Women Should Take These Symptoms to Heart
How to Tell if You Are Having a Heart Attack

Heart disease isn’t just for men anymore. In fact, heart disease is the leading cause of death in women in the U.S., according to the American Heart Association, and one out of every three women will die of cardiovascular disease.

As women grow older, their risk of heart disease increases. That risk jumps sharply once a woman reaches the age of menopause, due to the reduced level of estrogen in her body. Other risk factors for heart disease in women (and men) include smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and high cholesterol.

Unfortunately, many women delay seeking medical treatment because they don’t recognize the symptoms of heart disease, which may differ from men.

“Women’s symptoms of a heart attack can be vague and non-specific, such as feeling very tired,” says Sandra Fallon, M.D., a cardiologist at Saint John’s Health Center. “Since fatigue can be related to many other diseases, many women don’t consider the possibility that they may be suffering from heart disease.”

Although women can and do experience chest pain during a heart attack, the symptoms may be mistaken for heartburn or acid reflux.

“The classic symptom of a heart attack is often described as feeling like there’s an elephant sitting on your chest, but in many instances, this type of typical presentation doesn’t occur,” says Dr. Fallon.

“Sometimes the pain isn’t centered in the chest, but can be felt in the shoulder, jaw and neck. Any of these symptoms, particularly when associated with fatigue, shortness of breath, nausea or indigestion, can be signs of a heart attack.”

Surprisingly, an estimated 10 percent of women (and men) experience no symptoms at all during a heart attack, Dr. Fallon says.

“If you are in a high risk category for heart disease, you should be mindful of controlling your risk factors even if you’ve never experienced a heart attack,” she says.

“Reduce the amount of fat and cholesterol in your diet, quit smoking, control your blood pressure, lose weight if you are overweight, exercise regularly and discuss your family health history with your physician.”

For more information about women’s heart health, please visit Saint John’s Heart Institute website at www.stjohns.org or call (310) 829-8990.

Did You Know…?

• The heart beats an average of 100,000 times per day.
  
• In a 70-year lifetime, the average human heart beats more than 2.5 billion times.
  
• An adult woman’s heart weighs about 8 ounces and a man’s heart weighs about 10 ounces.
  
• The normal size of an adult heart is a little larger than a clenched fist.
  
• Coronary artery disease is the most common form of heart disease and the number one cause of death of both men and women in the United States.
  
• One in five females has some form of cardiovascular disease.
  
• Since 1984, more U.S. women have died each year of cardiovascular disease than men.
  
• In women, heart attacks tend to occur later in life and are more severe than in men.
  
• Women are more likely to die from their first heart attack than men.

For more information about Saint John’s Health Center visit http://www.stjohns.org