Heart attacks can happen to almost anyone, that means any gender, age, or even sex. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States. But if the disease can strike on anyone, why are women more at risk than men?

According to new research by a team at the Medical University of South Carolina, men and women have different risk scenarios when it comes to the heart, and that women are at higher risk of a cardiac event than men, more specifically, coronary artery blockages.

Coronary artery disease is caused by the narrowing of the blood vessels that supply blood and oxygen to the heart. The reason why blood vessels become narrow is because there is the build-up of fat and other substances that form plaque on the vessels' walls.

In the study, researchers analyzed the results of coronary CT angiography of 480 patients with acute coronary syndrome, which have a mean age of 55. With this data alone, it shows that more women are more afflicted with the problem than men with 65%, compared to the 35% of men.

Using the CTA results they have collected, they compared it with outcome data of over a 12.8-month period, the researchers were able to see the extent, severity and type of plaque build-up with the occurrence of major adverse cardiac events.

Using all of the data they have collected, researchers discovered that women, with a large amount of plaque build-up and extensive atherosclerosis, are at a significantly greater cardiovascular risk than men. In addition, risk of adverse cardiac events was significantly higher in women when plaque of any kind was present or when the arteries were narrowed.

But when it comes to analyzing the risk factors that are associated with the presence of individual type of plaque, the risk of adverse cardiac events was greater in men.

Getting to the Heart of Things

In order for men and women to avoid developing heart diseases or any risk at all, it would be best to know a thing or two about the heart.

Based on the findings of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the leading causes for increasing the risk factor of heart diseases are inactivity with 39.5%, followed by obesity with 33.9%, high blood pressure with 30.5%, and high cholesterol and diabetes with 15.6% and 10.1%, respectively.

Since prevention is better than cure, what are some of the things that people can do to prevent a heart attack? According to the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, changing an individual's lifestyle is the key. Here are some tips:

- Follow a healthy diet that includes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, poultry, fish, and beans

- Exercising or being active

- Weight management

- Stop smoking

- Taking proper care or medication for high blood pressure or cholesterol, and diabetes