Healthier Matters » Women’s Health

Why iron deficiency and loss affects women

health girl — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 12:33:49 +0000

Whoever has felt weak, faint or drained out of energy is aware of the detrimental effects low iron levels can have to one’s body. Iron is after all one of the fundamental elements for maintain a healthy body and support physical and mental growth.

Although the exact process of absorption are somewhat unclear, most scientists tend to believe that incorporating vitamin C with iron consumption has very positive effects. The human body is capable of metabolising and absorbing around 5% of the iron consumed through normal diet. You will be happy to find out that it isn’t only for the traditionally unpleasant foods that contain iron as lentils and spinach, but iron can also be found in chocolate 2.5mg per 100 grams or a 5-10% of the average daily requirement.

Anaemia being the most widespread everyday nutritional problems is predominantly a direct outcome of iron deficiency with women the more severely affected. Women lose more iron that men do due to loss of blood during their menstrual cycles. The amount of lost blood, which can range between 30-60ml for every cycle, results in the loss of 15-30mg of iron from the body.

While the body is drained out of iron, it strives to increase the metabolism rate for breaking down and absorbing the iron. The lack of iron combined with the body’s struggle to maintain healthy levels is what causes the symptoms of unjustifiable fatigue and vertigo.

Methods used for Breast Augmentation

health girl — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 12:47:10 +0000

Women always believe that they would look better if they had bigger boobs. Some women are lucky enough to be born with full breasts while some have to spend lots of money and undergo surgery just to get that same effect. Even though it’s no longer nature-given, a fuller breast with a saline or silicone implant still looks and feels very natural.

There are three incision methods used for breast augmentation using solutions such as saline and silicone and the choice to which of these methods would you want done must be the first thing you need to decide on. Operations on the breast would leave scars but with these incision methods, you can choose the scar placement that would be most convenient to you. The three incision methods being used are; through the nipple, under your arms, and under the breast.

The through the nipple method means that the incision would be around the areola. This is preferred by some because the scars can be easily hidden as there are 2 skin tones in that area. During the operation, the incision is stretched to allow the implants to get inside.

The under the arms incision method is used to keep the scars away from the breasts themselves. The incision is placed under the arms, on the armpit, so they can be concealed easily. The implant is inserted through the openings and it reaches the breasts and under a close look at your breasts, no one would think you actually had implants because the scars are hidden under the arms instead.

Under the breast incision is most common. The implants are inserted under the breast. The scars there are not very visible as it is hidden.

A simpler method and less invasive is the Macrolane injection. It requires local anaesthetic and it won’t keep the patient away from her daily activities. The Macrolane shot can be regarded as a quick fix before a special event – the patient has an injection performed by a surgeon and the lovely green dress will look better and the bust will be fuller.

Macrolane boob jab

health girl — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 09:31:24 +0000

Women who want a more equipped facade over their lunchtime break should know one name that will change their appearance: Macrolane.

Macrolane is a substance which contains hyaluronic acid using NASHA technology (Non-Animal Stabilized Hyaluronic Acid) which has been successfully used for over 7 million treatments around the world.
A Macrolane injection (also known as “boob jab”) requires local anaesthetic and is a walk-in walk-out procedure. The patient can return to her daily activities right after the procedure which will last between 30 and 90 minutes.

Even if it sounds that simple, Macrolane should be performed by an experienced doctor and a consultation is needed before the procedure to ensure that there are no risks for the patient.

Pregnancy health

health girl — Tue, 12 May 2009 15:04:42 +0000

Most women nowadays are conscious not only of their weight but also of their overall health and well-being. However, when you get pregnant, a woman’s health becomes slightly more fragile and at risk. So how do you keep yourself and your precious unborn baby healthy?

First, when you are expecting there are certain types of food that you should avoid and that you should stock up on. For example, fruits that are loaded with Vitamins are essential and so are vegetables that are high in fiber especially since constipation will be a part of your pregnancy (It’s a hormone thing).

Drinking a lot of water keeps your body hydrated plus, in some cases, it can keep those pesky stretch marks at bay since your skin is always hydrated.

