More Blood Pressure Control Could Save Women’s Lives

Although women have a lower risk of heart disease compared with men, lowering blood pressure could save women’s lives, says a study. It included 9,357 people with an average age of about 53. Their blood pressure readings were monitored, sometimes 24 hours a day. After about 11 years, 1,245 of them had died. Of those, 472 died of cardiovascular disease. The women in the study had two-thirds the risk of cardiovascular problems or of death, compared with the men. But 36% of heart-related problems, including heart-related deaths, were preventable in women. Only 24% were preventable in men. The study appears in the March issue of the journal Hypertension. HealthDay News wrote about it January 25.