Health Facts
All information has been obtained from the Mayo Clinic or American Cancer Society. We strongly urge you to visit other educational sites to learn and understand more about each major health threat.
  1. Women’s Top 5 Health Threats? (Provided by MAYO Clinic)
  2. Men’s Top 5 Health Threats?
  3. What is Heart Disease?
  4. Health Risk Perspectives?
  5. Heart attack symptoms in women?
  6. Do most women know that heart disease is the number 1 killer of women?
  7. Do women need to worry about Heart Disease?
  8. How to reduce risk of Heart Disease?
  9. What is Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)?
  10. What is Cancer?
  11. What is Breast Cancer?
  12. Breast Cancer Statistics?
  13. Signs of Breast Cancer?
  14. Risks of Breast Cancer?
1. Women’s Top 5 Health Threats? (Provided by MAYO Clinic)
  1. Heart Disease
  2. Cancer
    1. Lung
    2. Breast
    3. Colorectal

  3. Stroke
  4. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
  5. Alzheimer
Top
2. Men’s Top 5 Health Threats?
  1. Heart Disease
  2. Cancer
    1. Lung
    2. Prostate
    3. Colorectal

  3. Unintentional Injuries (motor vehicle accidents were the leading cause)
  4. Stroke
  5. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Top
3. What is Heart Disease?

Heart disease is a number of abnormal conditions affecting the heart and the blood vessels in the heart. Types of heart disease include:

  • Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the most common type and is the leading cause of heart attacks. When you have CAD, your arteries become narrow and hard which makes it difficult for the blood to get to the heart. CAD can lead to:
  • Angina: Chest pain or discomfort that happens when the heart does not get enough blood. Having angina means you are more likely to have a heart attack.
  • Heart Attack: Occurs when an artery is severely or completely blocked and the heart does not get the blood it needs.
  • Heart Failure occurs when the heart is not able to pump blood through the body sufficiently
  • Heart aahythimias are changed in the beat of the heart
Top
4. Health Risk Perspectives?
Ranking of health threats applies to the entire population of women in the U.S., but for the specific age group the health risk may shift. Be concerned about health risks, but do not panic, make sure when you look at numbers you understand the number and its relation to the population.
top Top
5. Heart attack symptoms in women?
  • Neck, Shoulder, Upper Back or Abdominal Discomfort
  • Shortness of Breath
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Sweating
  • Lightheadedness or dizziness
  • Unusual fatigue
Top
6. Do most women know that heart disease is the number 1 killer of women?
There has been an increase in the percentage of woman that are aware heart disease is number one in the last few years. However, most do not think they are personally at risk.
Top
7. Do Women need to worry about heart disease?

Yes, 1 in 4 females have some form of heart and blood vessel disease. 1 in every 2.5 women’s death is due to cardiovascular disease. The older a woman gets the more likely she is to get heart disease.
Top
8. How to reduce risk of Heart Disease?
  • Avoid smoking and limit the amount of alcohol you drink.
  • Eat a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and whole-grain products.
  • Exercise regularly
  • Control other health conditions that may put a strain on your heart, such as high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol.
Top
9. What is Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)?
Overall term for a group of chronic lung conditions, including bronchitis and emphysema. The main cause of COPD is smoking and it is strongly associated with lung cancer.
Top
10. What is Cancer?
Cancer occurs when cells in a part of the body begin to grow out of control. Normal cells divide and grow in an orderly fashion, but cancer cells do not. They continue to grow and crowd out normal cells. Benign tumors are not cancerous. Malignant tumors, cancerous, spread to and overtake healthy tissue.
Top
11. What is Breast Cancer?
Breast cancer is a malignant (cancerous) tumor that starts from cells of the breast.
Top
12. Breast Cancer Statistics?
  • 1 in 8 Women during their life will have invasive breast cancer
  • 1 in 33 have a chance of dying from breast cancer
  • Approximately 2 million women living in the US have been treated for breast cancer
  • Breast Cancer is the most common cancer among women, other than skin cancer.
  • Breast Cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women, after lung cancer
  • 100x more common in women than men
  • White women slightly more likely to get breast cancer than African-American women
Top
13. Signs of Breast Cancer?
Breast lump, swelling, distortion, dimpling, tenderness, skin irritation, and nipple pain. Breast pain is commonly due to benign conditions and not usually the first symptom.
Top
14. Risks of Breast Cancer?
  • Increase with age
  • Primary Factors: inherited genetic mutations, (BRCA 1, and BRAC 2),
  • Personal or family history of breast cancer, high breast tissue density (amount of glandular breast tissue relative to fatty tissue in breast).
  • Long menstrual cycles (started early and/or ended late in life)
  • Obesity after menopause,
  • Recent use of oral contraceptives, post menopausal hormone therapy
  • Never having children
  • Having first child after 30
  • Consumption of one or more alcoholic beverages a day.
  • Breast Feeding, moderate or vigorous activity, and maintaining a healthy weight all are associated with a lower risk
Top


 

Copyright © 2006-7 - Design by My Computer At Work