Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “women's health”
If you’re getting close to menopause, you’re probably not looking forward to annoying symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats. But you may not realize that there’s a bigger health concern: a higher risk for heart disease. Doctors have known for a while that the risk for heart attacks and strokes in women after menopause is greater than for women …
More and more, researchers are finding that pregnancy health and related factors in young women are connected to the future heart health of older women. The latest review of 32 studies is the most powerful evidence yet. It is called an “umbrella study,” because it combines the results of many other review studies. Umbrella studies are considered among the highest …
Heart disease is the top killer of men and women, but it affects men and women differently. It’s important to understand the differences to protect the hearts and lives of women and help them get the best care. For Heart Month, we look at some of the differences between men and women. In the past, experts used to think women’s …
You may have heard that drinking alcoholic beverages like red wine can help your heart. That may be true, but it all depends on how much you drink. More and more research shows that heavy drinking is harmful for your heart. Studies have linked it to risks like high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, and abnormal heart rhythms or beats. …
The band of fat around your waistline can make it harder to zip up your favorite pants. But that’s not the worst problem with it. Fat that surrounds your organs in the belly is linked to a greater risk for heart disease and other health problems. This deep belly fat is called “visceral” fat. It is linked to high blood …
If you’re considering taking a “statin” drug—or you are on one already—you may have questions. These drugs are very good at lowering cholesterol and can reduce the risk of dying from heart disease. But there have been reports of memory problems with the medications. In 2012, the FDA updated its safety information for statins to include memory loss and confusion …
Confused if you should be taking a fish oil supplement? That’s not surprising. Sometimes headlines say the omega-3 fatty acids in them can lower heart risks. Others say the opposite. But the data in favor of fish oil has been growing. Two recent studies show a strong benefit – especially if you don’t like or can’t eat fish itself. The …
To keep your heart healthy, you’ve probably heard it’s good to eat only small amounts of saturated fats like butter and full-fat dairy as well as carbs like white bread and starchy vegetables. But one food ingredient doesn’t get enough attention when it comes to heart health: sugar. More and more research shows that the sweet stuff can be rough …
Everyone knows a walk in the park or the woods is good for the soul. But did you know it might also be good for your heart? More and more research shows that spending time in green spaces boosts heart health. In a study in the Journal of the American Heart Association in 2018, researchers found that people who lived …
You expect to lose weight when you eat less. But what if eating a little less also lowered your blood pressure, improved your cholesterol, reduced inflammation in your body, and helped with blood sugar control? Looks like it does. That was the surprising finding of a recent study in the Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology. It followed 218 people ages 21 …
You’ve probably heard that whole foods are better for you than processed foods. Processed foods, made in a factory, are easy to grab while you are on-the-go and often very tasty. They’re also hard to avoid if you live a busy life. Most foods that come in a bag or a box are processed. Not all processed foods are bad. …
Can Summer Heat Raise Your Risk of Heart Attack? Summer is the time to go to the beach, tend the garden, or have a picnic in the park. But the hot weather this time of year has a downside. If you aren’t careful, it could set you up for a heart attack or stroke. That’s especially important if you already …
Can Antibiotics Increase Your Heart Attack Risk? You may have heard that taking too many antibiotics can make them less helpful. This happens because bacteria become resistant to these medications over time. Sometimes, antibiotics may not work at all when you really need them and this can be quite dangerous. But there’s a new reason to be careful about taking …
You probably know that you need to exercise to have a healthy heart. But you might be surprised at how little activity it takes. A new study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that moving just 10 minutes a week helped. Researchers looked at surveys the government collected from more than 88,000 Americans, ages 40 to 85, from …
Here’s some good news about heart disease, the number one killer of Americans: the rate of heart attacks and strokes is dropping and has been for decades. That means you are less likely to develop these problems than in the past. But there’s bad news, too: heart attacks are striking more young people, particularly younger women. New research shows that …
When it comes to heart attack risk factors, you probably know that high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol put you in the danger zone. But these triggers may surprise you: A hot temper If you have a problem with anger, it could raise your risk for heart attacks. One study found that after an angry outburst, people had an …
A healthy diet is the first step toward a healthier heart. Eating lots of vegetables, fruits, beans, whole grains, healthy fats like olive oil, and lean protein like fish and chicken, can’t be beat for preventing heart attacks and strokes. But how you prepare these foods also makes a big difference. A variety of herbs have been shown to give …
When it comes to menopause and heart disease risk, timing could be everything. Doctors have long known that women face a greater risk for heart disease after menopause, the cessation of menstrual periods. But reporting in the Journal of the American Heart Association, researchers at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville recently put a new timestamp on the process. The …
Migraine headaches affect as many as 18 percent of American women and 6 percent of American men, triggering a cluster of neurological symptoms, including severe pain, visual disturbances, nausea and vomiting, tingling and numbness, and sensitivity to light, sound, and smell. If that weren’t enough, it’s beginning to appear that this common condition may also be a harbinger of future …
Women with endometriosis—the growth of uterine tissue outside the uterus—tend to focus their concerns on health problems such as debilitating pelvic pain and infertility. But new research suggests that women with the condition may also face another more deadly health threat: heart disease. Endometriosis, which strikes women of reproductive age, particularly in the later childbearing years, is characterized by the …
Cardiovascular disease (CVD), or heart disease, is the number one killer of women in the United States, causing one in four deaths. The majority of women who die suddenly from CVD, 64 percent, never knew they had it because they had no symptoms. As we recently reported, many women aren’t aware of their risk of CVD, even if they do …
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is on the rise among younger women, yet many of them are unaware of their risk until they actually suffer a heart attack, according to a Yale School of Public Health study published in the November issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC). Only 53 percent of the young heart attack survivors studied …
Only about one in ten women can correctly identify female-specific risks for stroke, according to a national survey released by Ohio State University (OSU) Wexner Medical Center. That’s concerning, given that stroke is the third leading cause of death in American women and the top cause of long-term disability, reports the National Stroke Foundation. “What women don’t know about stroke …
The cardiovascular effects of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) vary depending on the age at which women begin taking it after menopause, according to a new systematic review published in The Cochrane Library. The researchers analyzed 19 randomized clinical trials involving 40,410 women, with treatment times ranging from seven months to more than ten years. Overall, the review found that HRT …