Remember that pregnancy is not an excuse to binge on food. Just because you’re gaining weight doesn’t mean you can eat everything in front of you all at once. Eat in moderation and in small but frequent quantities because a pregnant woman’s digestion is slow compared to a woman who’s not carrying a baby. It’s also not advisable that you gain too much weight since you may have a hrd time when it’s time for the baby to come out.

Try to avoid junk food and chocolates if you can. Though it hasn’t been proved that it can cause harm to the baby, it’s better to be safe than sorry, if you can’t keep your hands away from those treats, snack on a little and then eat something healthy afterwards to balance the effect. A handful of chips can be balanced with a cup of yogurt or a piece of yummy fruit can be eaten after a couple of candies.

Alcohol and smoking are to be quickly avoided because these can affect your baby’s health. Try not to be around people who smoke as well since second hand smoke has been proven to be more lethal than first hand ones.

A little exercise like walking is good for your body since it will keep your bones from getting too rusty particularly when your tummy swells up and you feel like you’re carrying a big rock in front of you.

Women and heart diseases

health girl — Thu, 07 May 2009 16:54:15 +0000

It is really a misnomer to think that heart diseases only happen to men as women get heart disease as much as men do. In fact, in the United States it’s the number 1 killer of women and it’s one of the leading causes of disabilities to females as well.

Heart disease is caused by the blockage or narrowing of the arteries of the heart. These blood vessels supply the blood required for the heart to pump at one time. The coronary artery disease happens slowly and its complete blockage or narrowing of the vessels can be prevented through regular exercise and proper diet. If left to continue, the woman may have heart attacks or may even lead to death.

Although men are known to get heart diseases more, women do to. Men are quick to raise their temper that’s why they get the higher rates of heart attacks. Women, on the other hand, are not as quick-tempered as the men but this does not mean they don’t have heart conditions already. Unfortunately, about a third of women who had heart attacks make it to full recovery while 2/3rds don’t

The older the female would get, the most likely she would have a heart disease especially if she is not eating the proper foods and at the right amount. Though this does not mean that only older women should be concerned. In fact, any woman should be concerned about their heart and have a healthy lifestyle. Exercise! It’s good for the heart

What is IVF and what are its benefits?

health girl — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 16:27:54 +0000

IVF is a short cut term for In Vitro Fertilization. It’s a method where a woman’s egg cells are taken outside of her body and would be fertilized by sperm cells. Usually the fertilization occurs in a Petri dish thus the misconception that it occurs on test tubes since babies that are born because of IVF are called test tube babies.

IVF or In Vitro Fertilization is an option for couples who have tried other methods to conceive a baby. It can be quite expensive but it’s worth a try if a couple is desperate in wanting to have a baby. Usually, in IVF cases, the babies born are multiple. This is because more than 1 fertilized egg cell is planted back in the woman. After check-up and the doctor detected more than 1 egg cell has thrived, they can either terminate other egg cells if consented by the mother.

In the case of the octuplets which became such a big news, she had an IVF procedure done as well. More than 1 egg cell was planted and therefore she had more kids. A fertilized egg cell could multiply and in her case more than 1 egg cell survived and they also multiplied thus, she had 8 babies.

IVF can be a God-sent to couples who really want to conceive. Also, for a woman after menopause can still have a baby as well. It may be costly but it’s been proven effective and it blessed many couples with healthy babies already.

Women and osteoporosis

health girl — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 17:33:17 +0000

It’s never too early to start drinking milk. Milk is an excellent source of calcium and the more you drink milk, the more you are saving in your bone bank. Bone bank means, you get to save more calcium in your bones so even when you get older you won’t end up suffering from osteoporosis.

Although osteoporosis can happen to both men and women, the majority of people with osteoporosis are women. Women after menopause are more susceptible to osteoporosis which could severely reduce their quality of life and can even affect their life expectancy. A woman with osteoporosis is a lot more vulnerable because an ordinary fall that you can normally handle well in your glory years would now be fatal when you reached an old age because your bone mass is significantly lower than normal. Usually those who get fragility fractures would have fractures on their spine, hip, rib or wrist.

