Southern States - Karnataka-Bangalore   

Heart health campaign for women today

By Our Special Correspondent

BANGALORE MARCH 7. Heart disease is no longer confined to men. Studies indicate that 10 per cent of women in the age group of 45 to 64, and 25 per cent of those aged over 65 are now living with heart disease.

Nearly 13 per cent of women aged 45 and above have had a heart attack. The average age of women who die of heart attack is 70. A large number suffer from angina, those shooting pains in the chest and arms, which indicate heart disease. It is the leading cause of death for women and kills 32 per cent of them.

The risk factors are common to both genders when it comes to heart disease. Women who smoke may suffer a heart attack 19 years earlier. Those with diabetes are two or three times more prone to heart attack. There is an additional risk factor for women taking oral contraceptives, especially overweight women. There could be a regional imbalance here too: 50 per cent of Asian women are sedentary and get no leisure time physical activity.

Call it gender bias if you will, but medical studies do compare women with men with regard to heart disease. After a first recognised heart attack, 38 per cent of women and 25 per cent of men may die; 35 per cent of women and 18 per cent of men who suffered a heart attack will have another attack within six years. Twice the number of women survivors will be disabled.

Other figures cause concern too. Women are twice as likely as men to die after bypass surgery. Women are less likely than men to receive the medication they need after an attack, and they comprise only 25 per cent of participants in all heart-related research studies.

This means, there is a lot even medical experts have to learn about women with heart disease.

Women at risk can protect themselves by simply quitting if they smoke, reducing high blood pressure, treating diabetes or preventing it, controlling their cholesterol level, and maintaining a healthy weight. Brisk walking, swimming, and jogging or cycling help them as does a low-fat diet. Women with a family history of heart disease, and those above 40 have to be extra careful.

The Hope Medical Centre is organising a daylong heart health campaign for women from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. here on Saturday with a cardiac check-up. For registrations, call 2202201/02.

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