Can Early Menopause Increase a Women’s Risk of Heart Disease and Stroke?

A recent article published on the Jargon Post presented some disturbing health news for women who experience early menopause. This article, published on June 30, 2012, cited a recent study that found that women who go through menopause before the age of 46 are twice as likely to suffer from a heart attack or stroke as their peers who do not exhibit menopausal symptoms until their early 50’s.

Why is the risk double? The reasons are unclear. The lead author of the study, Dr. Melissa Wellons, from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, was quoted in the article as saying, “My advice to them would be to get your traditional risk factors checked and do the things that we know, based on evidence, can improve your risk of developing heart disease, like keep your cholesterol in check and keep your blood pressure in check,” she theorizes.

Other experts have conjectured that the possible sudden decrease of estrogen as women experience early menopause symptoms could somehow be linked to an increase in cardiovascular incidence leading to the higher risk of stroke and heart attacks. However, a question that bears answering is why then do women who go through menopause at an average age, who endure the same decrease in estrogen, not see higher percentages of heart attack or strokes?

While clinicians analyze the results of this recent study, there are some precautions women who are on the verge of early menopause can take to lower their overall risks. These “fixes” were outlined in Menopause, a journal.

Quit smoking. Breaking this habit not only decreases your risk for cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, but it also decreases cancer risk.

Between 30 and 60 minutes of physical activity is recommended each day. If you are crunched for time, split it up throughout the day. You will still reap the same benefits.

Eat a heart-healthy diet. This means limiting your fat intake and consuming more healthy fats like olive oil, omega 3 and whole grains.

Watch your weight. By eating heart-healthy and exercising you should have a good head start in this category, but as a woman enters menopause her daily caloric food intake lowers. Talk to your doctor about the proper caloric diet you should be striving to achieve.

Following these simple daily habits will help keep your cholesterol and triglycerides at a level that is healthy and not as likely to cause your heart problems. If you have never had these two levels checked to develop a baseline, it is essential that you do so now.

While the findings of this current study is alarming, being pro-active in your life and taking care of your body whether it is menopausal or not, is your best defense to aging gracefully without the debilitating effects of a heart attack or stroke.