Heart disease more risk to women than once thought

Until recently, most heart research was done on male patients, creating a scientific gender bias and leading most to consider heart disease a men's health issue. In reality, women are just as, if not more likely, to develop heart problems as men, says Linda Brown, administrative director of emergency services at Southeast Missouri Hospital.

Brown believes this is likely due to anatomy: Men have larger hearts and blood vessels, so clots or narrowing is not as devastating as in women with smaller vessels. She adds that women's hormones somewhat protect them from heart disease, and heart problems are more common after menopause.

Women also experience heart disease symptoms differently than men do. While some have the classic chest pain and numbness in the left arm or jaw, most do not, says Brown. Instead, women likely feel fatigue, flu symptoms, anxiety, difficulty sleeping, and pain in the back of the chest or shoulder blades. Women often assume this is a natural part of getting older, not realizing it's a red flag for a heart event, says Brown. Because the symptoms are unique and vague, they're often misdiagnosed as depression or anxiety. Many women don't even realize they've had a heart attack until an EKG reveals the evidence.

According to information from Saint Francis Medical Center, 30 percent of women in the Cape Girardeau area consider themselves at risk for heart disease, but 86 percent report having one or more risk factors for heart disease.

Brown recommends following your gut instinct and seeing a doctor if you experience a sudden change in health. If you struggle with simple chores or are extremely tired, it may be tied to a serious issue. Consider your risk factors and family health history: if you're a smoker, a young woman on birth control or have a family history of heart disease, your symptoms may be heart-related. Ask for a stress test, which may then call for an echocardiogram, angiogram or CT scan.

"Women need to be their own advocate and know when they need to have something looked at and be insistent with their health care providers," says Brown.

But she does see a cultural shift. Women are taking on more professional roles, seeking care sooner and being more aggressive about their health care, and the medical field is distributing more information about women and heart disease. At Southeast, programs have enlisted men to encourage their wives, mothers and sisters to be screened for heart-related problems like cholesterol and lipid levels. Saint Francis will hold its annual Heart to Heart luncheon April 9 to raise awareness about women and heart disease.

Brown's biggest heart health advice for women is to stop smoking and avoid high-fat diets.

"We're more susceptible to weight gain, so it's important to maintain an ideal body weight range and do moderate exercise, about 30 minutes a day," says Brown.