Heart attack: these are the red flags in women

Luise Heine has been an editor at since 2012. The qualified biologist studied in Regensburg and Brisbane (Australia) and gained experience as a journalist in television, in the Ratgeber-Verlag and in a print magazine. In addition to her work at , she also writes for children, for example for the Stuttgarter Kinderzeitung, and has her own breakfast blog, “Kuchen zum Frühstück”.

More posts by Luise Heine All content is checked by medical journalists.

Severe chest pain - this is the classic sign of a heart attack. But the emergency at the heart can also announce differently - especially in women, a heart attack is often less clear than in men. Failure to overlook the symptoms can be fatal.

Sudden vascular occlusion

A heart attack can occur when the blood vessels that supply the heart muscle with oxygen and nutrients close up. The result: the affected part of the muscle dies. The heart's pumping power can be so reduced that important organs in the body are no longer supplied with enough blood.

In men, a heart attack is most noticeable as chest pain that can radiate to the left arm and neck. This classic symptom is often absent in women. Affected women are more likely to complain of pain in the upper abdomen, back or neck pain, jaw and sore throat, as well as nausea and a feeling of exhaustion.

Heart attack is not a man's business

The heart attack is primarily a male disease - in fact, heart collapse is also one of the leading causes of death in German women. One reason is that heart attacks in women are often not recognized as quickly. Fast and targeted treatment is very important in order to avoid the sometimes fatal consequences. Statistically speaking, more women than men die from acute heart attacks.

Up until the menopause, women are quite well protected against heart attacks by the hormones circulating in the body. With the change in hormone production, however, this protection decreases. Therefore, coronary heart diseases occur more frequently in women from around the age of 60. On average, women suffer a heart attack ten to 15 years later than men.

Risk factors vary in severity

The risk factors for a heart attack are well known: For example, obesity, smoking, elevated blood lipid levels or stress put a strain on the health of the heart. However, these factors affect the sexes differently. Women's hearts, for example, do not tolerate smoking very well at all. Female smokers are at 25 percent more likely to have a heart attack than male smokers. If women also take birth control pills, the likelihood of heart collapse increases further. Women with diabetes also need to pay special attention to their heart health.

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