Women in India have a higher risk of heart disease than men due to poor lifestyles, nutritional deficiencies and hormonal imbalances. The Global Burden of Disease Report 2017 put the number of women who died from cardiovascular disease in India at 1.18 million. According to the Indian Heart Association, South Asian women are 8 times more likely to die from heart disease than from breast cancer. That is why it is important that you know some important facts about the risk of heart disease in women.
First of all know what is Indian Heart Association
Indian Heart Association (IHA) is a non-governmental organization for cardiovascular health. It was founded by Sevit Rao, a person suffering from cardiovascular diseases. It is a registered organization of India. Creates awareness of cardiovascular disease online and locally. For this purpose, he also engages in research and study.
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In 2015, the Indian Heart Association conducted a study on South Asian women and heart disease. Based on this, they concluded that women in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh are more often affected by heart disease.
Estrogen protects against heart disease
When women are in their menstrual cycle, there is a good presence of the hormone estrogen in them. Which is good for heart health. But a lack of this hormone during menopause can lead to an increased risk of heart attack.
Heart attack symptoms in women are different from men
When women have a heart attack, they complain of indigestion or fatigue instead of chest pain. At the same time, she also controls high cholesterol with medication. Therefore, according to the Indian Heart Association, women are more prone to heart problems than men. Therefore, you should take care of some important things to protect your heart.
The risk of heart disease increases as estrogen levels decrease
If you are going through the pre-menopausal phase or a woman in your family is going through the menopausal phase, they need to be more careful. According to the Indian Heart Association, natural estrogen protects the heart in the pre-menopausal phase.
Therefore, South Asian women tend to experience heart attacks 10 to 15 years later than men. As estrogen levels drop after menopause, the risk of heart disease increases.
HDL2B level becomes low
Postmenopausal women have a poor lipid profile with high LDL (bad) cholesterol, low HDL (good) cholesterol and high triglycerides. South Asians also have lower levels of a very important good cholesterol called HDL2B. About two-thirds of women in South Asia suffer from this deficiency.
What are the risk factors for heart disease in women?
Diabetes, family history of heart disease, high blood pressure (BP), lack of physical activity and smoking can also be responsible for heart disease in women. Smoking and diabetes are particularly risk factors for women than for men.
Metabolic syndrome (high lipids, abdominal obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure) affects women more than men. South Asian women are considered obese if their abdominal thickness exceeds 32 inches. For women in the second group, this number is 36 inches.
Women who have had repeated miscarriages (including women with high homocysteine levels) are at particularly high risk of heart disease. In addition, non-standard risk factors such as high lipoprotein (A) and C-reactive protein (CRP) are important in women.
What can South Asian women do?
Awareness is the most important factor. Proper nutrition and regular physical activity are important for South Asian women. This is necessary to reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome and abdominal obesity. Reducing processed carbohydrates such as white rice and strictly avoiding trans fats.
Daily physical activity (of moderate intensity such as walking) for 30 minutes a day at least five days a week is essential. Try to contact the doctor immediately in case of any problem.
Also read: If you’re above -40, then be sure to do these 5 tests to check your heart health
