There are certain health issues that some of us automatically assume we won't have to worry about until we reach a certain age. Arthritis and heart attacks are way up there with things we don't associate with young - or even middle - age. However, more young women are at risk of heart attacks than ever. The findings have recently come to light after a twenty-year study on heart health in America.

The research was published in the most recent issue of the medical journal Circulation, and detailed that the risk of heart attacks in women aged between 34-54 had increased. On the whole, men's heart health has changed for the better, while women seem to be having a tougher time of it. The study goes on to theorize that the worrying statistics could be down to smoking, diabetes, high cholesterol and hypertension, and most importantly, a lack of awareness about how these conditions can affect the heart.

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What's more, it was discovered that women were treated in a different manner if they did succumb to a heart attack. Men were more likely to receive blood thinners and cholesterol-lowering statins than females, who often weren't prescribed them at all, or given shorter courses than their male counterparts.

Today interviewed Dr. Erin Michos, a professor of medicine and epidemiology and associate director of the Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Maryland. According to Michos, the most important thing that needs to be addressed moving forward is the lack of understanding surrounding heart problems and heart attacks. "The main message to women is that you shouldn't think you're too young for a heart attack," she explained, going on to urge women to take any and all symptoms seriously.

You can stay healthy and heart-happy by avoiding certain activities like smoking, heavy drinking and over-eating. Sedentary lifestyles have also been linked to heart problems in the past, with another study suggesting that more active women are less likely to fall victim to the illness.