By Dr. Kevin Campbell, | Fox News
The tragic
death of actress and author Carrie Fisher this week, best known for her
portrayal of Princess Leia in “Star Wars”, has shocked the world. According to
the latest reports, Fisher suffered a cardiac arrest while flying from London
to Los Angeles last week. Witnesses reported that she began to have chest pain
and became unresponsive while in flight. CPR was performed and an AED was used
to restart her heart.
She arrived at
LAX and was transported urgently to the hospital. There have been no
reports that Fisher had any prior heart disease or risk factors for heart
disease outside of cigarette smoking and occasional issues with weight.
Carrie Fisher
had a long history of substance abuse and, according to some reports, she had
recently relapsed. Some believe that this may have been a contributing factor
in her untimely death.
According to
the American Heart Association, two thirds of women who die suddenly of heart
disease have no previous symptoms—making prevention even more difficult.
Unfortunately, only 54 percent of women recognize that heart disease
poses their greatest risk of death.
Women and Heart Disease
Heart disease,
while long thought to be a disease of men, actually affects both genders
equally. In fact, more women than men die
from heart disease in the United States every single year.
In 2013 nearly
289, 000 women died of heart disease—that is one in four American women.
Heart disease
can be more difficult to recognize in women than in men and many women do not
even know that they are at risk.
While men tend
to present with “classic” heart attack symptoms such as chest pain and
shortness of breath, women often have very atypical symptoms including nausea,
back pain, flu like illness and feelings of dread. Many times, women who
are having heart attack symptoms do not even realize that they are having a
heart attack.
What are the Risk Factors for
Heart Attack in Women?
The risk
factors for heart disease are similar in both men and women. There are
two types—those that we can modify and those that we cannot.
Modifiable risk
factors include: Smoking, high cholesterol, diabetes, high blood pressure and
obesity.
Those that we
cannot change are our genetic makeup—having a family history of heart disease.
One of the most
important things that women can do is to take stock in their own cardiovascular
health. If a woman has multiple risk factors, then screening tests are
appropriate. It is vital that women engage with their health care
provider and determine exactly what their risk is—once risk is known, steps can
be taken to reduce risk and screening tests can be performed.
How can Women Prevent Heart
Disease?
Prevention is all about
knowledge — every woman must know her numbers. Here
are five numbers to keep track of:
1. Have your blood pressure
checked annually. Hypertension is known as the silent killer. While
you may not have symptoms from high blood pressure, long-standing hypertension
can damage your heart and blood vessels and put you at higher risk for heart
attack and stroke. If you and your physician are able to identify high
blood pressure early, you can limit the negative effects of hypertension by
treating with lifestyle modifications and drug therapy if
needed.
2. Have cholesterol checked
annually. Most heart attacks are caused by a build up of fatty plaques
inside the heart arteries. When these plaques rupture and occlude a
coronary artery, a heart attack occurs. Cholesterol contributes to the
development of these plaques. By checking your cholesterol annually you
can assess your risk and your physician can put you on drugs to lower your
cholesterol if necessary.
3. Maintain an optimal body weight—Assess your body mass index (BMI)
and make changes to diet and exercise regimen in order to attain a more healthy
weight. Make healthy food choices. Obesity leads to
generalized inflammation and inflammation has been directly associated with the
development of heart disease. In addition, obesity puts you at risk for
Type 2 Diabetes as well as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and
ultimately heart disease.
4. Lower your stress levels. Studies have shown that stress can
increase the incidence of heart attack in susceptible individuals.
Emotional stress evokes a hormonal response in our bodies. When under
stress, we release increased amounts of stress hormones including epinephrine
and cortisol. These hormone raise blood pressure and heart rate.
Chronically elevated levels of these hormones can lead to heart attack and
stroke in susceptible individuals. Daily stress lowering strategies such
as meditation, exercise and relaxation breathing can make a huge difference in
limiting your levels of these hormones.
5. Stop smoking. Smoking is the number one cause of preventable death
in the United States today. While smoking rates have declined
over the last several decades, far too many Americans still continue to smoke.
Smoking can cause damage to the heart and blood vessels and can significantly
raise your risk for heart attack. Smoking raises blood pressure,
decreases exercise capacity and increases the tendency for blood to clot.
Smoking may be the most important risk factor for heart disease in young
women. If you are a smoker, quit today. Your doctor can help if you
need medications—set a quit date, circle it on the calendar and make your goal
public. Ask friends and family for support.
The Legacy of Princess Leia
Carrie Fisher
has done much good in her short life and has brought joy into many lives
through her work on film. Now that she has passed away from a heart
attack at a young age, let’s continue to allow Carrie to impact our
lives. Let’s raise awareness for women and heart disease. Let’s help
spread the word that a woman’s greatest health risk today is from heart attack
and stroke. While breast and uterine cancers remain a significant
concern, heart disease takes the lives of one in four women annually. In
“Star Wars,” Princess Leia fought for a cause that was greater than any one
person—let’s let Carrie Fisher’s legacy be one of hope. Hope that women
can now recognize their risk for heart disease and make the changes needed to
take control of their own heart health.
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