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KIRKSVILLE, MO. -- February is American Hearth Month.

Unfortunately, most of us know someone who has had Heart Disease or a stroke.

So do you know if you are at risk? Heart Disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. About every 25 seconds, an American will have a coronary event.

But, there is good news about these numbers, Heart Disease can be preventable.

“I think the most interesting fact is that we've done such a good job with beginning to address and find cardiovascular disease early,” said cardiologist, Dr. Joshua Valtos.

So who is more at risk-men or women?

"Typically when we say oh, heart disease is only prevalent in men, I think what we really mean is men tend to present to the hospital with much more classic symptoms,” said Dr. Valtos.

Not only that, men tend to show symptoms at a much younger age than women do.

“Men tend to present at a much younger age so 40-60’s vs. women who are more in the 60-80’s age range,” said Dr. Valtos.

Another thing different between men and women when it comes to heart disease are the symptoms.

“Men often have more chest pains or chest pressure than women. Women will often come in complaining about shortness of breath,” said Dr. Valtos.

Other symptoms for women might include: Chest discomfort, discomfort in other areas of the upper body like pain in one or both arms, the back, neck and jaw. Shortness of breath and in some cases, women may break out in cold sweats or feel light headed.

"A lot of women will complain of simply fatigue and that's a symptom that can be missed quite often by people that aren't looking for heart disease in women,” said Dr. Valtos.

What about other health conditions, can those increase your risk of Heart Disease? The answer, yes.

"Some of the things that can cause Heart Disease: high blood pressure, high cholesterol and our diet plays a role in that as well,” said Dr. Valtos.

Knowing your family history can also help reduce your risk.

"Well I think the most important thing is to help your physician recognize your risk factors for cardiovascular disease, this including recognizing your own family health history," said Dr. Valtos.

You can also reduce your risk for Heart Disease by working out on a regular basis. Not only that, watching what you eat, is just as important.

"One of the things we do is consume way too much salt,” said Dr. Valtos. “The average American eats more than 2 1/2 grams of salt a day in their diet. We also eat a lot of foods here that are high in saturated fat. A predominance of that are dairy and meat products. So I tell people its ok to eat meat, we just need to learn to eat it in smaller portions of less fatty meats."

In other words, a healthy diet and lifestyle are the best weapons you have to help lower your risk of Heart Disease.