“Whether it’s death from opioid overdoses or heart attacks, there are health issues that impact women more than men.
Per the CDC, about 18 women die every day in the U.S. from a prescription painkiller overdose.
Research has found that women are more sensitive to the effects of certain drugs, including opioids, due to their hormones. This is applicable to heart disease as well; for instance, heart disease is more common in women after menopause, which is thought to be related to a decrease in female hormones.
Despite death by drug overdose being classically thought of as more common in men, this gap between men and women is closing. The latest CDC report showed that middle-aged women in particular are now increasingly affected.
In fact, the report highlighted that death by drug overdose has increased in women ages 30-64 by 260 percent from 1999 to 2017.”
Read more at: https://blogs.bcm.edu/2019/02/06/the-opioid-epidemics-disproportionate-effect-on-middle-aged-women/
Source: Bloga.bcm.edu – February 6, 2019
