Statement by the President on Cardiovascular Diseases.

AMERICA'S first line of defense, the health of its citizens, is challenged by a formidable enemy which literally strikes a deadly blow at our national life. I have seen reports stating that diseases of the heart and blood vessels constitute the most frequent cause of death. One out of every three deaths in the United States is caused by them; indeed, deaths from cardiovascular disease are greater than the total resulting from the next five leading causes combined.

Heart disease is also a major cause of disability, and the resulting economic loss in manpower and productivity is appalling.

Contrary to popular belief, the effects of this group of diseases are not limited to the older age groups in our population. This ruthless killer, in the form of rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease, I am informed, kills more school children than any other one disease. It is the leading fatal illness between the ages of 5 and 19. In middle life, high blood pressure and the heart disease associated with it is a major cause of death. Coronary thrombosis frequently attacks those in their prime, at the peak of their productivity.

Heart disease seriously handicapped our Nation during the recent war effort, since it was one of the major causes of rejection of candidates for military service. Records show that among those who were admitted to the armed forces, approximately 40,000 were disabled from rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease.

Research on diseases of the heart and blood vessels is a most urgent need. Because of inadequate financial support, research in this field has lagged far behind the minimum necessary to enable the medical profession to deal effectively with these diseases. It has been recently estimated that only seven cents per death is being spent at the present time for research in the diseases of the heart and blood vessels. This was pointed out by the President's Scientific Research Board in Volume 5 of "Science and Public Policy" in which it was stated "Perhaps the most striking thing... is . . . the relatively low place of cardiovascular and kidney diseases in research and their high place as causes of death."

The medical profession alone cannot succeed in fighting this menace without the fullest cooperation of the general public. I call upon every citizen to realize and exercise his personal obligation in this vital public health effort. The duty of each American is to cooperate with his physician in protecting his health and that of his family, and to cooperate with his neighbor in supporting community efforts directed against this enemy of the people.