Heart disease versus breast cancer. Woman perilously misguided!
15 February 2011: With one in four South African women developing some form of heart condition before the age of 60, many women don’t seem to realise that they are nine times more at risk of developing a heart condition than breast cancer.
As cholesterol-related deaths continue to rise and treatment guidelines become ever more stringent in response, MNI says South African women need to start managing their cholesterol levels far more proactively than previously thought if they wish to extend their longevity.
A leading cause of heart and blood vessel (cardiovascular) disease, high cholesterol affects some 16 million South Africans.(1) According to The Department of Health (DoH), one in four South African women will develop some form of heart condition before the age of 60.(2) As the Heart and Stroke Foundation SA (HSFSA) points out, many South African women don’t seem to realise that they are nine times more at risk of developing a heart condition than breast cancer.(3)
It’s a dire situation that continues to get worse. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that cardiovascular disease is the largest single cause of mortality among women, accounting for a third of all deaths in women worldwide every year.* The HSFSA’s analysis of recent trends has led them to predict that premature deaths due to heart and blood vessel diseases among South Africans of working age (35 - 64 years) will have increased by 41% between 2007 and 2030.(4) “Staggering numbers indeed,” observes Dr Conrad Smith, MNI director and a GP in private practice in Johannesburg.
Being pro-active is the key
“As medical practitioners, we are now recommending a much more proactive and aggressive approach to cholesterol management in women,” explains Smith. “It’s partly in response to these alarming statistics and partly because South African women seem to have the mistaken notion that cholesterol and cardiovascular disease are concerns they need only worry about if when they experience an event or are handed a diagnosis by their doctor — this despite the overwhelming evidence that anyone who wants to live a long, healthy life needs to keep their cholesterol levels low.”
Cholesterol treatment guidelines have been tightened over the last few years. “While the Department of Health guidelines haven’t been revised since 1998, both the American NCEP ATP III and European Cholesterol Guidelines have become more stringent every time they have been reviewed in response to the discovery that large numbers of people with cholesterol levels previously considered ‘okay’ or ‘borderline’ were developing cardiovascular disease,” notes Smith.
As treatment management guidelines are reviewed and revised, so patients need to take a much more active stance in taking responsibility for their heart health. “To promote longevity, every South African woman over the age of 25 must make sure they have their cholesterol regularly monitored,” confirms Smith.
Not just a man’s problem
“Women are particularly bad at checking their cholesterol levels,” he maintains, “in part because they tend to be under the erroneous impression that heart disease is predominantly a ‘male’ condition. This mindset needs to shift urgently if we are ever to see a decrease in cardiac-related deaths.”
This misconception has arisen because the female hormone oestrogen raises HDL or “good” cholesterol levels, which can protect women from heart disease. As a result, men are considered to have low HDL cholesterol at less than 40 mg/dL and women at less than 50 mg/dL. However, HDL cholesterol levels tend to drop quite dramatically in women after menopause (typically, around the age of 50) or if the ovaries are removed, when oestrogen levels start to decline.
“Elevated HDL cholesterol levels are no guarantee either,” explains Smith. “To more precisely evaluate their risk, women should have their LDL or “bad” cholesterol levels checked as well, through a fasting blood test called a Lipoprotein Profile.”
Steps you should take
While lifestyle changes such as diet, stress management and exercise play an important role in maintaining a healthy cholesterol level, these adaptations are often difficult to incorporate into today’s hectic schedules. “Some patients also really struggle to bring their cholesterol down despite even the most erstwhile lifestyle changes,” says Smith.
Many patients with high cholesterol are also reluctant to take conventional statin drugs because of the side effect profile and the fact that the drugs block not only the production of cholesterol but also essential nutrients. Smith says alternative safe and effective non-prescription treatment options with reduced side effect profiles are available for these patients.
“Those who wish to maintain a life-long healthy cholesterol level or who have an already elevated cholesterol level and want to avert a future health crisis should consider non-prescription medicines, but only those that are proven to be safe and effective. Unlike other natural products, RyCholTM consists of an unique combination of natural compounds that display different but synergistic cholesterol lowering effects. This dual-action mechanism simultaneously targets two separate cholesterol producing pathways, thereby increasing its efficacy whilst lowering the side effect profile.
“In fact, the ultimate and best anti-ageing strategy anyone can invest in is to reduce your cholesterol and thereby stop or even reverse the process that causes hardening of the arteries. With this simple step you can extend your lifespan by as much as 30%. Show me one vitamin pill that can achieve that!” he says.
For further information on cholesterol please visit health24 at:
http://www.health24.com/medical/Condition_centres/777-792-804.asp
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References
- *World Health Organization (WHO). The world health report, 2004 : changing history. WHO, Geneva, 2004.
