Post-menopausal women need to be concerned about their risk of heart attack, but new evidence points to increased risk for younger women as well. The Archives of Internal Medicine has published a detailed analysis indicating that the number of women between the ages of 35-54 having heart attacks has risen over the past 20 years.
Interestingly enough, during the same time, the number of heart attacks suffered by men in the same age group decreased. Part of the reason that men are having fewer heart attacks is that doctors are more likely to counsel them about their risk of having one. Since heart disease is considered to be a “men’s health issue,” women are not getting the same level of attention from their doctors about risk factors and what they do to lower their personal risk of developing heart disease.
