Symptom: Flu-Like Feelings (Fatigue, Nausea, Sweating, Chills)
Likely cause: Virus
Worst-case scenario: Heart attack
"Women tend not to have the Hollywood heart attack with significant chest pain," Goldberg says. "They sometimes just feel like they're coming down with an infection." That could be one reason women having heart attacks take more than 11 minutes longer than men, on average, to go to the ER.
Other signs it may be serious: Shortness of breath; dizziness; pressure, squeezing, or pain in the chest; pain in the back, arm, jaw, or upper abdomen.
When to act: If you have some of the above symptoms, call 911 and say, "I think I'm having a heart attack. I need an ambulance." At the hospital, the staff should do an electrocardiogram to detect whether your heart is being deprived of oxygen, a blood test to measure cardiac enzymes and proteins, an echocardiogram to see if the heart has been damaged, and possibly cardiac catheterization -- inserting dye into the arteries to see them clearly with an x-ray. Getting examined quickly may save your life: It's estimated that you have a 50 to 70 percent chance of dying if your heart attack takes place outside a hospital. Among women ages 40 to 60, heart disease is as common a killer as breast cancer, but with some precautions, you can decrease your risk. "Keep your blood pressure, cholesterol, and weight under control, and exercise regularly," Goldberg advises.
