Katie Beale's Fundraising Page

I'm running the Auckland marathon on 2 November this year and in the process am raising money to support The National Heart Foundation of New Zealand.

On average each day 16 New Zealanders die as a result of coronary heart disease. That's one person every 90 minutes. And many of these deaths are premature and preventable.

Cardiovascular disease (heart, stroke & blood vessel disease) is the single leading cause of death in New Zealand. It causes 40 percent of all deaths annually in our country - making it more deadly than all forms of cancer.

The nature of who is affected by it is changing. New research shows that young adults in their 20s and 30s are being admitted to hospital for heart attacks more than ever before, and that this age group is dying at a faster rate than people of the same age in previous generations. Much of this change is due to unhealthy lifestyles - poor eating habits, lack of physical activity and being a smoker.

But the good news is that many risk factors for heart disease are preventable, if people make healthy lifestyle choices.

Any donations through my webpage go directly to the Heart Foundation where its used for research, cardiac rehabilitation, education programmes and resources.

To sponsor / donate, select the "Make a donation" button below. You can use your visa to make a donation and all money goes directly to the Heart Foundation bank account.

If you live in New Zealand your donation is tax deductible and a receipt will be issued.

Many thanks for your support