Women's heart health

Heart Disease Prevention

Heart Disease Prevention

Facts About Heart Disease

Cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 killer of women. The good news is that most cardiovascular diseases can be prevented with education and healthy lifestyle changes.

Heart disease and stroke can affect women at any age, so it’s important for women to understand their risk factors and family history. Women can also experience unique life events that can impact their risk, such as pregnancy and menopause. Read on for more facts about heart disease in women.

What is a Heart Disease?

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Heart disease is any condition that affects the structure or function of the heart. There are multiple types of heart disease, which are typically categorized into four groups:

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  • Heart failure, which is most commonly caused by high blood pressure (hypertension) and heart attack.
  • Coronary artery and vascular disease, which is due to hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis).
  • Heart rhythm disorders (arrhythmias), which cause the heart to beat too slowly, too quickly, or in a disorganized fashion.
  • Structural heart disease, which refers to abnormalities of the heart’s structure, including valves, walls, muscles, or blood vessels located near the heart.

How deadly is heart disease for women?

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Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women in the U.S., and is responsible for about 1 in every 3 female deaths. Many women don't know that heart disease is 7x deadlier than breast cancer, and that nearly 52% of high blood pressure deaths — otherwise known as hypertension or the “silent killer” — are in women. And while heart disease is often thought of as primarily a men’s health issue, since 1984 more women have died each year from heart disease than men. Overall, heart disease kills more women than lung cancer, breast cancer and colon cancer combined.

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What is the financial impact of heart disease?

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Cardiovascular disease is the most expensive chronic disease in the U.S. with an overall price tag of about $363 billion each year.

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What are common causes of heart disease in women?

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It’s important to be aware of what can increase women’s risk for heart disease and stroke in order to begin to take steps to reduce risk. Some of the top risk factors include:  

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  • Hypertension
  • Low level of HDL cholesterol (a.k.a. “good cholesterol”), or a high level of LDL cholesterol (a.k.a. “bad cholesterol”)
  • Diabetes
  • Lack of exercise
  • Smoking
  • Family history
  • Obesity

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There are some common risk factors like high blood pressure and high cholesterol that affect men and women. However, many people may not be aware that there are some risk factors that have sex-based differences that can put women at a higher risk, or that are unique to women. 

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View this infographic to see the differences in risk factors.

Learn more about high blood pressure and high cholesterol in women.

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Footnotes
  1. Reducing the Burden of Chronic Disease. Aspen Health Strategy Group. https://www.aspeninstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/AHSG-Chronic-Disease-Report-2019.pdf. Published January 2019. Accessed May 23, 2022.
  2. Facts About Hypertension. CDC Web site. https://www.cdc.gov/bloodpressure/facts.htm. Published September 27, 2021. Accessed May 23, 2022.
  3. Ahmed FB, Anderson RN. The Leading Causes of Death in the US for 2020. JAMA. 2021;325(18):1829-1830. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2778234. Accessed May 23, 2022.
  4. This includes heart disease and stroke, which are both related to heart health. Source: Schmidt H. Top 10 Most Expensive Chronic Diseases for Healthcare Payers. HealthPayerIntelligence. February 22, 2022. https://healthpayerintelligence.com/news/top-10-most-expensive-chronic-diseases-for-healthcare-payers. Accessed May 23, 2022.
  5. Figure calculated as part of Validation Institute’s analysis of Hello Heart cost savings. Source: Validation Institute. 2021 Validation Report (Valid Through October 2022). https://validationinstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Hello_Heart-Savings-2021-Final.pdf. Published October 2021. Accessed May 23, 2022. (This analysis was commissioned by Hello Heart, which provided a summary report of self-funded employer client medical claims data for 203 Hello Heart users and 200 non-users from 2017-2020. Findings have not been subjected to peer review.)
  6. Based on data on file at Hello Heart.
  7. Sources: (1) Gazit T, Gutman M, Beatty AL. Assessment of Hypertension Control Among Adults Participating in a Mobile Technology Blood Pressure Self-management Program. JAMA Netw Open. 2021;4(10):e2127008, https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.27008. Accessed May 23, 2022. (Some study authors are employed by Hello Heart. Because of the observational nature of the study, causal conclusions cannot be made. See additional important study limitations in the publication. This study showed that 108 participants with baseline blood pressure over 140/90 who had been enrolled in the program for 3 years and had application activity during weeks 148-163 were able to reduce their blood pressure by 21 mmHg using the Hello Heart program.) (2) Livongo Health, Inc. Form S-1 Registration Statement. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1639225/000119312519185159/d731249ds1.htm. Published June 28, 2019. Accessed May 23, 2022. (In a pilot study that lasted six weeks, individuals starting with a blood pressure of greater than 140/90 mmHg, on average, had a 10 mmHG reduction.) NOTE: This comparison is not based on a head-to-head study, and the difference in results may be due in part to different study protocols.
  8. Validation Institute. 2021 Validation Report (Valid Through October 2022). https://validationinstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Hello_Heart-Savings-2021-Final.pdf. Published October 2021. Accessed May 23, 2022. (This analysis was commissioned by Hello Heart, which provided a summary report of self-funded employer client medical claims data for 203 Hello Heart users and 200 non-users from 2017-2020. Findings have not been subjected to peer review.)
  9. Gazit T, Gutman M, Beatty AL. Assessment of Hypertension Control Among Adults Participating in a Mobile Technology Blood Pressure Self-management Program. JAMA Netw Open. 2021;4(10):e2127008, https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.27008. Accessed May 23, 2022. (Some study authors are employed by Hello Heart. Because of the observational nature of the study, causal conclusions cannot be made. See additional important study limitations in the publication.)
  10. Kaplan AL, Cohen ER, Zimlichman E. Improving patient engagement in self-measured blood pressure monitoring using a mobile health technology. Health Inf Sci Syst. 2017; 5 (4). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13755-017-0026-9. Accessed May 23, 2022. (Because of the observational nature of the study, causal conclusions cannot be made. There were 783 participants with baseline systolic blood pressure ≥ 140. See additional important study limitations in the publication.)