Now, however a new study has suggested that the pill may actually have the opposite effect on women, and that it may actually be good for health.

Statistics from a study conducted over a period of 39 years on 46,000 women, the Royal College of GPs Oral Contraception Study now seems to suggest that taking the pill may actually be beneficial for female health.

This is said to be the largest study ever conducted with relation to the pill and it has shown that those women who take the pill have a 12% lower chances of developing heart disease, stroke and cancer than those who do not.

These benefits will accrue from the birth control pill to all those women who lead an otherwise healthy lifestyle that includes eating right, getting regular medical checkups, not smoking and doing regular exercise. So long as women implement these lifestyle rules, any negative effects of the pill will be minimized while the benefits will be maximized.

Source: The Examiner

Is menstrual sex safe? For the most part, sex during the menstrual period is quite safe and healthy; however the risk of certain infections increases during this time. Also, menstrual blood will carry the bacteria or virus that the woman hosts.

Many women experience Herpes outbreaks during their periods which make them more infective. Also, there is some research to demonstrate that chances of developing endometriosis increases due to having sex during menstruation.

Can one get pregnant by having menstrual sex? The answer to this is usually in the negative, because this is a highly unlikely scenario. But, one cannot rule out getting pregnant even with menstrual sex because the sperm stays alive for a few days and if the woman ovulates within a few days after or before her period, there are chances of her falling pregnant. Having sex even five to six days before ovulation can possibly lead to a pregnancy even if chances are not very high.

Could menstrual sex help in any way? There is a belief that having sex during the period can help lessen menstrual pain and there is something in that theory.

When a woman has an orgasm, her uterus contracts and this also helps in expelling the contents of the uterus faster so that a woman’s period ends sooner after having hand menstrual sex.

What can be used to avoid making a mess in menstrual sex? Many couples use a diaphragm of a cervical cap during intercourse to help keep safe from a possible pregnancy.

This will also do the job of containing the blood for a time. It is important, however not to use these devices as regular sanitary protection during menstruation since they are not the same as menstrual cups.

Since there is an increased risk of certain infections, menstrual sex is fine so long as one uses protection of a condom or similar during menstrual sex.

For the most part it may be issues such as ‘being grossed out’ or personal beliefs and perceptions that may trouble one or perhaps the thought of creating a mess, so if a couple is OK with it, there is no reason why menstrual sex should not be indulged in while using protection.

There are certain factors that increase a woman’s risk of having PMS and they are:

• Age is a prime factor for PMS, and it is generally found that the severity of the symptoms tends to rise with age. It is generally seen that it is women over the age of 30 who seek help for PMS and increasing age is commonly seen to make higher the chances of getting PMS
• Family history of PMS is usually a strong indicator for a woman having it
• Caffeine intake can increase risk of PMS
• Tobacco use is also shown to increase risk
• High stress levels are also seen to contribute to PMS and may exacerbate the symptoms such as depression, anger, tension, irritability etc
• Research has shown that identical twins have double the probability of developing PMS as against fraternal twins.
• Certain allergies such as those to nuts, trees, grass, and markers are seen to aggravate PMS
• Certain nutritional deficiencies such as low levels of certain essential vitamins and minerals can also be responsible

1. A gym is too expensive: So don’t go to one. There are number of shows on TV which will help you lose weight. Using a jump rope and doing squats and pushups at home is as effective as going to the gym. Besides many gyms cost $25 a month or less.
2. I will start tomorrow: That fast starting tomorrow won’t help; won’t undo a lifetime of bad habits. Only significant lifestyle changes will make a difference.
3. I am really healthy so why should I lose weight? You may be healthy now, but obesity increases your risk of developing a number of diseases now or later.
4. I don’t have the time and money to cook healthy: Your health is something that you need to make time and money for. For, if you don’t have time for your health what do you have time for!
5. It Hurts: Yes exercise will hurt to begin with if you’ve never done it. But the benefits so outweigh that temporary discomfort that this is really immaterial. Later you will thank yourself for making the effort.

