Manage Blood Pressure

Helpful lifestyle changes include weight control, increased physical activity, alcohol moderation, sodium restriction, and an emphasis on eating fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy products.

Don't Smoke

If you are a non-smoker, don’t start. If you do smoke and want to quit, contact your healthcare professional, or the UW-Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention. You may also call Wisconsin’s Toll-Free Wisconsin Tobacco Quit Line at 1-800-QUIT-NOW (784-8669). Counseling and medication and double the rates of quitting successfully.  Women who quit smoking reduce their risk of heart disease by 50% to 70%. Women who smoke or are diabetic are more likely to experience "silent" heart attacks, or heart attacks with no symptoms.

Eating Habits

Eat a diet low in saturated fat and high in fruits, vegetables, whole grains (like rye bread or whole wheat spaghetti), and fiber (like bran cereal). Reduce saturated fat intake to less than 7% of calories if possible.  In women with heart disease, eat oily fish at least twice a week, and consider taking a capsule supplement of 850-1000 mg of EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHF (docosahexaenoic acid), 2-4 grams in women with high triglycerides. Limit alcohol intake to 1 (or less) glass of alcohol per day, as heavy drinking can raise cholesterol levels and blood pressure.

Physical Activity

Getting regular physical activity, at least 30 minutes of moderate activity on most, or preferably all, days of the week is an important step women can take to minimize their cardiovascular disease risk.  For women who need to lose weight or sustain weight loss, a minimum of 60-90 minutes of moderate-intensity activity (brisk walking) on most, preferably all, days of the week.

Low Dose Aspirin Therapy

Talk to your healthcare provider about routine low dose aspirin therapy, which may be considered in women age 65 or older regardless of CVD risk status, if benefits are likely to outweight other risks. The upper dosage of aspirin for high-risk women is 325 mg per day.

Get Screened

It is important to be familiar with the normal ranges for key cardiovascular risks and get screened regularly for risk factors such as hypertension (high blood pressure), hypercholesterolemia (high blood cholesterol level), and diabetes (high blood sugar).

Get Treatment

If you have cardiovascular disease risk factors, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or diabetes, get treatment and follow your healthcare provider’s recommendations exactly.

See Your Doctor

All of these steps make a difference in reducing cardiovascular risk. Working with your healthcare professional is also important.

Become Aware

Read more about the major cardiovascular disease risk factors and the reasons that they are important for women in particular. Contact your healthcare provider about cardiovascular disease screenings. Screening tests can be done relatively quickly and easily, and their results will provide valuable information to help you understand what risk factors you have for cardiovascular diseases.

Screening results are only an indication that you may have a particular risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Follow-up evaluation by a healthcare professional is important to understand your risk factors and develop treatment options and plans that are specific to you and your needs.