Women & Heart Disease: 5 Myths

Heart disease is more dangerous than you may think

Which illness poses the biggest threat to a woman's health? Breast cancer? Lung cancer? Alzheimer's disease?

Many women are surprised to learn that coronary heart disease - often thought of as a "man's illness" - is the No. 1 killer of women in the United States, according to the American Heart Association.

Women are more than five times as likely to die from heart disease as from breast cancer. In fact, nearly twice as many American women die from heart disease and stroke than from all types of cancer combined.

Gender Gap

While heart disease cannot be completely stopped, certain lifestyle changes can significantly lower your risk of developing this illness. Unfortunately, several myths about heart disease and women continue to persist. These misconceptions lead many women into a false sense of security - just 13 percent of women believe heart disease is their own greatest health risk.

Five of the top myths regarding women and heart disease are as follows:

• Myth No. 1: Risk factors for heart disease are the same, regardless of gender. Studies show that certain illnesses and conditions are more likely to cause heart disease in women than in men. For example, metabolic syndrome is more likely to trigger heart disease in women. This condition is marked by obesity around the abdomen, high blood pressure, and high levels of blood glucose and triglycerides.
  
  As a woman's level of estrogen drops before and during menopause, her risk of damage to smaller blood vessels in the heart increases. Stress and depression are also more likely to damage the hearts of women than men.

• Myth No. 2: Heart disease is likely to be milder in women. Damage to the heart is a serious health threat whether you are a woman or a man. In some ways, women are at greater risk of serious injury from heart problems than men. For example, statistics show that women are less likely to survive a heart attack than men. The reason for this is unknown, although some experts theorize that women do not seek out treatment early enough or that women's smaller hearts and blood vessels may be more susceptible to damage.  
  
  Women also are more likely to experience different types of symptoms associated with their heart problems then men. For example, women are more likely to feel unusual fatigue, abdominal, neck, shoulder or upper back pain, nausea, vomiting and shortness of breath than men during a heart attack. In some cases, women initially ignore these symptoms, especially if they are not accompanied by severe chest pain. By the time they finally realize something is seriously wrong, significant heart damage may have occurred.
  
  In addition, a standard diagnostic test for coronary artery disease, the coronary angiogram, may not display the different pattern of disease development that occurs in women. Men tend to have large, uneven plaques on the arteries, while women tend to have smaller and evenly spread plaques that can be more difficult to spot. These differences may also change the type of treatment that is preferred for women, such as medication type.

• Myth No. 3: Younger women should not worry about heart disease. While heart disease is the chief killer of women over the age of 65, it is also the second-leading cause of death in women ages 45 to 64 and the third-leading cause of death in women 25 to 44. 
  
  Young women also should be aware that the choices they make now will have a big impact on their risk for heart disease later. Eating a well-balanced diet, exercising regularly and avoiding smoking throughout your life can significantly lower your risk of developing heart disease during the golden years.

• Myth No. 4: Smoking is a greater heart-disease risk factor for men than for women. Technically, this is true - but probably not for long. Traditionally, men have been more likely to smoke than women. However, in recent years, there has been an alarming upward spike in the smoking rates of young women.
  
  Only about 8 percent of women over the age of 65 smoke, according to the American Cancer Society. However, 22 percent of women ages 18 to 44 smoke. In fact, teenage girls are now as likely to smoke as teenage boys.
  
  The risk of heart disease rises with both the number of cigarettes you smoke and the length of time elapsed since you first lit up. Research also suggests that smoking while using birth-control pills significantly escalates the risk of heart disease. Many of these risk factors can be reversed within 10 to 15 years of quitting. But as any smoker knows, that's often easier said than done.

• Myth No. 5: Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can lower heart-disease risk. In fact, menopausal women who participate in estrogen replacement therapy actually may be at increased risk for heart disease.
  
  Women who are undergoing HRT therapy are urged not quit taking their medicine without first discussing their concerns with a physician. Although HRT may increase heart-disease risk, it also reduces symptoms associated with menopause (such as hot flashes) and can lower a woman's risk of developing brittle bones that break easily, also known as osteoporosis.
  
  It is important to weigh the benefits and risks of HRT therapy with your physician before making any final decisions.