March 'Walk with a Doc' Explains Connection Between Happiness and Heart Health

On March 10, the BCH 'Walk with a Doc' program returned outdoors for a beautiful walk at Harlow Platts Park in Boulder.

Our special guest speaker was Dr. Jignesh Shah, board-certified cardiologist and electrophysiologist at Boulder Heart. Dr. Shah explained the very important role that happiness plays in heart health: "People who are happy compared to those who are not, have 25% less risk of heart-related death. I have no medicine in my tool bag that can decrease heart-related death by 25%." Regular exercise, such as walking, triggers the release of endorphins and dopamine, chemicals in the brain shown to activate happiness.

Dr. Shah was also joined by Dr. Jay Waddell, a marketing instructor from the CU Leeds School of Business and former patient of Dr. Shah, who gave his own personal account of how exercise and optimism helped him recover from a stroke.

Join us for our next walk in April when Dr. Nelson Trujillo will answer the question: "Does Cholesterol Still Matter?" The walk with be held on April 14 at Tom Watson Park/Coot Lake (6180 63rd Street) from 8 - 9:00 a.m.

For more information, visit bch.org/walkwithadoc.