Healthy Heart for Him and Her

Monica Wilson September 29, 2011

A 2011 British study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine journal released results that one of the factors that increased the risk of heart disease was long working hours of more than 11 hours a day. According to Mika Kivimaki of Britain’s University College London, working long hours is now related to an increase in the risk of heart ailments.

Men are now found out to develop heart disease 10 to 15 years earlier than women; however, women also have an equal risk because they tend to receive less treatment for heart disease than men.

These findings and more just show that indeed, health matters regarding the heart should be given prime importance, and this importance is different in the cases of men, women, and children. Here are some pieces of information that you have to know when it comes to heart disease awareness.

For Men

Men become intensely prone to heart attack starting at age 45.
Men are more likely to have heart disease due to the general patterns observed on their eating habits and work stressors.
Social stressors and worry at work make even those men with a healthy eating pattern and regular exercise prone to heart attacks.

For Women

Women feel that they are less likely to have a heart attack. Because of their busy lifestyle at work and in the family, they tend to postpone checkups and therefore, find out about their heart conditions later than most men do.
Breathlessness, a typical symptom for a heart attack, is often overlooked by women says Dr. Contractor of the AHI’s Preventive Cardiology and Rehabilitation Department.
Women smokers are hit harder by heart diseases than men smokers.

For Children

Obese children and teenagers have arteries that look like those of an average 45-year-old, a study in 2008 showed.
Poor health habits are increasing the risk of kids for early heart attacks.
Rise in juvenile obesity is alarming parents and doctors worldwide.

Knowing these differences in heart risks should equip us with the right action plans to manage and eventually eliminate the possibilities for heart diseases. Even the healthiest of us—and even those with no history of heart ailments in the family—can fall victims to this silent killer. Aside from the standard cholesterol count, blood sugar count, blood pressure numbers, body mass index level, and waist circumference measurements, one should give prime importance to early detection of clogged arteries, regular heart checkups, and the best fix—exercise. Brisk walking, aerobic exercises, climbing stairs, and doing household chores are some of the easiest routines one can use to significantly establish a cholesterol— and plaque—busting fight against heart ailments.