A heart-saving tip for Valentines Day: Many people dont know how to perform cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and are a bit intimidated by the counting, not to mention wary of the clearing the throat and mouth-to-mouth breathing parts of the exercise (for any number of reasons). And, you have to take a class to perform CPR properly, and be certified to use it.

Well, now you dont need an official class to learn a life-saving procedure for someone who has collapsed from sudden cardiac arrest, CHEST-COMPRESSION-ONLY CPR. It means exactly what it says you use both hands to continuously press on the persons chest rapidly, to the beat of the aptly named Stayin Alive by the Bee Gees, until help arrives. Each compression becomes the equivalent of a heartbeat, keeping the blood flowing.

You can learn the technique in just a few minutes by watching a video by the Sarver Heart Center: http://ahsc.arizona.edu/node/730

Its a few minutes well spent. And who knows, you might be able to save a life someday.

Elleda Wilson