Heart Disease is Gender Neutral
For years, heart disease was considered a man’s disease. However, we now know that heart disease is the leading cause of death for women as well as men. Although men tend to develop coronary artery disease earlier in life, after age 65 the risk of heart disease in women is almost the same as in men. Cardiovascular disease is the number-one cause of death in both men and women. Statistics from the American Heart Association show that one woman every minute dies from heart disease in the U.S.
But It wasn’t always this way, before 1987, more men than women died of heart disease because of a variety of differences between the sexes in biology and health habits. More men smoked cigarettes and tended to drink more alcohol, for example. The rise in deaths related to heart disease in the late 1980s coincided with the entry of women into the workforce. But after 1987, there was a reduction in death rates among men, while women began to surpass men in heart-disease deaths. By 2017, men and women experienced similar rates of death from heart disease.
Now, even though men and women both have hearts, there are differences, a woman’s heart is usually smaller, as are some of its interior chambers. The walls that divide some of these chambers are thinner. And while a woman’s heart pumps faster than a man’s, it ejects about 10% less blood with each squeeze. When a woman is stressed, her pulse rate rises, and her heart pumps more blood. When a man is stressed, the arteries of his heart constrict, raising his blood pressure.
Heart Attack Signs in Men:
1. Chest discomfort. Most heart attacks involve discomfort in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and comes back. It can feel like uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain.
2. It used to be thought that only chest pain was a sign of heart attack, but it’s possible to have discomfort that doesn’t register as painful. Symptoms can include pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.
3. Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.
4. Other signs may include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or feeling lightheaded.
Heart Attack Signs in Women
1. As with men, women’s most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain in the center of your chest. It lasts more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back.
2. Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.
3. Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.
4. Other common symptoms in women include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea/vomiting, or feeling lightheaded, palpitations; sleep disturbances and unexplained fatigue.
In addition to gender, age and family history, your lifestyle is a big factor for developing heart disease. Eating the proper foods and getting the right kind of exercise can prevent many problems associated with heart disease.
I myself take extra supplements for heart health, such as CoQ-10, Turmeric Curcumin, Magnesium, Fish, Flax, & Borage Oil, all contribute to heart health, supposedly. Now I’m not recommending you start taking these supplements before you start taking anything you should always talk to your doctor first, especially if you are taking any prescription medication.
