Happy National Heart Month & National Wear Red Day 2023

This month is all about heart health, and today is about raising awareness about heart disease in women

• Heart disease is still the #1 killer in women

• Heart disease took 1:5 women in 2020

• 1:16 women 20+ years have coronary heart disease (1)

• You are 2x's more likely to develop heart disease if you went through menopause early (2)

• Your risk of developing coronary heart disease later in life is also increased if you suffered from preeclampsia during pregnancy (3)

Symptoms of a heart attack (4):

Chest pain or discomfort

Upper body pain, including shoulders, arms, back, neck, teeth or jaw

Somach pain or heartburn

Shortness of breath

Anxiety

Lightheadedness, Sweating, and/or nausea or vomiting

Heart palpitations

Women may not have many, or any typical symptoms of a heart attack, so it is important to make sure you have regular visits to your doctor annually for a well-check.

This month I will be talking about HEALTHY HABITS that can help lower your risk factors, so check back in or better yet- subscribe to my blog to receive emails when I post!

REFERENCES:

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Women and Heart Disease". CDC. Oct 14, 2022. https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/women.htm

2. Johns Hopkins Medicine. "Early Menopause Associated With Increased Risk Of Heart Disease, Stroke". HopkinsMedicine.org. Sept 18, 2012. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/media/releases/early_menopause_associated_with_increased_risk_of_heart_disease_stroke

3. HEART.ORG. "Preeclampsia may double a woman's chances for later heart failure". Heart.org. Aug 24, 2020. https://www.heart.org/en/news/2020/08/24/preeclampsia-may-double-a-womans-chances-for-later-heart-failure

4. Mayo Clinic. "Heart attack symptoms: Know what's a medical emergency". Mayoclinic.org. Jun 28, 2022. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/heart-attack/in-depth/heart-attack-symptoms/art-20047744