Women & Heart Disease

Heart Disease is often incorrectly called "a man*s disease".  Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women in the United States and kills 1 out of every 3 women.  According to the American Heart Association, heart disease, or cardiovascular disease (CVD), which includes heart attack and stroke, claims the lives of 504,000 women in the United States every year - more than the next 16 causes of death combined, including breast cancer.
 
Women under age 50 who have had heart attacks are twice as likely to die from them as men in the same age group. Experts believe that one of the major reasons women are less likely to recover from heart attacks is because, until recently, treatment and diagnosis of CVD in women was based on what physicians knew about men. As a result, women were diagnosed later than men, limiting their treatment options.

It is true that women generally develop heart disease about 10 years later than men.  It is because women are protected by their hormones, primarily estrogen.  However, post menopause heart disease attacks with a vengeance.

Warning Signs of a Heart Attack:

Dyspepsia (pain or an uncomfortable feeling in the upper middle part of your stomach) or Chest Pain accompanied by the following:

Nausea   *   Abdominal Bloating   *    Belching & or Vomiting   *   Severe Pain in the Upper Right Abdomen   *   Discomfort Unrelated to Eating   *   Shortness of Breath   *    Sweating   *    Pain Radiating to the Arms, Shoulder, Neck or Jaw   *   Pressure, Fullness, Squeezing, Pain and/ or Discomfort in the Center of the Chest that lasts for more than a few minutes   *   Chest Pain that Increases in Intensity and/ or is not Relieved by Rest or by Taking Cardiac Prescription Medications   *   Dizziness or Fainting   *   Rapid or Irregular Pulse

Although chest pain discomfort is the key warning sign of a heart attack, remember that 1/3 of patients may not have chest pain or discomfort.  Heart Attacks can be confused with indigestion, pneumonia and or an number of other disorders. 

To decrease your risk of heart disease it is important to eat health, exercise at least 3 days a week and have your chelesterol & blood pressure checked regularly by your primary care physicains.