Marg helgenberger's - The Christ Hospital

linesToo close for comfort?Do too many family members under one roof hurt the heart? That’s the questionpondered by researchers at Osaka University, who followed more than 90,000Japanese women and men ages 40 to 69 for as long as 14 years. What they found:Preeclampsia: Not justa pregnancy problemIf you had preeclampsiaduring pregnancy, youmay be at an increased riskof having problems suchas high blood pressure,diabetes and blood clots forthe rest of your life. That’saccording to researchersat Yale School of Medicineand the University ofCopenhagen, who lookedat data on more than1.3 million women whogave birth between 1978 and 2007. Preeclampsia,or pregnancy-induced hypertension, is marked byhigh blood pressure and excess protein in the urineafter the 20th week of pregnancy. The findingsstrengthen the link that other studies have foundbetween preeclampsia and heart conditions. There’sno known way to prevent preeclampsia—which iswhy it’s important to get early and regular prenatalcare—and the only cure for it is to deliver the baby.If the condition develops early on, your physicianmay suggest bed rest or medications to prolong thepregnancy.• Women who lived with a spouse, children andaging parents or with a spouse and parents weretwo to three times more likely to suffer from heartdisease than women who only lived with a spouse.• Men living in these multigenerational householdsdidn’t experience the same heart-risk increase.Researchers hypothesize that, for women, thestress of juggling multiple family roles may be takinga toll. Japanese women not only care for theirfamily members and keep the household runningbut also work outside the home full time—ascenario not unfamiliar to American women. So ifyou’re a stressed-out caregiver—or if you live withone—perhaps it’s time to give your heart a breakand divvy up those responsibilities.www.womenshealthexperience.com