With American Heart Month and National Wear Red Day coming in February, this seemed like the perfect time to discuss your heart. The American Heart Association reports heart disease as “the number one killer of women, causing 1 in 3 deaths each year.”
Other Heart Disease Statistics*
- Heart disease is more deadly than all forms of cancer combined.
- An estimated 43 million women in the U.S. are affected by heart disease.
- Ninety percent of women have one or more risk factors for developing heart disease.
- Since 1984, more women than men have died each year from heart disease.
- The symptoms of heart disease can be different in women and men, and are often misunderstood.
- Only 1 in 5 American women believe that heart disease is her greatest health threat.
- Women comprise only 24 percent of participants in all heart-related studies.
- Hispanic women are likely to develop heart disease 10 years earlier than Caucasian women.
- Of African American women ages 20 and older, 46.9 percent have cardiovascular disease.
*Source: American Heart Association Although you cannot change some of the risk factors (namely genetics) for heart disease and other heart-related conditions, you can reduce your risk by leading a healthy lifestyle. Your Capital Women’s Care provideris always available to discuss your overall health and heart concerns.
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