If you are a woman—or care for one—listen up!

Heart disease is the leading killer of women in America. Each year, heart disease and related risk factors are missed in women. Symptoms of coronary artery disease and heart attack, for example, can be different in women than in men. Women are also less likely to receive optimal treatment for certain heart conditions.

If you’re like most women, you’re probably so busy taking care of everyone else, your own well-being and health tends to fall last. But you need to make your heart’s health a priority and encourage other women to do the same.

Even though heart disease tends to strike later in life, it can happen at any age. There are things about being a woman that can make you more prone to heart problems (for example, menopause and hormones).

Learn about your risk for heart disease and what makes it more likely. You can help protect your heart by adopting heart-healthy habits—for example, by exercising, eating right, getting enough rest,..

ot smoking and paying attention to your health in general.