Your cardio age is tied to how long you'll live – here's how to measure (and improve) it

While we can be prone to fixating on the number of candles on the birthday cake or wrinkles on our faces as we get older, inside our bodies, there can be a whole other ageing process going on that we're not aware of. Doctors have discovered that parts of our body can age at completely different rates, with some areas declining dangerously earlier than they should. One area that is particularly susceptible to premature ageing in menopausal women is our heart. According to the British Heart Foundation, "As a woman, your hormones might give you some protection from developing coronary heart disease in your pre-menopause years. But after menopause, your risk rises and continues to rise as you get older." As with most things, prevention is better than cure, so discovering these issues earlier r