Key TakeawaysHeart disease is the leading cause of death for women, claiming more lives each year than all forms of cancer combined.Knowing your risk factors for cardiovascular disease and discussing them with your healthcare provider are two proactive steps you can take to protect your heart.

Key Takeaways

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women, claiming more lives each year than all forms of cancer combined.Knowing your risk factors for cardiovascular disease and discussing them with your healthcare provider are two proactive steps you can take to protect your heart.

Experts are calling for an increased focus on women’s cardiovascular wellness in an effort to prevent the poor outcomes women often face when they develop heart disease. While the call-to-action might seem simple enough, it’s easier said than done for many.

On May 16, 17 experts from 11 countries authored the first-ever global report on cardiovascular disease (CVD) in women. The commission outlines 10 new recommendations to address women’s heart health including educating healthcare providers and patients on early detection and prioritizing sex-specific research on heart disease in women.

But whether it’s juggling responsibilities at work and at home, women may find it especially difficult to make their health a priority. The good news is, there are some preventive measures that you can take to prevent heart disease.

Why Women Experience High Rates of Heart Disease

“More women have been dying of heart disease than men since 1984,“Suzanne Steinbaum, MD, a holistic cardiologist, author, and volunteer medical expert forGo Red For Women, tells Verywell. “It’s not that it’s new, it’s that we’re finally talking about it. We know that the risk of heart attack and stroke is increasing in women under 55, and for women in that group the outcomes are worse.”

Nicole Harkin, MD, FACC, a preventive cardiologist and the founder ofWhole Heart Cardiology, tells Verywell that “heart disease in women has been underrecognized for some period of time,” and that “one in three women will die of heart disease, which is more than all cancers combined. It takes away many decades of our life.”

Harkin cites a variety of reasons for the high rates of cardiac-related deaths in women.

“Historically it was considered that heart disease was a man’s disease,” she says. “Women tend to be diagnosed with heart disease later in life than men, and women are more likely to present later in the course of having a heart attack.”

Women often get diagnosed with a heart attack later than men because they do not necessarily present the same signs or symptoms.

Women with Heart Disease Get Better Treatment from Female Physicians

Harkin adds that even when women are diagnosed, they tend to be prescribed fewer medications and less aggressivetreatments for heart diseasethan men.

Many Women Put Their Health on the Back Burner

To address the life stressors that many women are enduring, Harkin advocates for a “family first approach” that helps women care for themselves and their families. The approach also teaches kids healthy habits.

“Heart health begins early,” Harkin says. “Beginning to engage in heart health prevention as a family is an effective way that women can work on their own heart health as well as doing that for their children.” She suggests taking walks or hikes together as a family and including children in meal planning and preparation.

The Added Stress of COVID

During the COVID-19 pandemic, women have endured added pressure, which comes not only with short-term, but potentially long-term, physical and mental health consequences. Prolonged stress can increase the risk factors for heart disease. Plus, more women than men have beenavoiding preventive and routine healthcare during the pandemic.

Suzanne Steinbaum, MDWomen have to put themselves first on the list, and usually, they don’t. They often prioritize themselves last.

Suzanne Steinbaum, MD

Women have to put themselves first on the list, and usually, they don’t. They often prioritize themselves last.

“People overate, they became sedentary, and they had debilitating fear, but specifically for women who were juggling work, full-tines teachers at home, caretaking, it’s been such a heavy load,” Steinbaum says. “I’m watching people being sicker and sicker.”

In her practice, Steinbaum says that she has seen the health effects of the pandemic in patients who did not actually get sick with the virus but have experienced intense stress. That’s not all that surprising, since chronic stress has been shown toraise cholesterol levelsand blood pressure.

Weight gain during the pandemiccould be another factor because excess body weight can also increase lipid levels and contribute tohigh blood pressure.

Making time for health can be especially challenging for women, who often have to balance caring for themselves, their work, and their families. “Women have to put themselves first on the list, and usually they don’t. They often prioritize themselves last,” Steinbaum says.

