ELIZABETH KLODAS, M.D., F.A.C.C.

Dr. Elizabeth Klodas, M.D., F.A.C.C., is president of Preventive Cardiology Consultants, as well as founder and president of Cardiovascular Imaging Consultants in Edina, Minnesota. She has teamed up with WomenHeart and Colgate-Palmolive Company to launch the Heartwarming Smiles campaign and educate people about the association between oral health and heart health.

Dr. Klodas is currently a Staff Cardiologist at United Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota and director of the Cardiovascular Prevention Clinic at General Mills. Passionate about heart disease prevention, Dr. Klodas has developed programs in conjunction with employer and insurance groups to encourage good heart health in the workplace. She also serves as editor-in-chief of CardioSmart.org, the patient education initiative at the American College of Cardiology; and as medical editor at WebMD.

Dr. Klodas received her doctorate in Canada from the University of Toronto in Ontario. She completed a comprehensive medicine internship at Toronto General Hospital and an internal medicine residency with the Mayo Graduate School of Medicine in Rochester, Minnesota. She also underwent fellowships with the Mayo Graduate School and Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore to focus more on noninvasive cardiology and echocardiography research.

Dr. Klodas' professional affiliations include the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association, the American Society of Echocardiography, and the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology, of which she is a founding member of the Upper Midwest Working Group. She is quoted in numerous scientific articles and book chapters in her field, serves on several professional committees, and authored the book Slay the Giant: The Power of Prevention in Defeating Heart Disease, a practical guide for understanding and improving heart health.

ESSENCE HARRIS

Essence Harris, WomenHeart Champion, is a coronary artery disease survivor and patient spokesperson for WomenHeart and Colgate-Palmolive Company's Heartwarming Smiles campaign. She currently resides in New Orleans, Louisiana, where she stays active by participating in her 9-year old son's sports, and taking regular tennis, yoga and fitness classes. She works in the Supply Chain/Supplier Diversity department at Entergy Corporation, an energy company focused on electric power production and retail distribution operations. She is also actively involved in several community events, board participation and organizations in her hometown New Orleans, Louisiana.

Essence has always enjoyed being active and eating healthy. Following college, she pursued professional dancing in New York for four years and went on to become a part-time personal trainer. At 30 years old, she was eating healthy and staying fit, but started having trouble breathing during her gym workouts. Her doctors conducted multiple tests, but the results were inconclusive. Finally, the doctors ran a stress test and much to the surprise of Essence and her doctors, she was diagnosed with severe coronary artery disease. For treatment, Essence underwent angioplasty and had three stents inserted into her arteries. She has now fully recovered, and is more vigilant than ever about staying healthy.

Battling heart disease was a life-changing experience for Essence, and she hopes that her story will inspire others to make their health a priority. She volunteers with WomenHeart: The National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease, and shares her story so that fewer people will be caught off guard like she was. She is also a member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, National Black MBA Association, and Jack and Jill of America.

Essence has received a B.A. from Loyola University and is currently pursuing a Executive M.B.A. from the University of New Orleans.