Women’s General Health and Wellness

Women not only have problems like eating disorders, stress, alcoholism, addictions, and depression but also deal with basic topics such as good nutrition, heart health, and exercise. For example, it is beneficial that a woman maintains her optimum weight, she will cure herself to develop heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes.

Smoking is harmful to anyone’s health, as well as the health of those around them. Unfortunately, women continue to smoke despite the known health risks. Even the number of female smokers is declining, still, about 16% of women in the U.S. continue to smoke. Smoking is a big risk factor that causes cancer, heart disease, and other health issues.

Drinking an excessive amount of alcohol is also harmful to health. Although women typically begin drinking at a later age than men and tend to drink somewhat less, lower doses of alcohol are required for women to develop alcohol-related medical problems including alcohol toxicity, cirrhosis, and hepatitis.

Women should be aware that their metabolism is different than men’s. It is, essential that women are well informed about the kinds and correct dosages of any drugs they are taking.

Female anatomy

There are major differences in anatomy between males and females that require consideration. As more women are now participating in sports, many anatomic differences are being identified, often because men and women athletes sustain different types of injuries. In females, the hamstrings (muscles behind the leg) are not as strong as in males. Women also have a wider hip-to-knee ratio than men. A woman’s legs are relatively longer and her torso shorter than a man of comparable size. She has a lower center of gravity, less muscle mass, less dense bones, and a higher percentage of body fat.

Women tend to suffer their first heart attack 10 years later than men. For reasons that remain unclear (and require more research), the likelihood of a younger woman dying from a heart attack is significantly greater than that of a man. Moreover, the symptoms of an impending heart attack may be somewhat different in a woman than in a man. A woman is more likely to ignore the symptoms and fail to seek medical attention. Every woman needs to develop her own healthy heart program.

The female reproductive system

Since the female reproductive system plays such an important role throughout the life of a woman, it receives special consideration. A woman’s reproductive system includes her uterus, fallopian tubes, ovaries, cervix, and external genitalia. The breasts can also be included, even though, technically speaking, they are not part of the reproductive system. The breasts do play a major role in pregnancy and motherhood.

Although the primary function of the reproductive system is to conceive and bear children, a female’s reproductive system makes a major contribution to her overall womanhood. Due to the complexity of her reproductive system, she can experience a number of problems ranging from yeast infections of the vagina to fibroid of the uterus or cysts of the ovary.

If a woman is to make informed choices about her health care, she must understand her reproductive system. In the U.S., a common major surgery performed on women who are not pregnant is a hysterectomy. A hysterectomy, the surgical removal of the uterus, ends menstruation and a woman’s innate ability to become pregnant. A woman needs to comprehend her options before she can decide if a hysterectomy is the best solution for her particular medical condition.