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6
VITALITY
Winter 2016
COMMUNITY
WOMEN’S HEALTH
Stroke
Brittle bones
Alcohol abuse
Heart
disease
Breast cancer
Talk to your family medicine provider about your health risks.
Call the CMH Information Center at
888-328-6010
or
417-328-6010
for more information.
WOMEN’S HEALTH
What to know
If you’re like many women today,
you may juggle family, friends, kids and a
career. That often doesn’t leave much time for yourself—or your health. But a
healthy life should be a priority for everyone, including you. A good place to
start is with a visit to your doctor. It’s also important to know some of the key
health risks women face.
Every year,
55,000
more women
than men have strokes in the U.S. Many
stroke risk factors, such as high blood
pressure and high cholesterol, are the same for both
sexes. But women also have unique risk factors for stroke,
including taking birth control pills and being pregnant.
Compared to men, women feel
alcohol’s immediate effects more
quickly and are more likely to
develop long-term health problems
from drinking.
As many as
5.3
MILLION
WOMEN
in the U.S.
abuse
alcohol.
This
No. 1
KILLER
of women is
RESPONSIBLE
for more than
female
DEATHS
EVERY
in
1 5
in the U.S.
Chest pain is the most
common heart attack
symptom. But women
are more likely than
men to have shortness
of breath, nausea or
vomiting, and back or
jaw pain.
On average,
women have
about a
of being diagnosed with
breast cancer at some point
in their lives. But that also
means the chance of never
getting breast cancer is
about 7 in 8.
1
in
8
CHANCE
Lung cancer, most often caused by
smoking, is the leading cancer killer of
women. And babies born to women
who smoke have a raised risk of dying
from sudden infant death syndrome.
Smoking
Though
tobacco use
is
declining
, more
than
of women 18 and older
still smoke
13
%
Roughly
1
in
2
women
age
50
will break a bone because of
osteoporosis. A bone density test can
detect bone-weakening osteoporosis.
OVER
Sources: American Heart Association; Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention; National Institutes of
Health; National Osteoporosis Foundation; National
Stroke Association
cigarettes.