Women with diabetes at higher risk for heart attack & stroke
It is well known that individuals with diabetes are at a higher risk for cardiovascular problems (heart attacks and strokes). What is new is a scientific statement from the American Heart Association (AHA) that claims this risk may be significantly greater for women who have type 2 diabetes (non-insulin dependent diabetes).
The statement published in the journal Circulation, also says that women with type 2 diabetes may need to take more action than men to lower their risk for heart attack and stroke.
Around 90% of all diabetics are type 2.
According to the AHA, adults with diabetes are around two to four times more likely to have heart disease or stroke than those without diabetes; this is because diabetes patients are also at greater risk for high blood pressure, high cholesterol and obesity, all of which are key risk factors for heart attacks and strokes.
Judith G. Regensteiner, PhD, and coauthors claim that women with type 2 diabetes are more than twice as likely to develop coronary artery disease (heart attacks) – the most common form of heart disease – than men. Regensteiner is chair of the AHA’s statement writing group and professor of medicine and director of the Center for Women’s Health Research at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.
According to the AHA statement, women with type 2 diabetes are more likely to have heart attacks earlier in life than men and are more likely to die after a first heart attack. Hence, compared with men with type 2 diabetes, women with type 2 diabetes may need to engage in more frequent and intense exercise in order to lower their risk for cardiovascular disease (heart attacks and strokes).
Regensteiner and team also noted the men and women with type 2 diabetes had different strategies to protect their cardiovascular health. For example, women were less likely than men to use drugs to reduce cholesterol or blood pressure or even use aspirin.
Women with type 2 diabetes were also less likely to have any procedures done on them, such as angioplasty.
Commenting on what the statement shows, Regensteiner says, ‘Cardiovascular disease may be more deadly for women with type 2 diabetes than it is for men. While we don’t fully understand how the inherent hormonal differences between men and women affect risk, we do know that some risk factors for heart disease and stroke affect women differently than men and there are disparities in how these risk factors are treated.’
Regensteiner and coauthors say that further research is required to gain a better understanding of why women with type 2 diabetes are at greater cardiovascular risk than men, and to also know the reasons why women of certain ethnicities appear to be at greater risk.
‘To improve health equity in women and men with diabetes, we need to understand and improve both the biological reasons for the disparities and also control cardiovascular risk factors equally in both women and men,’ explains Regensteiner. ‘This statement is a call for action to do the compelling research that is so important for all people with diabetes.’
