Contributed by: Rachna Arya
Introduction
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the single biggest death among men and women. It affects both men and women of all ages and ethnicities in nearly equal numbers. However, most women do not know that they’re at risk. They also do not know pre-heart attack warning signs that are unique to their gender and differ from the symptoms experienced by most men.
This post will provide insights into how to identify the symptoms of a heart attack in women.
Pre-heart attack symptoms for women
The most common heart attack symptom in women in the same as in men — some type of generalised chest pain, pressure or discomfort.
Chest pain can feel like:
- Heaviness
- Tightness
- Pressure
- Burning
- Numbness
- Fullness
- Squeezing
Just like men, the pain may last more than a few minutes or may come and go. However, observational studies indicate that chest pain is not always severe and may not even be the most noticeable symptom among most women.
Women are more likely than men to have symptoms that are unrelated to chest pain, such as:
- Discomfort in the neck, jaw, shoulder blades, upper back or abdomen
- Shortness of breath
- Pain in one or both arms
- Extreme weakness
- Nausea or vomiting
- Faster heartbeat
- Sweating
- Light-headedness or dizziness
- Unusual fatigue
- Heartburn
These symptoms may be very subtle and not as noticeable as the squeezing chest pain most commonly associated with heart attacks. The reason may be attributed to the additional blockages in the smaller arteries that supply blood to the heart.
Compared with men, women tend to have symptoms more often when they are resting or sleeping.
Heart disease risk factors for women
Several factors such as high cholesterol, hypertension and obesity affect women and men equally. But there are some additional factors that may put women at a higher risk, such as:
- Diabetes – Women with diabetes are twice as likely to develop heart disease than men with diabetes.
- Emotional stress and depression – Psycho-social stress, meaning the stress that comes from work, home, financial problems or major life events affect women’s hearts more than men.
- Smoking – Smoking poses three times a greater risk factor for heart disease in women than it is in men.
- Inactivity – Studies have shown that a lack of physical activity is a major risk factor for heart disease.
- Menopause – Women have low levels of estrogen when they go through menopause. This substantially increases the risk of developing heart disease in smaller blood vessels.
- A low level of HDL cholesterol – Having low levels of ‘good’ cholesterol is closely linked with a higher risk for heart disease.
- Family history of early heart disease – Genetic disposition appears to be a greater risk factor in women than in men.
- Inflammatory diseases – Science has proven that women suffering from autoimmune diseases and chronic low-grade inflammatory conditions are more likely to suffer from a higher risk of heart disease.
Final thoughts
The bottom line is that women of all ages should take heart disease seriously. Women who are under 65 years of age — especially those with a family history of heart disease — need to pay closer attention to their heart health.
