1. Heart Disease
After menopause, people are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease, and the rate of heart attacks in postmenopausal people begins increasing.
A key reason is that estrogen helps keep blood vessels flexible, so they contract and expand to accommodate blood flow. Once estrogen diminishes, this benefit is lost. Coupled with changes such as the rise in blood pressure, which can thicken artery walls, the heart suddenly becomes vulnerable.
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The Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation (SWAN) has been examining the physical, biological, psychological, and social changes experienced by people in menopause during their midlife years. It has found that people who have more hot flashes earlier during menopause also seem to have a higher risk for heart disease, says John F. Randolph, Jr., MD, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at University of Michigan Health in Ann Arbor.
That finding was also borne out in a study, which found that frequent and persistent hot flashes were associated with future cardiovascular disease.
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“Women who have a family history [of heart disease] or early and significant hot flashes should ask their healthcare provider if they need additional screenings for cardiovascular disease,” says Dr. Randolph.
Reduce the Heart Disease Risk Factors That You Can
You cannot control your family history, which influences your risk, but you can lower your overall risk by following a heart-healthy lifestyle. This includes eating a diet packed with vegetables and low in red meat and sugar, exercising for 150 minutes or more each week, and quitting smoking.
The American Heart Association also encourages women to know their blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels, as well as their body mass index (BMI).
Plugging these numbers into the ASCVD (Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease) risk calculator, introduced in 2013 by the AHA and the American College of Cardiology, can help you assess your 10-year heart disease risk.
Even though estrogen protects the heart, taking postmenopausal hormone therapy is not proven to reduce the risk of heart disease.
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