5 Diseases that Affect Women Differently
Some diseases and health conditions affect women disproportionately more than men. Others affect men and women in similar numbers, but they manifest in different ways—it’s important to recognize the differences.
Heart Attacks
If you think of an older man suddenly clutching his chest in pain when you hear the words “heart attack,” you’re not alone. But heart attacks happen to women too—and their symptoms may not be as obvious as severe pain in the chest.
Heart disease—which includes heart attacks—is the leading killer of women in the U.S. Heart attacks can happen to women at a younger age than they might expect, and the risk goes up with age.
Heart attacks occur when the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the heart is reduced. While both men and women can have chest pain (called “angina”) during a heart attack, women often have symptoms that aren’t as obvious, such as:
- Anxiety
- Upset stomach or nausea
- Shortness of breath
- Unusual fatigue or weakness
- Pain in the arm, shoulder or back
It is common knowledge that heart attacks are dangerous and potentially life-threatening, but it is less widely understood that when blood flow to the heart is disrupted, this can also reduce blood flow to the brain. This can result in significant brain injury.
How to reduce your risk: Major risk factors that contribute to heart disease include obesity, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and tobacco use. Reduce your risk with lifestyle changes, such as:
- Getting at least 150 minutes (2½ hours) of moderately intense exercise per week
- Eating a heart-healthy diet that’s low in saturated fats
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Keeping your blood sugar levels under control
Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis makes bones brittle, thinner and weaker, putting you at risk for fractures. Women are more likely to develop osteoporosis than men. Men have higher peak bone mass to start out with, and bone loss tends to happen more rapidly in women as they lose estrogen after menopause.
However, research suggests that men are more likely to die from complications after a big fracture, like a hip fracture, as a result of weakened bones.
How to reduce your risk: The biggest risk fractures for osteoporosis are getting older and low bone mineral density. To shore up your bones and reduce your chances of developing osteoporosis, embrace:
- Weight-bearing exercise
- A healthy diet rich in vitamin D and calcium
- No smoking
- Reduced alcohol consumption
Alzheimer’s Disease
The most common type of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, is a progressive disease that worsens over time. Age and genetics are two of the biggest risk factors.
About two-thirds of all people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s are women. Although the connections between biological sex and Alzheimer’s are complicated, some have proposed that women are at higher risk for depression, which is also a risk factor for Alzheimer’s. Furthermore, advanced age is one of the strongest risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease, so more women may end up living with Alzheimer’s because they live longer than men on average. Research has suggested that women may experience more rapid brain atrophy (loss of brain cells) and clinical decline than do men.
Early symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease include:
- Memory changes that disrupt daily life
- Confusion about time or place
- Trouble completing normal tasks
- Trouble understanding special relationships and images
- Poor judgment
- Social withdrawal
- Misplacing things
- Trouble solving problems or making plans
- Changes in mood
How to reduce your risk: Embrace a healthy lifestyle. Eat a healthy diet, don’t smoke, maintain a robust social network, exercise regularly and enjoy activities that stimulate your mind.
Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. The body’s immune system attacks myelin, the protective coating that covers nerve fibers in the brain and spinal cord, and damages nerve cells. MS can cause a range of symptoms depending on what specific areas and networks in the brain are affected, including:
- Muscle weakness
- Balance and mobility problems
- Fatigue
- Tingling and numbness in the limbs
- Vision problems
- Mood swings
- Loss of cognitive function
Women are at greater risk for developing multiple sclerosis. About 75% of people with MS are women. It also tends to start earlier in women than in men.
However, the disease tends to progress more slowly in women. Men don’t typically recover as well from a relapse, and men are more likely to have motor problems. Some research also suggests men experience more cognitive decline. Women also often report symptoms during pregnancy, menstruation and menopause, likely due to hormonal fluctuations.
How to reduce your risk: While there’s a strong genetic component at work with MS, quitting smoking and getting adequate amounts of vitamin D may help.
Urinary Tract Infections
Thanks to the anatomy of the female urinary tract, women are more prone to developing urinary tract infections (UTIs) than men are. The culprit is usually bacteria that have migrated from the colon or rectum to cause inflammation in the bladder or urethra. Because women have shorter urethras, it’s easier for the bacteria to travel up to the bladder and wreak havoc.
Some UTIs don’t cause symptoms. But when they do, the symptoms are hard to miss:
- Pain and burning during urination
- Lower abdominal or back pain
- Cloudy or blood urine
- Frequent urge to urinate
Older adults may not experience the same kind of pain with a UTI, but they may become profoundly confused to the point of delirium, potentially due to neuroinflammation.
How to reduce your risk: Doctors often recommend behavioral changes, such as drinking more fluids, wiping correctly after using the toilet (front to back), training your bladder to urinate every two to three hours, and using cranberry to ward off UTIs. Some women also use vaginal estrogen, medications to change the pH of the urine, and/or maintenance antibiotics as prevention strategies.
