Because it is adaptable, evidence-based, and patient-centered, researchers believe behavioral medicine creates a path forward for addressing the cardiovascular health care needs of women, according to a study published in JACC: Advances.1
“Despite being the leading cause of death among women in the US and worldwide, cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains under-recognized and undertreated among women—reflecting persistent gaps in prevention, timely diagnosis, and evidence-based care,” wrote the authors of the study. “Over half of CVD risk is attributable to modifiable behavioral and lifestyle factors.”
Above accidents, strokes, diabetes, and cancer, heart disease is the leading cause among all US patients, not just women, according to the CDC. Their data show that heart disease led to 695,547 deaths in 2021.2 However, women’s concerns about heart disease and CVD risk have been historically neglected, with approaches for addressing cardiovascular complications being much more geared toward men than women.
READ MORE: Scripted for Her: Intimate Partner Violence Awareness
The Historical Exclusion of Women in Addressing Heart Health
According to an article published by the American Heart Association (AHA), mirroring other societal norms at the time, the 1960s saw conferences titled “How Can I Help My Husband Cope with Heart Disease?” and sentiments surrounding heart health almost always excluded women’s potential CVD risk.3
“It was, ‘Get a pap smear and a mammogram, and you’re good,’” Gina Lundberg, MD, clinical director of the Emory Woman’s Heart Center, said in the AHA article. “We left out all the things we were checking men for, like diabetes and CVD, but between a woman’s breasts and her reproductive organs is her heart.”
With women’s exclusion in CVD care continuing to some extent through to modern day, researchers of the current study wanted to play their part in putting an end to this gender-specific neglect. According to the authors, “To improve women’s cardiovascular health, it is essential to address CVD risk within the context of lifestyle and to prioritize behavioral risk factors.”1
Why Women’s Cardiovascular Health Differs from Other Populations
First, researchers presented key reasons as to why women’s cardiovascular health needs should be observed through a different lens than other populations. These differences between men and women are highlighted by 3 key factors: differences in biology, lived experience, and structural inequities.
Starting with disease factors, researchers noted that 9 modifiable risk factors lead to 90% of all first-time CVD events among women.1 Those risk factors include but aren’t limited to cigarette smoking, obesity, stress, poor diet, alcohol use, and physical inactivity.
Women are also more at risk for CVD when considering pregnancy and the potential complications that stem from it. Reproductive factors exclusive to women—including early and late menarche, infertility, adverse pregnancy outcomes, and absence of breastfeeding—add on to their unique CVD complications. Finally, they too are commonly taking on caregiving duties for children and younger adults, which can result in women experiencing the aforementioned risk factors.
Behavioral Medicine in CVD Care
“Multiple structural barriers continue to limit the reach of preventive care, particularly in cardiology, where support for lifestyle change is often infrequent or even absent,” wrote the authors.1 “Behavioral medicine—a specialty rooted in the integration of behavioral, emotional, and social science with clinical practice—can fill this void.”
The idea of behavioral medicine is not reliant on medication adherence or ingredients within the chemical makeup of a certain prescription drug. Rather, the success of behavioral interventions, especially in the CVD space, must implore the support of behavioral medicine specialists such as clinical psychologists, social workers, nurses, psychiatrists, and other physicians. Because their training often constitutes the “full biopsychosocial context” of specific diseases, these specialists are uniquely positioned to help women with CVD apply evidence-based behavioral lifestyle changes.
With 9 in 10 CVD cases attributed to modifiable behaviors, this approach to medicine is the best way to improve outcomes among women. However, behavioral health care is significantly underutilized and underfunded. According to the researchers, resources should be reallocated into the 2 areas necessary for growing access to behavioral medicine services: research and training/support.
In other words, they believe more research is needed to further address women’s CVD needs and gaps in behavioral medicine training and support must be addressed to push it forward. As so many women with CVD are neglected and the disease itself continues to ravage US patients on an annual basis, researchers and many other experts agree that more needs to be done regarding women and CVD.
“Behavioral medicine offers a path forward—evidence-based, patient-centered, and adaptable across the life course—and thus it is uniquely primed to address these factors, particularly through effective integration with women’s health care,” concluded the authors.1 “Significant and sustained investment is needed in behavioral medicine training, clinical interventions, and research to positively impact women’s cardiovascular health and lifelong care.”
READ MORE: Women’s Health Resource Center
Pharmacy practice is always changing. Stay ahead of the curve: Sign up for our free Drug Topics newsletter and get the latest drug information, industry trends, and patient care tips straight to your inbox.
REFERENCES1. Gaffey AE, Carroll AJ, Cavanagh CE, et al. Reimagining cardiovascular health and prevention for women: the unrealized potential of behavioral medicine. JACC Adv. 2025;4(12):102314. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacadv.2025.1023142. Leading causes of death, United States. CDC. December 11, 2024. Accessed November 14, 2025. https://www.cdc.gov/womens-health/lcod/index.html3. Williamson L. The slowly evolving truth about heart disease and women. February 9, 2024. Accessed November 14, 2025. https://www.heart.org/en/news/2024/02/09/the-slowly-evolving-truth-about-heart-disease-and-women