SYRACUSE -- A little more than 8 years ago, CNY Central reporter Jim Kenyon went public with his battle against heart disease.
Over the course of several months in 2004, Kenyon documented the medical procedures he endured after suffering chest pains while doing a live report from Albany.
What he originally thought to be a minor problem eventually resulted in a life saving triple bypass open heart surgery when he was then 55-years-old. His half hour special report, Heart To Heart, aired in December 2004.
Since then, Kenyon has undergone check-upsevery six months at the New York Heart Center in Syracuse.
In observance of American Heart Month, Kenyon once again brought cameras into the examination room to bring awareness to the problem of heart disease.
During the examination, Kenyon's blood pressure was measured at 180 over 102, which is considered Stage 2 hypertensive. An electro cardiogram, however, showed no irregularities in his heart function.
Kenyon's cardiologist, Dr. Eugene Lozner, also pointed out that the reporter needed to lose 10 pounds.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. 600,000 people die of heart disease in the United States every year, or one in every four deaths.
Heart disease is costing us $108.9 billion a year in health care and lost productivity.
Dr. Lozer says obesity is one of the main contributing factors.
"If you eat one donut you have to be on the treadmill more than an hour to burn up the calories. Really, the problem in America is that we eat too much food and the wrong kinds of food. It tastes good so people eat it and they're overweight,” says Dr. Lozer.
