Sortthey are still many Girls and young women which give little importance to health conditionslike the fact of recording values of the pressure out of the norm or extra poundsand personal habits, including smoke cigarettes – which increases the probability of developing later over the years, especially in post menopause, one cardiovascular disease.
The (false) belief is still widespread that disorders a Heart and blood vessels (arrhythmias, cardiovascular failure, up to heart attack and stroke) represent a threat above all for men and that they are tumors the worst evil from which to protect yourself. It’s a mistake.
Scientific estimates show, in fact, that myocardial infarction and brain stroke They are more lethal among women, due to first of all the delay with which they are diagnosed. Also a recent international survey Global Effect of Cardiovascular Risk Factors on Lifetime Estimates (Overall effect of cardiovascular risk factors on life expectancy)released in the spring on New England Journal of Medicineencourages not to wait for take care of one’s well -being.
Based on a sample of over two million individuals of both sexes, certifies that women, if they arrive at fifty years without paying a pledge to main cardiovascular risk factorscan remove the onset of the Pathologies of the cardiovascular system of at least another 13 years and 4 months compared to how many, peers, with these signs of danger they already deal. AND live longer of them, on average 14 years and 6 months. In the same conditions, The advantage for men He stops at 10 years and 7 months without cardiovascular disorders and 11 years and 10 months of life earned. The five obstacles on road of longevity? Have the high blood pressure, smoking, having bad cholesterol levels (LDL) Output, suffer from diabetesnot to be normal – that is obese, overweight, but also underweight.
The positive impact of prevention
Research confirms, therefore, the extraordinary Power of prevention. “It’s about adopting simple rules since young: do not smoke cigarettes regularly; measure pressure values every six months and do the blood sugar, cholesterol and triglycerides exams at least once every two years; practice physical activity regularly; eat balanced portions of food to stay within the limits of weight adequate age and physical structure; Drink little alcohol; sleep for a congruous amount of hours. And treat Psychological health. This investment repays with benefits equal to those of a medical treatment “ comments Anna Vittoria Mattioli, cardiologist who teaches at the University of Bologna.
Who wants to run for cover
The good news is that who During life he rushedfinds himself out of shape, or with some health problems, must not abandon all hope. Guido Grassi, honorary professor of internal medicine at the Bicocca University of Milan, among the signatories of the research, reassures: «It is not never too late To correct bad lifestyles and modify, up to eliminating, those five elements that contribute to development of cardiovascular diseases. Intervene when you are no longer in the flower of the years On one or more risk factorswith pharmacological therapies and healthy behaviors, can really help the person a live longer and protected for more time from danger of heart attack and stroke ».
The numbers do not lie. “If you look at the gain in terms of cardiovascular healththe hypertension between all five variables is the one that affects the most. Reporting i pressure values in the norm After 50 years – the professor cites the results of the work – women protect their cardiovascular system For an additional 2 years and 5 months, men for 1 year and 2 months. Stabilizing together too Hyperlipidemia and diabetes, and spotting smokingthe two sexes have one additional protection respectively 5 years and 1 month, and 3 years and one month, and a life expectancy that rises 5 years and 2 in women and 4 years and six months in men ». From risk conditions described, basically linked to the flaws of ours lifestyle, about half of the Cases of cardiovascular pathologies.
The rules are not the same for all
“There are, however, factors which negatively influence the cardiovascular healthnot taken into consideration by the study, not to forget -warns fat -. Among these: genetic predisposition, vascular inflammation due to the inspection and loss of elasticity of the vessels, regardless of the levels of lipids in the blood, and then stress, pollution, night apneas, kidney dysfunctions. And the fact of making few checks ».
The role of menopause
Do not neglect that women have biological characteristics And they are exposed to social factors that in themselves make them vulnerable to cardiovascular diseases. First of all the menopause. «The estrogen, among the main ones female sex hormoneswith a key role in the menstrual cycle – explains Professor Mattioli, deputy coordinator of research group On the gender cardiovascular diseases of the Italian Cardiology Society -, they act at the level of the blood vessels, in particular on the endothelium, that is, the tissue that covers them, making the penetration of cholesterol and triglycerides into the vessels less easy and, therefore, contrasting the atherosclerosis, characterized by the accumulation of fat plates in the arterial walls that restrict and obstruct the blood flow.
A physiological collapse of the Estrogen levels which, also changing the metabolism and promoting the concentration of fat around the abdomenmakes the formation of plates easier in the pots ». For this reason Mattioli recommends putting one on the agenda cardiological visit during the menopausal transition, to evaluate the real risk of cardiovascular diseases. To be replicated on the advice of the specialist, when the menopause is stabilized.
Never lower your guard
In fertile age The woman is not, however, immune from ischemic pathologies. «If there is a high level of triglycerides and cholesterol in the blood, the storage of plates, in women, is more widespread and less obstructive than it occurs for males but still creates the assumption of heart attack and stroke Speakers Mattioli -. Cease menstruation, the plaque becomes more similar to a swellingas for men, and creates more damage ». Other female health variables that can condition the heart are the polycystic ovary syndromeautoimmune rheumatological diseases, having suffered from diabetes, hypertension and preeclampsia in pregnancy. “Then impact the psychosocial conditions: women are more exposed to stress and frustration, Because we expect more from them, starting from the family. They often have at work more rough pathsthe maternity can create problems and have Less awards»Says the expert.
Because the female heart attack is still diagnosed late
Cause specific symptomsstill unknown. And the fact that the women stand the pain more… cardiovascular diseases are the first cause of death in Europe (with over three million deaths a year). There prevention risk factors is fundamental since childhood and in every phase of life. “Aterosclerosis is a phenomenon slow and progressive -underlines Anna Vittoria Mattioli -. Need awareness campaigns aimed at women, who in 3 out of 5 cases attribute these disorders especially to men And in almost 4 out of 5 they erroneously think that the tumor is the biggest problem that concerns them ».
The delay in diagnosis infarction in women It depends on an underestimation specific gender symptoms, still unknown. Mattioli clarifies what they are: «Compared to the symptoms detected in humans, The lack of breath, fatigue, burning in the mouth of the stomach and back pain prevails. The irradiation of pain is conditioned by having smaller vessels and a different nerve distribution ». Moreover, women bear the pain more and all this tends to confuse the symptomatic picture heart attack with that of a Panic attack, a gastritis or gastroesophageal reflux.