Cigarettes do more damage to a woman's heart than to a man's

Many women smokers don't live
long enough to take this sort
of photo. Photo.

Health professionals are becoming more aware that heart disease is different in men and in women. Not only are the warning signs different, but the mechanisms by which cardiovascular disease develops and progresses give rise to separate guidelines and protocols.

Take smoking, for example.  Women smokers have a 2 to 4 times higher risk of developing heart disease than their male smoking counterparts. This difference may be related to the smaller stature of women; the impact of the almost 5,000 compounds in tobacco smoke, including carbon monoxide, and 11 proven human carcinogens is more concentrated in a smaller body.

...or this one. Photo.

Smoking also has a negative impact on blood cholesterol, increasing LDL cholesterol and decrease HDL cholesterol. These changes increase the likelihood of plaque build up leading to occlusion of the vessel and to plaque rupture that may lead to a heart attack or stroke.

In 2009, make the informed decision to quit smoking. Ask your doctor about medications that can help or call the toll-free telephone quitline 1-800-QUIT-NOW for more help.