Women and Heart Health Awareness

Heart disease is the leading killer of women in the United States. Find out how to be heart healthy. Wear red on Feb. 1, and help raise awareness about prevention of heart disease.

Heart disease is the leading killer of women in the United States. It was responsible for one of every four deaths among women in 2009. Even if you have no obvious symptoms, you may still be at risk for heart disease.

Help raise awareness about heart disease in women and how to prevent it. Take steps to be heart healthy.

Know your risk for heart disease and heart attack.

Some conditions and lifestyle factors can put women at a higher risk for getting heart disease.

• Know your risk factors, adjust your lifestyle, and lower your chances for having a heart attack or stroke.
• See your health care provider for a check-up, especially if you have any risk factors or symptoms.
• Talk to your health care provider and ask questions to better understand your health.
• Know your family history. There may be factors that could increase your risk for heart disease and stroke.

Million Hearts – About Heart Disease and Stroke

Heart Attack

Heart Disease Risk Factors

Check-Up Checklist: Things to Do Before Your Next Check-Up

Family Health History

Make healthy choices every day. 

You can lower your risk of heart disease and heart attack by taking simple steps every day.

• Eat a healthy diet.
• Maintain a healthy weight.
• Be active. Exercise regularly.
• Be smoke-free.
• Limit alcohol use.
• Manage any medical condition you might have. Learn the ABCS of health. Keep them in mind every day and especially when you talk to your health provider:
  • Appropriate aspirin therapy for those who need it
  • Blood pressure control
  • Cholesterol management
  • Smoking cessation

Remember Your ABCS

Healthy Weight

Physical Activity

Smoke-free Women

Heart Disease Prevention

Excessive Alcohol Use and Risks to Women’s Health

High Blood Pressure

High Cholesterol: Understanding Your Risks

Recommendations of Aspirin for Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease

Know the signs and symptoms of a heart attack. 

A woman suffers a heart attack every 90 seconds in the United States. If you think you or someone you know is having a heart attack, call 9-1-1 immediately. If you seek help quickly, treatment can save your life and prevent permanent damage to your heart muscle. Treatment works best if given within 1 hour of when symptoms begin.

Common symptoms are:

• Unusually heavy pressure on the chest, like there's a ton of weight on you
• Sharp upper body pain in the neck, back, and jaw
• Severe shortness of breath
• Cold sweats (not hot flashes from menopause)
• Unusual or unexplained fatigue (tiredness)
• Unfamiliar dizziness or light-headedness
• Unexplained nausea (feeling sick to the stomach) or vomiting

Make the Call. Don’t Miss a Beat.

Heart Attack

More Information

• Million Hearts™
• The Heart Truth
• Women's Health
• American Heart Association, Go Red for Women

Be One in a Million Hearts ^TM
Help prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2017.