It is important to understand the stages of breast cancer in order to understand chances of survival, kind of treatment to be obtained and understand the prognosis or the outcome of the cancer.

The stages of breast cancer are standardized so that healthcare providers the world over are able to understand the nature and extent of a given person’s disease; which are 0 through IV stages.

According to the National Breast Cancer website, those who are at the 0 stage have 100% chance of 5 year survival; at Stage I that rate is 98%, at Stage II the five year survival rate drops to 80%, at stage III it is between 56% and 49% and at stage IV the five year survival rate is only 16%. The different stages of cancer correspond to the following situations:

Stage 0 (Carcinoma in Situ): This is breast cancer at the earliest stage, when the abnormal cells have not spread outside the lobules of the ducts which produce milk during lactation.

This stage could signify the woman’s risk of developing cancer or it signifies a very early stage wherein it is easy to treat the cancer before it starts to spread and go on to the next stage.

Stage I: At this stage the size of the tumor is two centimeters or less and has not yet spread to areas other than the breast or the surrounding lymph nodes.

Stage II (A & B): At the stage of breast cancer II A the cancer is about an inch in size and has spread to the lymph nodes situated in the underarm. If the tumor is between 2 and 5 centimeters but hasn’t spread to the lymph nodes, it is still classified as being Stage II A.

At Stage II B the tumor is between 2 and 5 centimeters in size but has spread to three lymph nodes. If the tumor is larger than 5 centimeters but has not spread to the lymph nodes, then this is still classified as Stage II B.

Stage III (A & B): At stage III A, the cancer is between 2 and 5 centimeters in size and has also spread to the nine auxiliary lymph nodes. If the cancer has spread to areas such as the ribs, chest wall, skin of the breast, or the lymph nodes of the chest wall or collar bone.

Stage IV: This is the last of the stages of breast cancer, when the cancer has spread to surrounding areas such as the lungs, the liver, the brain, the skeletal system or the collar bone lymph nodes.

It is important to understand the different stages of breast cancer so as to be able to make informed decisions about treatment, and form opinions and expectations about survival.

Hysterectomy

The way that any particular woman responds to a hysterectomy is of course vastly diverse and may differ immensely from woman to woman depending on factors such as the kind of hysterectomy performed, age of the woman, and whether the surgery was performed before or after natural menopause.

However, there are certain commonly noted side effects after a hysterectomy which follows here:

Physical side effects after a Hysterectomy: While many women experience these side effects, many may not and some may in fact the opposite experience:

• Hot flashes are a common side effect after a hysterectomy and so are correlated side effects such as night sweats etc
• Fatigue and listlessness may often occur
• Hair loss or a coarsening of body hair may also occur
• Headaches
• Weight gain
• Memory loss or forgetfulness
• Depression and feelings of anxiety
• Women also tend to become prone to heart disease and osteoporosis
• There may be a reduced interest in sexual intimacy
• Sex may be painful and the woman may experience vaginal dryness

As important, or in some cases more important than the physical aspects of a hysterectomy are the emotional side effects after a menopause that many women experience. Since there is a very sudden and drastic change in the levels of hormones in the body, there are obvious physical effects but these hormonal changes can bring about very dramatic changes emotionally as well.

Many women, after undergoing a hysterectomy find their self esteem affected and experience feelings of low self esteem. Menopause is in any case emotionally difficult to deal with for many women, and when it is surgically induced menopause, not only are the physical side effects stronger, so may be the emotional side effects.

So, at this stage, a woman who is facing the side effects after a hysterectomy may need a great deal of support, understanding and some extra TLC as well.

One needs a lot of sensitivity to put oneself in the shoes of a woman who has just lost an important body part, having undergone a hysterectomy and the consequent emotional trauma.

