I found a quote by the poet, Maya Angelou, that I thought suited the beginning of this post. “How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes” As we hit the halfway mark of celebrating National Women’s Health Week, I think it is important to keep in mind all of the “she-roes” that are involved within our lives. Each individual has at least one woman in their life that they want to see maintain a healthy lifestyle and although we are surrounded my plenty of female celebrities and idols, we must acknowledge the everyday heroes who go unnoticed. Women often serve as caregivers for their families, putting the needs of their spouses, partners, children, and parents before their own. As a result, women’s health and well-being becomes secondary. Communities have a responsibility to support the significant women we know and provide assistance in any way to encourage longer, healthier, and happier lives. With that, I felt it was necessary to provide 5 easy steps for women to take towards a healthier lifestyle!
1. Get a mammogram at least once a year
The most effective way to detect breast cancer is by mammography, and a clinical breast exam can complement mammography screening. Every woman has a chance of getting breast cancer. About 1 in 8 women will find out she has breast cancer at some point in her life. This might sound scary but today, most women with breast cancer survive it. With breast cancer screening, including mammograms, doctors often can find cancer early.
2. Improve your daily food choices
A healthy diet gives you energy, supports your mood, maintains your weight, and keeps you looking your best. It can also be a huge support through the different stages in life. Healthy food can help reduce PMS, boost fertility, combat stress, make pregnancy and nursing easier, and ease symptoms of menopause.
How to make better food choices:
The USDA (US Department of Agriculture) recommends an adult daily diet to include the following:
3. Jumpstart your exercise routine
After just a few days of exercising, you can start to feel better, gain more energy, and even increase your chances of living a longer life! The health benefits of regular exercise and physical activity are hard to ignore. The positive effects from regular exercise routines among women are widely available, no matter their age, experience level, or body type. Here are a few easy ways to get up and get moving.
4. Find ways to maintain healthy stress levels
Mental health is a state of well-being in which an individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and is able to make a contribution to his or her surroundings. Stress can sometime have positive effects by making you more alert and giving you a burst of energy, but too much stress can be detrimental to your overall mental health which can easily make an individual put their own health needs aside. Everyone responds to stress a little differently. Your symptoms may be different from someone else’s. Here are some of the signs to look for:
Ways to relieve stress:
5. Learn more about health risks among Women
In order to stay healthy, it is important to know what health risks you might have a higher risk of developing. Although each individual has their own unique health risks, the demographic of women have been found to have a higher chance of developing conditions such as depression, osteoporosis, and many heart related diseases. Here are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to women’s health and definitely speak with your provider about your own personal risks as well. Education is the key to knowing certain steps of prevention and early detection!
These are just a few of many health conditions that women should be keeping on their radar, but there are plenty more that require attention. If you want to know more, ask your primary care provider or check out http://www.womenshealth.gov/. To read more about Women’s Health Week, National Women’s Check-Up Day, and Teen Pregnancy Prevention month, please visit our patient resource page of our website: http://chc1.com/Transformational/PatientResource.html
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