Free cardiovascular health screening and lifestyle education

(Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women Across the Nation) funding expands the prevention services provided for women participating in the National Early Breast and Cervical Cancer Control Project (NBCCCEDP), known in Missouri as the Show Me Healthy Women program.

WISEWOMAN is a CDC-funded program that helps underinsured, low-income women gain access to health screenings and lifestyle education that can reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke. To be eligible for WISEWOMAN services, women must be participants in the Show Me Healthy Women breast and cervical cancer control project and be 40-64 years of age.

Missouri is one of 15 WISEWOMAN projects in the nation. There are 34 health care providers throughout the state delivering WISEWOMAN services through Show Me Healthy Women.

Annual WISEWOMAN screenings measure blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, waist circumference, height and weight.

Lifestyle behaviors addressed in education sessions include smoking, low physical activity, high saturated fat intake, and low fruit and vegetable consumption. "Choices for Healthy Living" is the Missouri WISEWOMAN education program for lifestyle behavior change. "Choices for Healthy Living" was adapted from A New Leaf: Choices for Healthy Living developed by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.