According to a survey conducted by the Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center, it was found that only fraction of women know the top risk factors for the heart stroke.
 
The survey was conducted on 1, 000 women and among them only 11 percent could identify the female-specific stroke risks including smoking, physical inactivity, and high blood pressure, women, unlike men, can have hiccups, dizziness, headaches, atypical chest pain, and numbness.

The main cause for the women heart stroke is related to female hormones such as estrogen. It is a coagulant and clots blood more. Raise in the level of estrogen hormone increases risk of heart strokes in women. Usually this problem is mostly observed after later stages of pregnancy and right after delivery. Estrogen levels can also be raised by birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy medications.

Dr. Diana Greene-Chandos, a neurologist and director of neuroscience critical care at Ohio State's Wexner Medical Center said that "Women have thought of stroke as a man's disease and have not really been as proactive in understanding their risk for stroke".  "I think we have a ways to go when it comes to educating women about stroke and their unique risk factors", he added.

Stroke is the third leading cause of death for women and the fifth leading cause of death in the United States. According to the American Heart Association and the American Stroke Association, about 795,000 Americans suffer new or recurrent stroke each year and more than 137,000 people die from stroke. Of which sixty percent of stroke deaths occur in females, while the other 40 percent occur in males.

Experts suggest that hormones, birth control, pregnancy, and childbirth play a role in a woman's risk of a stroke and that exercise, a low-sodium diet, and regular check-ups go a long way to keeping women heart healthy.

By Lizitha