Doctor Mayo

WOMEN & HEART DISEASE

In women aged 55 and older, the primary cause of death is heart disease. While 46,000 women a year die from breast cancer, 450,000 women a year die from cardio-vascular disease. Heart attacks manifest differently in women than they do in men.

Most Common Women's Heart Disease Symptoms:

Fatigue
Pain in the neck /shoulder that may feel like a strain

50% of women over the age of 50 have high blood pressure which increases the risk of heart attack. A recent study called the DASH study was enlightening. It showed that if a woman cut back on "bad" fats (dairy, red meat), exercised, and ate lots of fruits & vegetables, she could achieve the SAME results as taking hypertension medications.

NOTE: You should still seek a medical check-up, but you may be able to avoid medication if you do these things.

To figure risk of heart disease:

1. Did you have a father, brother, uncle or male cousin under the age of 55 who had a heart attack, stroke or coronary artery disease?
2. Did you have a female relative under the age of 65 who had any of the above conditions?
   
3. Get a LIPID PROFILE done. HDL/LDL should be in a good ratio TIP TO REMEMBER: H=healthy L=lethal
   
4. Cholesterol and triglycerides should be normal. NOTE: High cholesterol kills more men than women. High triglycerides kills more women than men.

BASIC HEALTH PRINCIPLES TO EMBRACE:

1. Exercise
2. Decrease weight. Remember, it is the weight around the middle that is associated with increased risk of heart attack.
3. Try to eliminate stress or change the way you deal with it.
4. Homocysteine is deadly to the arteries. Cut back on red meat and eat fish.

WHAT SUPPLEMENTS ARE RECOMMENDED?

• FOLIC ACID: Decreases homeocysteine
• B COMPLEX
• ANTI-OXIDANTS: VITAMIN A, C & E
• BLACK COHASH: find a brand blended with Chinese herbs
• GINGKO BILOBA
• CO-ENZYME Q-10

IMPORTANT TIP: ONE Aspirin per week will decrease the risk of heart attack or stroke by 15%. If a person is having a heart attack, place an aspirin under their tongue immediately. This increases their survival rate by 40%!

WOMEN & HOT FLASHES

Note: Hot flashes are a temperature control problem. You may have cold flashes and/or hot flashes.

What helps hot flashes?

• VITAMIN E is very effective (400-800 IU daily) If flashes are severe, you may go higher in dosage.
• ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS: Borage Oil, 3-6-9 Formulas
• CALCIUM
• DEEP ABDOMINAL BREATHING (can minimize or eliminate)
• COTTON SHEETS
• EXERCISE (Gets the endorphins flowing)

THERE IS HOPE: You cannot completely change your genetic make-up, but you can modify it!

MENOPAUSE MANAGER by Joseph Mayo, M.D. and Mary Ann Mayo

Cordially,

Helen Pensanti M.D.