CINCINNATI (WKRC) - Friday is National Wear Red Day!

When people around the nation wear the bold color on Friday, they’re raising awareness for the fight against heart disease and stroke.

The statistics are staggering even now: 1 in 3 women will die from heart disease.

But it was the troubling numbers back in 2004 that prompted the American Heart Association to launch an initiative to do something about it.

At that time, cardiovascular disease claimed the lives of 500,000 American women each year.

It used to be dismissed as an older man's disease, but the AHA started “Go Red for Women” to dispel that myth and raise awareness and funds for research.

Those with the Cincinnati American Heart Association say since the start of Go Red for Women more than 627,000 women's lives have been saved by the simple message of prevention and keeping your heart healthy.

That includes simply knowing your numbers: Blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar and body mass index.

They can't stress enough how important it is for women to see a doctor.

"We just really want women to make sure that they're listening to their bodies and that they are doing everything they can to live a healthy life. Going to the doctor, asking those questions that's the biggest thing,” said Jenni Grammer, Director of Cincinnati's Go Red for Women. “Again, if you thought you had cancer or you thought you had a lump you would go to the doctor immediately and get screened, why not do that for yourself and your heart?"

You can see towers and the sign on the Duke Energy Convention Center glowing red.