand and then sort of a burning situation
in her shoulder blade. And because she had heard on the news that
women didn't all have the same symptoms that men do, she went ahead to
the hospital.
Q Not to be indelicate, have you ever had to struggle with
weight or a habit like smoking?
MRS. BUSH: Sure, absolutely. That's why I say to people, don't
start. That's what Christina Beato was talking about smoking. You
know, I hope especially that young women and men don't smoke, don't
ever start smoking because it's difficult to quit. And it's also very
difficult to lose weight.
In fact, I think that's even more difficult. And I know that women
and men all over the country -- and now we know children as well,
American children are struggling with the facts of obesity. We know
that children do not want to be fat; they don't feel good in school
about themselves. And it's really up to parents and adults who choose
the food for their children, who buy the food for their children to
promote a healthy lifestyle and to feed their children foods that are
healthy and heart healthy and that lead to maintaining a good weight.
Q I'm sorry, has this touched you personally in your family?
MRS. BUSH: It hasn't. My mother is living and doing very well,
and my father died of Alzheimer's in 1995.
Q Well, what really prompted you to --
MRS. BUSH: Well, when I heard the statistics. I had no idea. I,
like I'm sure most women, thought that cancer was the number one killer
of women, and I was really surprised when I heard that more women die
of heart disease than all cancers combined. And then the really good
news about this is that it is preventable and there are lifestyle
changes we can take. And just if we even get the message out so that
if women are suffering a heart attack, that they go to the doctor, go
to the hospital and rush them -- they would rush their spouses to the
hospital, and we want them to do the same thing if they have any
symptoms of heart disease.
Q Mrs. Bush, in talking about health issues, do you know if the
President is working on a plan, a health plan that would include all
Americans?
MRS. BUSH: Well, he -- actually, the Medicare plan that was signed
last year by the whole Congress is one of the first times, really,
after both parties had talked for a long time about passing Medicare,
new Medicare reform, and that has passed. And I know that all the
members of the Congress and the President are working to make sure all
Americans have the opportunity to get health coverage.
But I do want to say to people, if you don't have health coverage,
don't stay home if you're having the symptoms of a heart attack, that
hospitals will treat you and you need to go. Don't wait until it's too
late.
Q Mrs. Bush, you have daughters who are about my age. How do
you hope to reach the 20-year-old group and change their lifestyle?
Don't eat fast food, don't -- you know --
MRS. BUSH: Well, the fast food part is a really hard part for
20-year-olds to stop. I know that. But I also know that my girls, and
I think a lot more younger women and men do work out. They do exercise
and exercise is a big part of their lives. Women's sports are a big
part of our girls' lives. They're new to a lot of schools since I was
in school. I think we had tennis only, that many years ago.
But I do think that young people are very aware of their health.
That isn't to say they don't think they can quit some bad habits that
they have later when they're older. But I do know young people know
they want to exercise. They're very aware what foods are healthy. So
what we want them to do is make the right choices for themselves. And
that's a message we try to get out to all Americans. And that is to
really make wise choices. And, of course, the main thing for mothers,
if mothers make wise choices for themselves, their children are more
likely to make those wise choices.
Q Are your daughters in any way involved in The Heart Truth campaign?
MRS. BUSH: No, they're not. But they do work out and they're in
good shape. And they know a lot about food. (Laughter.) That doesn't
keep them from eating fast food though.
Q Mrs. Bush, you mentioned a reception later. How involved do
you plan to be in the reelection campaign?
MRS. BUSH: Well, I'll continue to do -- I've done a number of
events around the country, and I'll continue to do these. And then I
expect that as the campaign heats up later and probably after the
convention, I'll travel with the President. I like that. I like to be
able to travel with him on a campaign.
Politics is really a people business. It's all about people. And
if you like people like I do and like he does, it's fun to be able to
go around, see old friends around the country and meet new friends, and
plus just to see our really beautiful country. It's a huge privilege
to be able to travel with my husband around our country.
Q Have you developed skin like an armadillo yet?
MRS. BUSH: No, but I need it. I know that.
Q A lot of people are so excited that you have chosen our area
for the G-8. And if you could just, you know, tell us again why you
think that Savannah and Sea Island are --
MRS. BUSH: Well, we picked the Sea Island area because it is so
absolutely beautiful. And we were excited to be able to show all these
leaders who are coming in from around the world how beautiful this part
of our country is.
I sent out a letter to ask all the spouses to join me. They don't
always come to the G-8 meetings, but I hope they'll come this year.
We're going to bird watch and we're going to walk on the beach. And
then we're also going to talk about issues that all of us face as
spouses of world leaders. We're going to talk specifically about
women's issues in the world, women's issues in Afghanistan and Iraq.
So I look forward to fellowship with them in this really beautiful
place. And I really also look forward to showing off the hospitality
of south Georgia that I know is especially superb. So I look forward
to that.
Thank you all. Thanks so much. And I really want to encourage you
to cover heart disease and really get the word out to women especially
around all of this state and around our country. Thank you all.
END 12:35 P.M. EST
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