Natality Database News Today

Experts are calling on women to make lifestyle changes focused on improving their heart health before falling pregnant.


Less than half of women in the United States enter pregnancy in favorable cardiovascular health, new research suggests.

Top risk factors include overweight or obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes.

Findings from a recent study suggest that women should monitor their heart health prior to pregnancy to reduce their risk of complications.

Only about 40% of women in the U.S. who gave birth in 2019 had good heart health prior to their pregnancy with excess weight being the major driver of poor pre-pregnancy health, followed by hypertension and diabetes, according to new research published today in a Go Red For Women spotlight issue of the American Heart Association's peer-reviewed, flagship journal Circulation.

This Valentine's Day, a new Northwestern Medicine study published in Circulation shines a spotlight on an important but often overlooked matter of the heart — optimizing one's cardiovascular health before getting pregnant.