It has long been known that certain lifestyles and health factors increase the risk of Heart disease -But new research highlights that it can affect women more than men.
Eight specific habits: diet, sleep, physical activity, smoking, body mass index, blood sugar, lipids, and blood pressure appear to have twice as much impact on women’s heart health risks compared to men.
The findings will be presented at the American Society of Cardiology Annual Science Session held in Chicago from March 29th to 31st, 2025.
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The study included data from more than 175,000 Canadian adults without existing heart disease who were enrolled in the Ontario Health Survey between 2009 and 2017, according to a press release.
Certain habits appear to have twice as much impact on women’s heart health risks as compared to men. (istock)
The researchers analyzed participants’ scores for eight risk factors and followed the incidence of seven cardiac outcomes over 11 years.
These results are included Heart attack, strokeIt states that unstable angina pectoris (chest pain caused by limited blood flow to the heart), peripheral artery disease (close blood vessels in the arm or legs), heart failure and coronary revascularization (procedure to open blocked arteries) and cardiovascular disease death.
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Overall, more women were found to have ideal health (9.1% compared to 4.8% of men). They were also less likely to have poor health (21.9% compared to 30.5% of men).
However, women in poor health have been shown to be at almost five times the risk of heart disease Women with ideal healtha study has been discovered.
“We found that women tend to be healthier than men, but the impact on outcomes is different.”
In comparison, men with poor health had a 2.5 times risk of heart disease as men with ideal health.
Among women with moderate health, there was a 2.3 times higher risk than women with ideal health; Men with intermediate health.
Women with poor health have been shown to be nearly five times more risk of heart disease than women with ideal health, the study found. (istock)
“It’s the same thing Health levelour research shows an increased risk [related to each factor] Women are higher than men – it’s not all-purpose,” said Dr. Maneesh Sud, an assistant professor at the School of Medicine, Interventional Cardiologist and Clinical Physician Sciences at Toronto’s Sunnybrook Health Science Center, in the release.
“We found that women tend to be healthier than men, but their impact on outcomes is different. A combination of these factors has a greater impact on women than men.”
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This is a new discovery that has not been seen in other studies, the researchers added.
Based on the findings, the researchers concluded that “gender-specific screening or risk assessment approaches” could more accurately predict the risk of heart disease in people.
“The reason it turns out that women are more susceptible to heart disease is due to certain milestone stress that men don’t share, including dramatic hormonal changes that can directly withstand cardiac function.” (istock)
Dr. Marc Siegel, a senior medical analyst and professor of clinical medicine at NYU Langone Health and Fox News, was not involved in the study, but shared his comments on possible reasons for the findings.
“I think this is especially true why women know they are susceptible to heart disease. Milestone Stress It includes dramatic hormonal changes that can be directly burdened with cardiac function in a life that men don’t share,” he shared with Fox News Digital.
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These milestones could include pregnancy, childbirth and menopause, doctors noted.
“Please note that estrogen is cardioprotective in some respects and that it decreases Menopause and dramatically“Siegel said. At the same time, cholesterol (the heart risk factor) increases, just like weight.”
“Overall, women tended to be healthier than men who had a better diet, blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure,” the researchers said. (istock)
“Overall, women tended to have Better health “Though men had better diet, blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure than men, people in intermediate health had a higher risk of heart problems,” he continued.
Due to the limited population of the study, “only specific conclusions can be drawn,” Siegel added.
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Dr. Bradley Serwer, Maryland cardiologist and chief medical officer at Vitalsolution, the health company of Ingenovis, which provides cardiovascular and anesthesia services to hospitals around the country, said research specifically designed to focus on cardiovascular risks in women.
“We know that premenopausal women have a lower age-adjusted cardiovascular risk, but this catches up after menopause.”
“For many years, we have mistakenly assumed that traditional cardiovascular risk factors affect populations as well,” Serwer, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.
“We know that premenopausal women have a lower age-adjusted cardiovascular risk, but this catches up after menopause.”
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Cardiologists say further research is needed to understand the underlying reasons for this phenomenon.
“Is it due solely to the protective effects of estrogens, or are there other unrecognized contributors? I commend the authors of this study for their contributions, as they further challenge traditional approaches to primary prevention among women.”