There are several things that we say to delude ourselves, which hurts our long term goals of fitness and good health:

1. I am thick, not fat: This one is a euphemism often used to cover being overweight. The key here is that the waist size should be under control. So long as the waist is less than 35 inches you are safe from health issues.
2. It’s not me it’s my genes: Fact is, very few of us actually have a predisposition to fatness. If we are overweight it is because of poor eating habits and inactive lifestyles. Telling yourself its genes is disempowering.
3. It will mess up my hair: This has to be the lamest one; that sweating is not good for the hairstyle. There are many hairdos that can work even if you decide to hit the gym each day.
4. Black women prefer curvy women: Sure they do; all men like women with curves. Here ‘curves’ is the operative word; women with a good hip waist ratio. You’re still talking small waist here because a thick waist means abdominal fat deposits, and danger for the pancreas.
5. I don’t want muscles: Gymming is not tantamount to bulking up. Besides there are plenty of ways to stay in shape that do not involve bulking up.

Source: clutchmagonline

In this connection the HER (Health Enables Returns)) Project assumes great significance, which is a way for health care to reach working women who are not often the first priority for the health care systems of their countries. This project is aimed at 50,000 women in countries such as china, Egypt and India.

It is not just social empowerment that better health care for women can bring about; this also makes economic sense. According to statistics, among those companies who have invested in programs covering women’s health, many have noted significantly improved profit margins.

Targeting women’s health is a way for societies to bring about social and economic change, and even grow leaders. On this significant day, let us pause and give thought to health and other concerns of women less fortunate than us; and support initiatives such as HER and others.

Source: Huffington Post

Chlamydia

According to some estimates, as many as million individuals in the US alone are infected with Chlamydia, making this one of the most widespread and common of STDs.

If left untreated, Chlamydia can cause several complications and health problems in the long term as well as the short term. The chief Chlamydia causes are:

Sexual intercourse: Even those that practice ‘safe sex’ by using condoms are not certain not to get the disease from a sexual partner.

The use of condoms certainly reduces the risk of getting the disease but it is not guarantee against it. Chlamydia can spread by way of oral, vaginal or anal sex and so obviously a condom is not effective in every case.

The only way to completely avoid Chlamydia causes is of course abstinence from sexual intercourse. Failing this the next best thing is to be in a monogamous relationship with a healthy uninfected person who is also similarly monogamous. Chlamydia causes do not include things such as casual physical contact such as shaking hands etc.

From mother to baby: Since this is an infection of the genital area, Chlamydia can be passed on from a mother to her baby in the case of a vaginal delivery as the baby passes through the birth canal.

Chlamydia causes or can cause several complications for a new born, which may include life threatening conditions such as pneumonia or severe eye infection.

Chlamydia is known as the silent epidemic since as many as 70% of women infected with it show no signs or symptoms of having contracted it. Though this infection is largely asymptomatic, Chlamydia causes several other complications, which have to do with conjunctivitis of the eye, arthritis, urethritis (inflammation of the urethra).

In fact, conjunctivitis form of Chlamydia causes blindness. The infection can spread to the eyes by shared face towels, by the fingers and even due to coughing or sneezing.

Chlamydia causes and risk factors include:

• Sexually active individuals with multiple partners or new partners
• A history of sexually transmitted disease, particularly Chlamydia
• Inconsistent or irregular condom use

It is generally recommended that women who are sexually active and under the age of 25, who are at high risk of infection should be screened to detect Chlamydia particularly since it is typically asymptomatic.

Researchers have found several reasons why women live, on an average 5 years longer than their male counterparts:

• Women’s hearts are said to be the main reason for this. While men’s hearts lose 25% of their pumping power by the time they reach the age of 70 while women’s hearts remain as strong.
• The world’s major killers are said to be heart disease and stroke, which women develop in their 70’s and 80’s whereas men get these problems while still in their 50’s and 60’s.
• There is also a possible chromosomal reason for this disparity in longevity between men and women. In women, it is thought that cells can perhaps be protected by a slightly better variation of a gene on the second X chromosome. Men don’t have this luxury and don’t get this choice and perhaps suffer for it.
• Also men exhibit dangerous behavior in youth when they go through what is called a testosterone storm and this is another reason that they may die earlier.
• Also men, when they attempt suicide are more likely to succeed than women.