This condition can lead to disease of the heart or blood vessels. It includes heart disease, heart attack, stroke and atherosclerosis, the process by which fatty substances build up inside the walls of blood vessels. Doctors believe this is because until menopause, women are protected from the risk of heart attack by the hormone estrogen.
Smoking also raises the risk of blood clots.
Half of all women over the age of 55 suffer from high blood pressure. Women with high blood pressure are at risk for developing cardiovascular disease. The higher a woman's cholesterol level is, the more likely that fats and cholesterol will build up in her artery walls. Although a healthy weight varies from woman to woman, being overweight contributes to the risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease, such as high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, and the most common form of diabetes, as well as contributing to cardiovascular disease itself. See also the Web site of the American Diabetes Association .