Heart disease It’s the leading cause of death among women in the United States, killing more than 300,000 people each year—yet only half of women know the risks, signs, and symptoms of heart attack.
On Feb. 2, National Wear Red Day to raise awareness for cardiovascular disease, CBS News Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. John Lapok joined “CBS Mornings” to share what women need to know.
While the rate has declined over the past 20 years, LaPook says far too many people are still dying from heart disease.
“It’s a dangerous misconception that heart disease is somehow just a man’s disease,” he said. “It’s the number 1 killer of women. There’s a reason we’re wearing red today, and it’s to bring attention to that, because attention and awareness translates into saving lives.”
Symptoms of heart failure in women
For women, LaPook says the most common heart attack symptoms include:
- Chest pain
- Shortness of breath
However, there may be some more unusual symptoms, including:
- Nausea
- Notice
- Fatigue
- Pain in your jaw, back, or other areas
Risk factors for heart disease
There are several risk factors for heart disease, including:
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- High cholesterol
- Excessive obesity
- Inactivity
“Getting care is another thing,” Lapok added. “Of course you should be able to see a doctor.”
Also, “No Smoking!” “One of the biggest reasons for this decline is the decline in smoking,” he said.
Is there a heart disease diagnosis?
Knowing your numbers early – for things like weight, blood pressure And more – it’s the best way to monitor heart health.
“It’s not something you wait until you see symptoms and say, ‘OK, I’m going to get right into it now.’ It’s a lifelong thing. So you want to have healthy habits from the time you’re born,” LaPuck says. This includes maintaining a healthy weight and knowing “what your numbers are.”
“High blood pressure is often silent, so you want to know those numbers. You want to make sure you’re not diabetic, you want to make sure your lipids are OK.”
Heart health and pregnancy
Pregnancy is “a huge stress test,” Lapok says. Just as you don’t start training the day before running a marathon, he explains, you want to go into pregnancy in good overall health.
“Part of that is access to care, making sure you know your numbers and are at your right weight,” he says. He also observed that. High risks b Black womenWho in front Increase in death rate During pregnancy.
“This problem is solved, but rarely and not enough, and the causes of the problem are many – this is the social parameters of health,” said Lapuk. “If you don’t have good housing and good food and access to care, and then, of course, we know there’s implicit bias, and all of these things add up to increase the death rate of black women.”
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