Women and Heart Disease
When we talk about health problems that pose the maximum risk to you as a woman, you instantly think of breast cancer or maybe osteoporosis. Well, both the answers are wrong. Heart disease is the uno numero factor for an annual death of 8.6 million women worldwide! So basically 1 out of 3 women die each year due to heart conditions. Quite an astounding figure! Coronary heart disease, Arrhythmia, and Cardiac arrests are the primary health conditions affecting the heart.
A misunderstood fact about heart diseases is that it is not considered much of a threat in women. The alarming number states something else though. The nature of these conditions which affect women is not the same as men. In the section below, you’ll understand the causes, warning signs and prevention of heart diseases.
The primary causes of heart disease in women
- Women who have high blood pressure, diabetic or a metabolic syndrome are at a higher risk.
- Smoking is the greatest factor giving rise to heart diseases. Tobacco is a call to death itself.
- Obesity or an inactive lifestyle contributes again as a risk factor.
- Mental depression and stress in women affect the heart at a faster rate.
- A familial history plays an important role in its occurrence.
Symptoms of heart diseases in women are pretty different from men. It is not necessary that the textbook symptoms we read will occur in the same nature for women. Sometimes, it may happen that a heart attack can occur even without a chest pain.
The common warning signs of heart disease
Extreme discomfort in the chest which may last for a few quick seconds or may go and come back again repeating the pattern.
⦁ Nausea
⦁ Shortness of breath
⦁ Pain radiating in the arm, jaw or throat
⦁ Dizziness
⦁ Excessive sweating
The signs come subtly but bear deadly outcomes. Hence, in a blink of an eye rush to the hospital if you come across any of the above symptoms.
Preventive Measures
The best key to ward away from heart diseases is by following preventive measures. It’s never too late to take the right steps for yourself. By cultivating healthy habits, you can reduce a whopping 50 percent risk of the stroke just by the following approaches.
- NO smoking! We cannot emphasize enough how perilous smoking is. It literally cuts off years and years and years from your longevity scale. Also, exposure to passive smoke is equally dangerous.
- A healthy diet with more fiber, less fat, fruits, vegetables and lean proteins such as fish.
- Start exercising every day for 30 minutes or a minimum of 150 minutes of cardio or aerobic conditioning per week. This will tremendously decrease the chances of having any heart disease. Shedding the excess pounds will also keep you active and fresh throughout the day.
- Getting enough sleep will reduce the likelihood of heart diseases. It will also help to control your stress which in turn will help curb the chances of heart diseases.
- Stop alcohol consumption. With the increase in alcohol intake, the risk of cardiac conditions and many cancers such as breast and liver cancer increases threefold.
- Proper medication must be followed by women with diabetes or blood pressure. Go for regular monthly check-ups to know how well your body is responding to the medicines.
The incidence of getting a heart disease is increasing over the past years, and as frightening or nerve-wrecking it may sound, it is mandatory to be aware of your body and its changes. With the implementation of simple measures, the probability drops to a large extent, thus benefiting you in the long run.
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