Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum

02/20/2024

Heart Disease is the #1 killer of women, more than all cancers combined, but the majority of heart disease is preventable. For American Heart Month, we can radically shift this by empowering women to take their heart health into their own hands.

Heart Disease is the #1 killer of women, more than all cancers combined, but the […]

03/20/2023

Poor diet might be the reason for high cholesterol. Too busy to cook? Eating on the run or processed foods? Too many sweets or sugars? Get your cholesterol checked. Is it high? A treatment strategy might be a simple change in your diet. The key is you have to get it checked.

03/17/2023

Ask your doctor to test your cholesterol, because high cholesterol is a major risk factor for heart disease, and everybody knows it, and has known it for decades, and being a young woman does not make you immune.

03/16/2023

Watch this conversation to learn about the history of women’s heart care and how a simple risk calculator can empower women to prevent 80% of the heart disease factors that are controllable.

00:41 Meeting Dr Suzanne 02:01 Doctor vs Entrepreneur03:24 Awareness of heart disease03:55 Research on women’s vs men’s hearts04:31 The unconscious bias of p...

03/16/2023

Your doctor may tell you to get a mammogram every other year or every year, but be honest: Have you done it? Many women admit they ignore those orders and have gone five or more years without a mammogram. This is a serious mistake if you are over 40 years old. If you are over 50, many doctors believe you should be scanned yearly. Just bite the bullet and do it. Not knowing is worse than knowing and treating. Chances are, your breasts are just fine, but if they aren’t breast cancer is one of the most treatable and survivable cancers, especially when you catch it early.

Aim to schedule your mammogram for the week after your period ends for the best view. And if they want you to come back for additional viewing? Don’t worry yet. This happens quite frequently. Breasts change a lot, in many benign ways, and they just want to be sure. Newer, cutting edge techniques like 3-dimensional mammograms are increasingly available, and other technology like ultrasounds and MRIs can help verify the health of your breasts if the doctor needs a second look, so you can be even more certain about what’s going on in there.

https://www.drsuzannesteinbaum.com/blog-/the-most-important-medical-tests-once-you-start-menopause

03/14/2023

Cholesterol can join with other substances to form a deposit on the inside of the arteries. This can narrow the arteries and make them less flexible – a condition known as atherosclerosis. If it ruptures and breaks apart, a blood clot forms and blocks one of these narrowed arteries. A heart attack or stroke can result.

When it comes to cholesterol, remember: check, change and control. That is:

Check your cholesterol levels. It’s key to know your numbers and assess your risk.
Change your diet and lifestyle to help improve your levels.
Control your cholesterol, with help from your doctor if needed
High cholesterol is one of the major controllable risk factors for coronary heart disease, heart attack and stroke. If you have other risk factors such as smoking, high blood pressure or diabetes, your risk increases even more.

The more risk factors you have and the more severe they are, the higher your overall risk.

https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/cholesterol/about-cholesterol

03/13/2023

You need to know your cholesterol number because younger and younger people are finding they have high cholesterol, mostly because of a poor diet but in some cases because of genetics. But if you are a young woman without any obvious risk factors (because you can’t see high cholesterol), your doctor might not test your cholesterol unless you ask. (Even though they should!)

03/11/2023

In my women patients, the most common new risk factor I see are lipid abnormalities, or problems with cholesterol. You’re more likely to have too-high cholesterol than you might think.

03/10/2023

Here’s another menopausal truth: with the drop in estrogen that comes with menopause comes a drop in bone density. Check on this bone density! This is the time to eat well, get enough calcium and vitamin D, and stress your bones just enough to keep them rebuilding—through walking or running and weight training. Muscle mass also builds bone, while smoking and some medications can compromise bone density. A DEXA scan will assess your risk of osteopenia (diminished bone density) and osteoporosis (significant reduction in bone density). When you lose bone density, you are at an increased risk of fractures, and this can cause significant health issues, especially for women over 65 years old. Don’t give up on this—it is crucial for your long-term quality of life.
As a woman, we must think of our hearts always, and remember to take care of ourselves holistically.

https://www.drsuzannesteinbaum.com/blog-/the-most-important-medical-tests-once-you-start-menopause

03/09/2023

Cholesterol circulates in the blood. As the amount of cholesterol in your blood increases, so does the risk to your health. High cholesterol contributes to a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases, such as heart disease and stroke. That’s why it’s important to have your cholesterol tested, so you can know your levels.

It is important to not only know your total cholesterol, but also your LDL, HDL, triglycerides, apolipoprotein B and your Lp(a). Abnormal levels can increase your risk of heart disease and stroke.

https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/cholesterol/about-cholesterol

03/08/2023

The heart throb that is your cholesterol level may not seem like the first thing on your list of health concerns. High cholesterol is that problem your grandfather has, right? Or maybe your father? It’s for the steak-and-martini set, isn’t it? Actually, it could be your problem, too.

03/07/2023

So, what is cholesterol? What does it do?

Cholesterol is a waxy substance. It’s not inherently “bad.” Your body needs it to build cells and make vitamins and other hormones. But too much cholesterol can pose a problem.

Cholesterol comes from two sources. Your liver makes all the cholesterol you need. The remainder of the cholesterol in your body comes from foods. Cholesterol can go up with a high saturated fat diet- meat, poultry and dairy products.

These fats cause your liver to make more cholesterol than it otherwise would. For some people, this added production means they go from a normal cholesterol level to one that’s unhealthy.

Some tropical oils – such as palm oil, palm kernel oil and coconut oil – contain saturated fat that can increase bad cholesterol. These oils are often found in baked goods. Check the labels and understand which fats are bad for you and which ones may be good.

https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/cholesterol/about-cholesterol