Despite concentrated campaigns aimed at educating women about the dangers of heart disease, many women still don't understand or believe that heart disease is the number one killer for them.

Yearly, almost half a million women die of heart disease in the United States. In fact, more women die of heart disease in America and most other developed countries than from all forms of cancer combined.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports that heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in Florida.

This presents a serious challenge to both wellness educators and healthcare professionals who are aiming to reduce the risk factors associated with heart disease in both genders.

“The focus…for most disease processes is treating the disease instead of preventing the disease,” said Robert Barden, M.D., a cardiologist in Melbourne for more than 15 years.

“Consider that 40 percent of American meals are consumed outside the home - which will have a huge impact 10, 15 or 20 years down the line on cardiovascular health,” he said.

Lifestyle Choices Impact Daily and Future Health
Lifestyle plays an important role in the development of heart disease. Dietary choices, exercise, alcohol consumption, smoking and stress are all obvious factors that may increase the likelihood of heart disease if not managed properly.

Further, obesity - though not yet deemed a specific risk factor in heart disease - may trigger a host of other problems that do pose risk.

“Obesity correlates directly with hypertension, hyperlipidemia (excess levels of fat in the blood) and diabetes and as the incidence of these increase, so does the increase of risk for heart disease,” said Barden.

Also important to note is the way weight is naturally distributed in women.

It is widely accepted that most women tend to gain 10 pounds per decade after reaching the age of 30, a number which seems increasingly on the rise.

Women who gain weight below the waist (around their hips and bottom section) are less likely to face major health related issues compared to women who gain through their midsection or abdominal area.

“Truncal obesity ties in with the triad of hypertension, hyperlipidemia and diabetes and indirectly increases the potential of heart disease,” said Barden.

Most women correctly believe that genetics plays a major role in heart disease. But physicians maintain that lifestyle is still more important to disease prevention.

Why? Because you can switch the course of bad health to good health by making simple dietary changes, adding as little as 20 minutes of exercise into your day and by learning to control stress.

Reversing Heart Disease
It's true, you can't change genetics. But there are modifiable risk factors in every woman's life that can be tweaked to positively impact health and reverse the course of heart disease.

Physicians want women to be aware of risk factors associated with heart disease - and knowing your family history and keeping your blood pressure and cholesterol levels in check are some of the ways to help prevent health hazards.

It also is important to understand the symptoms of heart disease. This can be troublesome as many symptoms can go unnoticed and many patients don't recognize symptoms related to heart health.

“Anything that happens in our bodies [over a prolonged period of time] can easily go undetected,” said Barden.

Many patients have retroactively realized, for example, that small, nagging changes that seemed insignificant at the time contributed to the damage that resulted in heart disease - such as shortness of breath or feeling the need to sit down or rest more than usual throughout the day.

Additionally, many symptoms can be confused with other - less serious - health conditions. Classic symptoms of heart ischemia, where the heart is not receiving ample blood flow, include a tightening sensation in the chest, radiating pain in the arms and sudden onset of sweats.

While heart disease continues its claim on women's lives, many local healthcare professionals continue to campaign for women to take a more proactive role in the prevention of heart disease.

Understanding that heart disease may be prevented through lifestyle changes might finally reverse the mortality rate of this killer disease. Speak to your physician about active ways to reduce your risks and take the initial small steps that will pay off in long-term benefits to your health.

Resources
The CDC has funded a national program by state to educate and fight against heart disease. For more information, visit online at www.cdc.gov.

The Florida Department of Health has programs in place to fight heart disease and stroke. For more information, visit online at www.floridashealth.com.

Go Red for Women is a very popular campaign headed by the American Heart Association to educate women about risks, symptoms, treatment options and more. For more information, including charts and an online checkup, visit online at www.goredforwomen.org.

Information compiled with assistance from Robert Barden, M.D., a cardiologist with privileges at Wuesthoff Health System in Rockledge.

Kelly Collazo is a freelance writer, publicist and Medical Marketing Executive at Concepts Marketing, Inc. in Melbourne. For more information, call (321) 544-8076.