Heart disease in women: Symptoms and risk factors

Sweating, nausea, dizziness and unusual fatigue may not sound like typical heart attack symptoms. However, they are common for women, and they may occur more often when resting or asleep.

Pain, pressure or discomfort in the chest is not always severe or even the most prominent heart attack symptom, particularly in women. That’s why it’s important for women to understand their unique symptoms and work to reduce their risk of heart disease.

Certain factors play a larger role in the development of heart disease in women than the traditional risks of high cholesterol, high blood pressure and obesity.

Women should control these risk factors to help prevent heart disease:

• Diabetes
• Mental stress and depression
• Smoking
• Inactivity

Certain conditions, including menopause, broken heart syndrome and pregnancy complications, also may increase a woman’s risk for heart disease.

Women all of ages should take heart disease seriously. Women tend to show up in emergency rooms after heart damage has already occurred, because their symptoms are not those usually associated with a heart attack, and they tend to downplay their symptoms.

If you experience these symptoms or think you’re having a heart attack, call for emergency medical help immediately.

Stacy Blackburn, D.O., is a Family Medicine physician in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin.