What Women Need to Know About Heart Disease

Heart disease is the leading cause of death among women over 65. American women are 4 to 6 times more likely to die of heart disease than of breast cancer and kills more women over 65 than all cancer combined. Women develop heart disease about 7 to 8 years later in life than men. However, by age 65, the risk is almost the same as a man’s. Furthermore, women are less likely to survive heart attacks than men. Nobody really knows why. Maybe it’s because women to seek medical attention as easily as men do or maybe because women’s hearts are smaller so are their blood vessels.

For both men and women, the factors that contribute to heart disease are smoking, high blood pressure and cholestorol, family history and age. Although you can’t really do something about your family history or age, you can make lifestyle changes to avoid other risk factors.Here are a couple of things you can do, to cut down on your risk.

Don’t smoke
Smoking is a major factor for heart disease in women. More than 50 percent of the heart attacks in women under 50 are related to smoking. If you stop smoking you can cut down your risk by one third in 2 years. Furthermore, women that smoke and use birth control increase the risk of heart disease even more. There are different products out there that can help you stop smoking. You can try the Nicotine skin patch or nicotine gum, they are available over the counter. There are also prescription medicines available that can help you stop smoking, ask your doctor. Not just smoking, but being a second hand smoker increases your risk.

Control your blood pressure
Treating and lowering your blood pressure, also reduces your risk of heart attack and stroke. There are different ways to help you control your blood pressure, like excersing regularly, losing weight and a healthy diet. Furthermore, you should control your salt intake. If that doesn’t help talk to your doctor and he might have to put you on medication.

Control your cholesterol
Make sure you have your doctor check your cholesterol level on a regular basis. Diet is a key part of lowering high cholestorol levels. However, besides diet and regular exercise you might have to take medication to lower your cholesterol.

Maintain a healthy weight
Just by reducing your weight by 10 percent you can reduce your risk of heart disease. Extra weight puts strain on your heart and arteries. Exercise and a low-fat diet can help you lose weight. Being overweight means you have a higher risk for heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. If you are overweight talk to your doctor so you can set up a healthy exercise program to loose weight.

Exercise regulary
Considering your heart is a muscle it need regular exercise to stay in shape. Aerobic exercise, such as swimming, joking or biking will give you the best workout. You should exercise at least 30 to 60, 4 to 6 times a week. Make sure you talk to your doctor before starting a workout program.

Eat a low fat diet
Keep fat calories to 30 percent or less of the total calories you take in a day and avoid saturated fat (the fat in coconut oil and meats. Make sure you read the food labels on the back of products and follow the portion sizes. Eat less fat (especially butter, coconut and palm oil, saturated or hydrogenated vegetable oils like fats as Crisco) Use nonstick vegetable oil cooking sprays instead of oils.Buy lean cuts of meat, and eat fish, skinless chicken and turkey instead of beef.Try low-fat snacks that have been baked instead of fried, such as pretzels.Choose low-fat dairy products, such as skim milk, low-fat cheese, yogurt and margarine.Eat no more than 4 egg yolks a week ( use egg whites or egg substitutes)Bake, broil, steam or grill foods instead of frying them.Eat more vegetables, fruit and carbohydrates (rice, pasta, bread, grains) instead of “fast-food” prducts (burgers, fries)Drink low-calorie beverages, such as unsweetened teat or diet soda and drink plenty of water.

Be aware of chest pain
Chest pain is not always caused by heart disease. Be sure you contact your doctor if you suffer from pain in the chest, shoulder, neck or jaw. Also notify your doctor if you experience shortness of breath or nausea that comes on quickly.

Know your family history
Having a father or brother with heart disease before age 55, or a mother or sister with heart disease before 65 are factors that contribute to heart disease. Inform your doctor of your family history.

Until now, treatment of women of heart disease has been based primarily on what is known about men. In fact, some studies have shown that despite the fact that women with heart disease are often sicker than men with the same disease, they are frequently treated less aggressive. Just like said before, heart disease is preventable and treatable. Diet and lifestyle changes can be very effective preventive efforts for some forms of heart disease. For those to work best, they should be started early in life, long before you are actually at risk for heart disease.