In a recent study from Leiden University Medical Center in The Netherlands, researchers suggest that risks for heart attack in women may start as early as in the womb. Certain genetic markers can be prime indicators of the potential for heart attack and, according to this research, those genetic changes may actually occur due to a mother’s behavior when she is pregnant.
Are You Putting Your Baby at Risk?
The researchers discovered that behaviors such as smoking, inadequate nutrition and drinking alcohol may actually be triggers for the development of the genes that are responsible for the risk of developing heart disease in women. Women with the genetic markers for heart disease risk have a 2.8 increased chance of having a heart attack at some point in their life. However, the same risks were not found in men.
Putting Baby First
Even though it is common knowledge these days that smoking and drinking during pregnancy are bad ideas, it bears repeating. Not only should you avoid drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes while you are pregnant, you should also make an effort to eat a healthy diet and develop good nutritional habits if you don’t already have them.
Not only is healthy living good for you, but it’s good for your baby, even after she is born.
– The Alternative Daily