What This Means For YouThere are certain lifestyle changes you can make to improve your heart health like exercising daily, reducing stress, and making changes to your diet. Experts recommend starting a conversation with a healthcare provider about your current risk levels for CVD and how you can implement some of these lifestyle changes.

What This Means For You

There are certain lifestyle changes you can make to improve your heart health like exercising daily, reducing stress, and making changes to your diet. Experts recommend starting a conversation with a healthcare provider about your current risk levels for CVD and how you can implement some of these lifestyle changes.

Know Your Numbers

Steinbaum says that the first and most important step that women can take is to “know your numbers”—that is, your most relevantrisk factors for heart disease. Important metrics to know include:

Your risk of heart disease also increases if you have other medical conditions, including:

“It’s really about empowering yourself with education, knowing what your risk factors are, and doing something about them,” Steinbaum says. “Communicating with your healthcare provider is essential to understanding if you need to make lifestyle modifications. And for some women, they are going to need medication.”

Heart Disease

How to Improve Your Heart Health

“Women need to be aware that they need tobe their own advocates,” Harkin says. “While there are some things that are out of our control, there are still plenty of things we can do to control our risk of heart disease.”

Exercise Daily

Being physically active offersmany health benefits. Your cardiovascular system gets many of them when you give it a good workout, whether it’s taking a walk or bike ride, going for a swim, or hitting the gym.

“Exercise is the best medication for everyone,” Steinbaum says. “We gotta get up and move a little bit more.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that most adults participate in moderate-intensity exercise for 30 minutes a day, five days a week (a total of 150 minutes a week).

Make Changes to Your Diet

Research has longfound a link between your heart’s health and what you eat and drink. Making a few simple changes to your diet might help lower your risk of heart disease and can also help you manage or prevent conditions related to your cardiovascular health, like high blood pressure.

Some changes include:

Quit Smoking and Avoid Substances

Smoking and using tobacco products have many detrimental effects on your health—especially for women. If you’re ready to quit, talk to your doctor about resources.

Preventing Heart Disease

Other substances also have short- and long-term health consequences, and many can directlydamage your heart. If you need help addressing your substance use, ask your medical or mental healthcare provider about where to go for support.

If you drink alcohol occasionally, the CDC recommends women limit their consumption to 1 alcoholic drink or less per day.

Reduce Your Stress

Brewing a cup of tea, taking a walk, calling a friend, and gratitude journaling are all strategies that Harkin recommends to her patients when they need to reduce their stress levels. These changes can also help improve your sleep—another important component of protecting your heart.

“Sleep and stress reduction are underrecognized and emerging risk factors for heart disease,” Harkin says. “I work with my patients on incorporating mindfulness in their daily lives.” She suggests trying a meditation app likeHeadspace, Calm, or10% Happier.

Talk to Your Doctor About Your Medications

You might still have high blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, or blood sugar even if you are getting regular exercise and makingheart-healthy changes to your diet and lifestyle. In this case, your doctor will want to talk to you about taking medications to help keep these levels in check.

If your doctor prescribes you a medication, it’s very important thatyou take it exactly asthey prescribe.

“About 50% of patients will stop their statin within the first year of starting it, and not even talk to their doctor about it," Steinbaum says. She urges patients to speak with their doctors about their concerns before discontinuing a prescribed medication—especiallystatins, which are prescribed to help lower your risk of heart disease.

If you feel like the medication that you’re on is not working well for you, there might be another option. “If someone is on medication, and it is not working for them, they need to communicate with their doctor,” Steinabum says. “If they don’t feel great on one, they can be put on another.”

While you can expand your knowledge on your own, Steinbaum warns against making any health decisions based solely on online research. “There’s a lot ofbad information out there,” Steinabum says. “If you’re going to inform yourself, go to a source that gives you good information.”

Instead, she encourages people to talk to a doctor about their concerns and come up with a way to tackle them together.

4 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

American Heart Association (AHA).CDC Prevention Programs.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).How much physical activity do adults need?.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).Dietary Guidelines for Alcohol.

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