high blood pressure and diabetes during pregnancy, and those increase the risk of heart disease, Itchhaporia points out.
“One of the newer things we found is that your menstrual history has an impact on your heart,” Miller adds, noting that premature menopause, endometriosis and polycystic ovarian syndrome all increase heart risk in women. “Menopause is when things really start to go down. Once we stop having periods, our risk goes up.”
Even risk factors shared between the genders — cholesterol, high blood pressure, inactivity, obesity — can sometimes affect women differently than men.
“For example, women with diabetes are more likely to develop disease than men with diabetes,” Itchhaporia says. “Smoking among women is a greater risk factor for heart disease compared to men.”
Women even suffer different symptoms when they’re experiencing a heart attack, according to experts.
Studies have shown that some younger women, ages 30 to 55, who experience a heart attack had been experiencing symptoms for as long as a month, Miller notes.
“They just sort of ignore it,” Miller says. “They didn’t recognize the symptoms because sometimes they’re very vague.”
“You don’t have the classical chest pain,” Itchhaporia adds. “Now they can, but they may have more neck pain, jaw pain, shortness of breath. So I think it’s just important for us to remember that atypical quality. There are some true sex differences.”
Because of these differences, Itchhaporia believes there “needs to be this redoubling of efforts by organizations interested in women’s health” to educate women on their gender-specific heart risks.
“Studies show that community-based programs — at churches, grocery stores, hair salons — are effective in improving awareness and ultimately outcomes,” Itchhaporia says. “And I really hope that social media will provide a really important tool to reaching the public about prevention and lifestyle management.”
Having an honest and open conversation with your doctor can help you weigh your heart disease risk factors and lower your chance of developing it. You can also protect your heart by exercising, eating right, getting enough rest and not smoking.