SALISBURY TWP., Pa. — All eyes may have been on the groundhog this morning, but throughout the day a flash of red may catch your eye. That’s because today is the annual Go Red for Women Day, a day people don shades of the color to raise awareness about heart health.
“That [February] is our month, we are so excited. It's our time to really increase awareness that heart disease is the number one killer of both men and women and that we can do something about it,” said cardiologist Deborah Sundlof, of Lehigh Valley Heart and Vascular Institute. The physician is also the director of Lehigh Valley Health Network’s Women's Heart and Vascular program.
“The reality of it is that 1 in 27 women will die of breast cancer, whereas 1 in 3 women can die of cardiovascular disease."Dr. Deborah Sundlof, cardiologist, Lehigh Valley Heart and Vascular Institute
Sundlof said most women fear breast cancer over heart disease, but the latter is more likely to be fatal. “The reality of it is that 1 in 27 women will die of breast cancer, whereas 1 in 3 women can die of cardiovascular disease."
Traditional risk factors for heart disease include diabetes, smoking, overweight, physical inactivity, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. However, the cardiologist said, there are some non-traditional risk factors for women, which a lot of people are unaware of.
“Those are if you have some complications of pregnancy, such as preterm delivery, hypertensive disorders in pregnancy, also called eclampsia or preeclampsia, or gestational diabetes, that actually increases a woman's risk of developing cardiovascular disease prematurely compared to a woman who never had those abnormalities, Sundlof said.
“Not only that, the child born to that pregnancy also has a risk of developing cardiovascular disease earlier than if they hadn't been part of a pregnancy that had those complications,” she said.
Some other non-traditional risk factors include autoimmune diseases such as lupus or rheumatoid arthritis.
The good news, she said, is there are ways to significantly decrease a woman’s risk of developing heart disease. “What most people also don't realize is that by modifying these risk factors, we can prevent 90% of cardiovascular events, which is amazing.”
Diet and exercise play a huge role in decreasing a person's chances of developing heart disease. And she went on to say most people are embarrassed to go to the emergency room if they are feeling discomfort in their chest, but she said time is of the essence in a heart attack situation.
“Time is muscle and we want to make sure we get that artery open as soon as possible,” she said. “Most women will delay coming to the emergency room by four to six hours. We want you in the emergency room as fast as you can get there. So number one, if you think you're having a heart attack, call 911.”
Heart attacks in women may present differently than the traditional tightness in the chest that men feel.
“They might have discomfort in their upper chest or in their back and maybe in their jaw, or it may radiate down their arm. It may not come on with exertion, but more likely to come on with emotional stress,” Sundlof said.
LVHN has one of the largest women's heart and vascular programs in the nation, she added.
The health network is offering a variety of events to raise awareness during this Heart Health Month, including:
- Feb. 4: Join LVHN in person at 11 a.m. if you can at the Easton Public Market, 325 Northampton St., Easton, for a cooking demonstration that shows how healthy eating doesn’t have to be boring or bland. Join Nidhi Mehta, MD, of Lehigh Valley Heart and Vascular Institute, along with a Lehigh Valley Health Network dietitian and cooks from the amazing team at Sodexo.
- Feb. 7: Eric Elgin, MD, Chief of Cardiology with Lehigh Valley Heart and Vascular Institute, will be joined by several colleagues for a Facebook Live event at 6 p.m. to talk about the latest advances in cardiovascular care. Joining Dr. Elgin will be Ronak Patel, MD, Shailendra Singh, MD, andAlison Wand, MD.
- Feb. 13: Join Apurva Vyas, MD, 6-7 p.m. for a virtual session to learn all you need to know about heart attacks. Symptoms, treatment and causes will be discussed, and you’ll have the opportunity to ask questions.
- Feb. 21: Nidhi Mehta, MD, and Deborah Sundlof, DO, will present a virtual session from 6-7 p.m. on how non-cardiac diseases can affect your heart health. Various conditions including cancer, autoimmune diseases and diabetes will be discussed from a cardiovascular health perspective.
- Feb. 27: Andrew Sumner, MD, will host a virtual session at 6 p.m. where you can learn how to modify risk factors and reduce your risk for heart disease.
