The Whole Woman and Her Whole Wellness: Physical Health and Well-being

A woman is beautiful as she is! Welcome to the power of women, the power that makes them just as capable, as smart, as funny, and as compassionate as men. More than that, it empowers them to take up her distinctive position in society, at the same time being a daughter, a wife, a mother, homemaker, and all the other roles her considerable responsibilities call upon her seemingly infinite energy. Along with this emotional fluency, skill required to make a family survive and the language of power, the quintessential woman needs to be physically fit as well.

Very few physical disorders are unique to women, or are more prevalent or serious in women. Medical wellness consultants will inform you that the earliest to appear are precocious puberty, anorexia and bulimia. Reproductive health concerns are a major focus of women's health. Cancer is the leading cause of death in middle-aged women. Smoking contributes to numerous causes of death and disability among women.

Lung Cancer: Cancer accounts for maximum deaths among women aged between 35 to 54 years. For years, breast cancer was the leading cancer killer among women, but now lung cancer takes the lead with more and more women taking to cigarette smoking. What makes this change frightening and dramatic is that lung cancer is a preventable disease, yet today it kills more women than breast cancer.

Breast Cancer: There is, however, good news from women health specialists regarding breast cancer treatment. Modification in surgical procedures, research indicating that estrogen receptors respond well to a drug called tamoxifen and experimenting with a new drug called RU-486, along with women taking a more active part in their health care are considerable contributions to the treatment of breast cancer.

Gallstones occur four times more frequently in women than men. Attributed to multiple pregnancies, obesity, and rapid weight loss, the real cause of this disorder is still unknown. Stones are formed in the gall bladder due to a saturation of cholesterol and bile salts that crystallize and collect over time. A number of experimental drugs are being used as an alternative to a surgical approach called cholecystectomy.

Menopause and Osteoporosis: Post-menopausal women often suffer a disorder called Osteoporosis. Lack of estrogen after menopause causes loss of bone mass, resulting in weak bones that are susceptible to easy injury in case of a fall or mishap. There are no symptoms, and that is why Osteoporosis is known as the “silent disease”. Certain steps can be taken to prevent osteoporosis from ever occurring. Women over the age of 50 have the greatest risk of developing osteoporosis and Caucasian and Asian women are more likely to develop this condition. Heredity and less body weight are an important risk factors. Exercise, calcium, vitamin D, and post-menopausal estrogen replacement play an important role in preventing this disorder.

Thyroid abnormalities are four to five times more common among women than among men. While, there is effective treatment, the cause again is unknown. Arthritis and diabetes are other disorders that are more common in women. Lupus erythematosus is a disease in which 90 percent of the victims are women.

Hence, there are quite a few disorders that are more frequent in women than in men or that differentially affect women. While considerable progress has been made to combat most of these, there remains much to be learned about others.

It is every woman's prerogative to form clear questions about her physical health, find clear answers, gain a sense of empowerment through knowledge, and inevitably achieve peace of mind through total wellness. Here is information shared, openly and candidly, associated with women health and wellness. We women need to arm ourselves. We need this knowledge to manage our own care.