Why Heart Health Month Means More to Me This Year

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As many of you know, February is Heart Health Month. While I have always cared deeply about heart health and wellness in general, this year it means even more to me. That is because, as I shared in a recent update post, I had a major heart-related scare in January.

You can read the full story there, but in short, I thought I was having a heart attack. I called 911 and went to the hospital. The local ER told me I was not having an active heart attack and said my symptoms were anxiety and muscle pain. I have struggled with muscle pain for many years, so I know the difference.

My family remained concerned, so I went to a larger heart hospital about two hours away. There, I was told I was not having a heart attack but was experiencing episodes of atrial fibrillation, or AFib attacks. Thankfully, these are now resolved through stress management and balancing my electrolytes, which I will talk about later.

This experience reminded me how often women’s heart health is underestimated, misunderstood, and mistreated. So in honor of Heart Health Month, I want to share some important information.

Heart Health Month Basics

Here are some facts that show why heart health needs our attention:

  • Almost half of U.S. adults have high blood pressure.

  • Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the U.S.

  • Nearly 700,000 people die from heart disease each year in the U.S.—about 1 in 5 deaths.

  • Someone dies of cardiovascular disease every 33 seconds, and someone has a heart attack every 40 seconds.

  • Heart problems are not always obvious. According to the CDC, one in five heart attacks are silent.

  • Women and minorities are more likely to be dismissed or undertreated when it comes to heart health.

Heart Health Issues for Women

Women’s heart health is often more complex and sometimes more dangerous. Although men have more heart attacks overall, women are more likely to die from a heart attack, and within a year afterward.

Women’s heart health is also taken less seriously due to:

Misconceptions
Many people associate heart attacks more with men. Even though heart disease is the top cause of death for women, only 56 percent of women know this. That means many women delay seeking treatment. For example, men seek medical help on average 16 hours after a heart attack starts, while women wait 54 hours.

Confusing Symptoms
Women may have different symptoms such as nausea or back pain. Many women dismiss these symptoms because they are not as widely recognized as signs of a heart attack. But women can have traditional symptoms like chest pain, alternative symptoms, or both.

Lack of Research
Women’s heart health has been studied far less than men’s. Sometimes men’s heart health information is used for women, which misses female-specific factors such as hormones, birth control, and autoimmune diseases that affect women more often.

Lack of Education
Because of less research and less attention, public knowledge about women’s heart health is limited. Misconceptions and misinformation continue to spread.

It’s my hope that education on this topic improves, but in the meantime, it is crucial to take your health into your own hands and learn all you can.

A Note: Women are also more likely to be misdiagnosed, mistreated, or sent home from medical care when they have serious heart issues.

Heart Health Tips

There are many resources online for heart health, but here are some basics and a few less talked about points:

Exercise
Aim for about 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week—enough to raise your heart rate but still let you talk—or 75 minutes of vigorous activity if you can. I walk briskly about 30 minutes each day while on the phone. Find what works for you.

Diet
Avoid foods high in saturated fat like bacon, fried foods, and hot dogs. Limit sodium found in processed and packaged foods. Cut added sugars like sodas and candy.
Eat more healthy fats like nuts, seeds, and olive oil. Fill your plate with vegetables and include lean proteins such as poultry, fish, and beans.

Sleep
Adults need at least seven hours of sleep per night. Lack of sleep increases risks of high blood pressure and heart problems, yet many people overlook how important sleep is for heart health.

Electrolytes and Vitamins
I recently learned that imbalances in electrolytes like magnesium and sodium can cause serious heart issues, even cardiac arrest. Deficiencies in vitamin B can also increase heart disease risk. Regular blood work is important to check these levels because many doctors do not bring this up and people are often unaware.
Balancing electrolytes takes planning because both too much and too little can cause problems. The same goes for vitamins.

Final Thoughts

This post only scratches the surface of women’s heart health, but I hope it helped you understand why it is so important to take care of your heart. Even if no one else seems to take it seriously, you should.

Your heart health matters.

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