The good news about heart disease is that nearly all of it is preventable, and much of it may be reversible.
However, most women are largely unaware of the risk of heart disease. As the number one killer of both men and women today, heart attacks and strokes account for more than twice as many deaths as all cancers put together. Yet according to a recent Gallup Poll, most women are largely unaware of their risk for heart disease.
They tend to overrate the possibility of dying from breast cancer and underrate that of dying from heart disease. This misconception is probably due to the fact that before age fifty, twice as many men as women have heart disease, supporting the popular notion that heart disease is a man’s disease. Also, until recently, most medical research was done on men, and the few studies that were done on women were not widely published.
In reality, however, heart disease claims more lives then the 16 causes of death combined, including breast cancer, lung cancer and brian stroke. The good news about heart disease is that nearly all of it is preventable, and much of it may be reversible.
Worldwide 8.6 million women die from heart disease each year, accounting for a third of all deaths in women.
The picture of women’s heart health in New Zealand:
(statistics from the NZ Heart Foundation)
- 5384 Kiwi women died of cardiovascular diseases, such as heart disease and stroke, in 2009.
- That’s around 14 women dying on average every day. Close to 100 a week. 100 families broken apart.
- Sadly 658 women died from breast cancer in 2009.
- But let’s not lose sight that more than 7x the number of women died of cardiovascular disease.
- Of those deaths, 2514 women died of coronary heart disease (CHD)*
- That’s about 7 a day – 48 a week.
- CVD made up almost 35 percent of all deaths in women in 2009 – that’s reason enough to get women banding together and tackling this killer head on.
- Women who smoke risk having a heart attack 19 years earlier than non-smoking women.
- Nearly two-thirds of the deaths from heart attacks in women occur among those who have no history of chest pain.
- 42% of women who have heart attacks die within 1 year, compared to 24% of men.
- Under age 50, women’s heart attacks are twice as likely as men’s to be fatal.
All Women Should Take Steps to Lower the Risk of Heart Disease
Every woman should be concerned about heart disease, especially if you’re a woman aged 40-60. Because, that’s the age range when a woman’s risk of heart disease starts to rise, so its important that you begin right away to lower your risk. However, women of all ages should monitor their blood pressure regularly, heart disease can begin early, even in the teen years.
It’s also never too late to improve heart health—even for those who have already had a heart attack.
Issues for Women include:
High Blood Pressure, or Hypertension
Controlling high blood pressure helps to lower risk of heart attack and stroke by about 30 percent, but to do this …
Oral Contraceptives
Women using oral contraceptives usually experience a very small increase in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure …
Pregnancy
Although many pregnant women with high blood pressure have healthy babies without serious problems, high blood pressure can be dangerous for both the mother and the fetus …
Preventing Problems During Pregnancy
If you are thinking about having a baby and you have high blood pressure, talk with your health professional first …
Preeclampsia
Preeclampsia is a condition that is primarily caused by increased blood pressure and protein in the mother’s urine. Unfortunately, there is no single test to predict or diagnose preeclampsia …
Hormone Replacement Therapy
A recent study indicated that blood pressure does not increase significantly with hormone replacement therapy in most women with and without high blood pressure. However …
Benefits of Weight Loss
Being overweight is a risk factor for health problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and triglycerides, arthritis, gall bladder disease, gynecologic problems, some cancers, and even lung problems …
Study shows quantity of sleep may raise women’s coronary risk
Too little sleep — or too much — may raise the risk of developing heart disease, according to a study of nearly 72,000 nurses.
Women who averaged five hours or less of sleep a night were 39 percent more likely to develop heart disease than women who got eight hours. Those sleeping six hours a night had an 18 percent higher risk of developing blocked arteries than the eight-hour sleepers. Read the Article …
You owe it to yourself and loved one’s to learn more about the
cause of high blood pressure in women, and how to manage
blood pressure naturally.
The Prescription to Meditate web site is intended for people who are interested in learning more about preventing and controlling high blood pressure – naturally.
Then you need to read this book, by New Zealand author, Dr. David Lovell-Smith.
In this book Dr. David Lovell-Smith describes how his patients successfully used diet, lifestyle changes and Transcendental Meditation to bring their blood pressure down.
This book offers new hope and insight for those with high blood pressure but it is not for hypertensives alone. The knowledge which Dr Lovell-Smith presents in his book is timely and relevant, and its exposition is long overdue.
Shop price is $34.95 Our price is $25.00 (including postage – NZ only)