Heart Health

Why worry about women’s hearts?

When we talk about women’s health it is often centred around problems with periods, getting pregnant [or not getting pregnant] and periods disappearing [menopause].

This is all very important for our day-to-day wellbeing; however, heart disease remains the leading cause of death and illness in Australian women.

What we often know about heart disease

Leading a healthy lifestyle that includes plenty of regular exercise and a healthy varied diet, avoiding smoking and minimising alcohol, is the best way to manage both our risk of heart disease, but also is recommended as part of addressing almost every medical issue we know of.

Most women know about the things that increase their chance of developing heart disease;

• smoking

• diabetes

• cholesterol

• poorly controlled blood pressure.

What other aspects of my life as a woman are important?

• How old were you when you got your first period?

• How old were you when you hit menopause?

• Have you had irregular periods or difficulty falling pregnant?

• When you were pregnant did you have high blood pressure, pre-eclampsia or gestational diabetes?

• Was your baby born prematurely, or smaller than was expected when they arrived?

What next?

Talking with your doctor can help identify if you would benefit from earlier or more frequent screening to keep your heart healthy.

 It’s never too early to focus on heart health.

Start your journey with  Dr Paula Moir at Juno Specialists