People with osteoporosis also suffer from a vertebral collapse. Simply explained, your back starts to stoop and you’re much shorter than you used to be. As your spinal cord compress, it will cause you back pain as the nerves are also getting compressed.

With osteoporosis, the best thing you can do is to actually prevent it form happening. When you have it, you will suffer from tremendous pain and fragility and all you can do is just have some medication to prevent further damages to your bones.

So, when you are still enjoying your healthy bones, make sure you drink milk every day! You’d thank yourself for it when you’re much older.

Folic acid for pregnancy

health girl — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 08:42:52 +0000

A pregnant woman must not only take care of the growing baby inside her but she also has to take care of herself too. If the mother is not healthy, the baby will turn out to be unhealthy as well.

In order to keep the baby healthy and to avoid serious defects at birth, the mother must get enough of the folic acid from the day that she got pregnant. In fact, before conception, a mother must already be having sufficient amount of folic acid daily.

Folic Acid or Vitamin B9 can be found on green leafy vegetables such as spinach. You can also find it on oranges and enriched grains. Studies show that when a woman gets enough folic acid, about 0.4 mg a day, during her early pregnancy, she reduces the chance for the serious neural tube defect by up to 70%! During the early stage of development for the baby, these defects occur and unfortunately, they may occur even before the woman even knows she’s already pregnant! So it is really important to keep yourself healthy and consume plenty of green leafy vegetables and other folic acid-rich foods.

Since it’s during the early stages that folic acid really makes an impact, doctors suggest that all women must get enough folic acid as pregnancy is only 50% planned and most women get pregnant without a plan. It’s better to play safe as you never know when God would give you a baby.

Complications on giving birth on the rise

health girl — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 11:48:08 +0000

Mothers who are giving birth can experience severe complications but the chances of experiencing severe complications are less than 1%. Though it’s less than 1 out of 100 mothers who experience such complications, researchers found out that the rate has increased significantly over the years between 1998 and 2005.

Usual complications such as blood clots, shock, kidney failure and blood transfusions had increased by 26% from 0.64% to 0.81% in 2004/2005. This result is still low but it’s devastating to find a mother experiencing such complications and now, results show that the trend is really increasing.

The increase in the severe complications has nothing to do with the age of the mother but rather it is associated with the increase in c-section deliveries. It has to be noted that the c-section is not just a step higher than natural childbirth because it is a major operation to the abdominals and it should not be taken lightly. Hospitals should take it seriously and be prepared when severe complications would arise.

People say that a woman who is in labor is actually on the verge of death. Giving birth is a very special event in a woman’s life and it involves risk that if something bad happens, she could lose her life or the life of the baby. The odds of having complications is good to be less than 1% but no matter the rate, if it happens to you then your chances of getting it is still 100%.

Pregnant women should be cautious and try to keep their odds low. Eat healthy and always see your doctor to keep everything in order.

Women and cellulite

health girl — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 16:28:24 +0000

Women have cellulite even if you are of a normal weight. There are many factors that contribute to women having cellulite and also, men can have cellulite too but this is very rare in men. Cellulite is ugly and when a woman has it, it lowers her self esteem.

Cellulite is often associated with fat. If you are overweight then for sure you have cellulite but, women who are not really fat also suffer from having cellulite on their lower body. Actually, there are several factors that contribute to having cellulite and if you won’t avoid these factors then brace yourself for even more cellulite!

Cellulite are caused by a bad diet. If a woman drastically loses weight and then gains back weight then most of her weight gain is still focused on the lower body, thus these cellulite would appear… and lots of them!

Also, if you choose bad quality foods such as fast foods and foods that are filled with a trans-fat acid then you will most likely get cellulite. It is recommended that you should have more fish on your diet as fish improves your peripheral blood circulation.

Basically, the ugly cellulite is caused by your lifestyle and what you eat so preventing the formation of cellulite take a lot of dedication and discipline. If you already have cellulite then you can try having a vacuum massage. Vacuum massages help because it improves blood circulation to your skin and it’s what is recommended to get rid of those ugly cellulite! Go to your local spa and be pampered while having a vacuum massage. In a few sessions you’d definitely see the results!