Wear Red Day: Raising awareness of disparities, barriers in women’s heart health
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On Friday, Feb. 7, the Healio team wears red in support of the American Heart Association’s National Wear Red Day campaign to increase awareness of heart disease in women.
This year marks the 17th anniversary of the National Wear Red Day campaign. It is held annually on the first Friday in February.
Heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women, causing 1 in 3 deaths each year. However, 80% of cardiac events can be prevented with education and lifestyle changes. Yet, awareness of heart disease and its risks remains low, according to stats from the American Heart Association.
The Go Red for Women movement aims to end heart disease and stroke in women. For more information, visit www.goredforwomen.org.
Recent advances in women’s heart health
Healio and Cardiology Today compiled a list of recent updates on women’s heart health, including risk factors, prevention, new treatments and more.
BP elevations occur earlier in life for women vs. men
In a new study published in JAMA Cardiology, researchers reported that BP elevations occurred more rapidly in women compared with men and as early as the third decade of life, which may explain why CVD presents at different times between both sexes. Read more
Evening eating may worsen heart health in women
Women who consumed a higher proportion of their daily calories after 6 p.m. had poorer overall CV health and higher BP, BMI and HbA1c levels, researchers reported at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions. Read more
Among people at ED for syncope, women have lower mortality, odds of admission vs. men
Compared with men, women admitted to the ED with syncope had lower mortality, regardless of discharge status, and were less likely to be admitted to the hospital, according to findings published in JACC: Clinical Electrophysiology. Read more
Women and CVD: Assessing sex-specific risk factors can personalize management, treatment
At the American Society for Preventive Cardiology Congress on CVD Prevention, Martha Gulati, MD, MS, FACC, FAHA, emphasized the importance of considering sex-specific risk factors for CVD, especially when assessing women who may not present with the same CV symptoms as men. Read more
Early menopause raises risk for CVD
Women with natural and surgical premature menopause before age 40 years had a small but significantly elevated risk for a variety of CVDs, researchers reported at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions. Read more
New Apple research app could revolutionize heart, hearing, women’s health research
Apple recently announced that it is launching three studies leveraging the Apple Watch’s capabilities to allow people to track their heart rate and movement, to allow women to track their menstrual cycles and to determine how routine sound exposure affects hearing. Read more
Physical activity reduces AF risk, especially in women
Physically active adults, particularly women, have lower risk for atrial fibrillation and ventricular arrhythmia compared with inactive adults, according to research published in the European Heart Journal. Read more
PARAGON-HF: Sacubitril/valsartan benefit in HFpEF most prominent in women, lower EF
Sacubitril/valsartan reduced the risk for HF hospitalization more in women compared with men, and the overall benefit of sacubitril/valsartan was driven by a benefit in patients with chronic HF and a left ventricular ejection fraction below the normal range, according to two analyses of the PARAGON-HF trial of patients with HF with preserved EF presented at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions. Read more
Church-based challenge to promote wellness for black women
Beginning Jan. 5, the American Heart Association, with the help of sponsor Weight Watchers Reimagined, will launch the 12-week EmPOWERED & Well Healthier Church Challenge to support the ongoing health and wellness activities of black women and their faith-based communities. Faith-based organizations have until Nov. 10 to apply. Read more