October 2017

Raise Patient Awareness About Women’s Cardiovascular Health

Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of American women with stroke close behind at No. 4. Heart disease took the lives of 289,758 U.S. women in 2013 – that’s about one in every four female deaths. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only 54 percent of women recognize that heart disease is their No. 1 killer. This high rate persists despite increased awareness over the past decade.

As health care providers, it is important to educate your patients about the risk factors of these silent killers. Many of them are the same for heart disease and stroke: high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol and obesity. Although some risk factors for disease cannot be controlled, there are several that are controllable. They are important to recognize and can affect a considerable change in health, while lowering the risk of experiencing these diseases.

Eating healthy (especially lowering cholesterol and sodium), increasing physical activity and exercise, and quitting alcohol consumption and smoking are all lifestyle modifications that women can control to lower their chance of heart disease and stroke. Smoking increases a woman’s risk 2 to 4 times for heart disease and stroke than those who do not. The good news is that women can lower the risk of heart disease and stroke at any age; however, the earlier the better.

Inform your female patients of their risk of heart disease and stroke. Educate them about lifestyle modifications and medication compliance to help ensure our shared female members live longer, healthier lives.

Resource
Xu, JQ, Murphy, SL., Kochanek, KD, Bastian, BA.Deaths: Final data for 2013[PDF-7.3M. National Vital Statistics Report. 2016:64(2).