According to the World Health Organization (WHO), women all over the world are most likely to die from heart disease and stroke. Also included in the top ten causes of women's deaths is diabetes.
What can women do to maintain better health? Here are things women can do for better health, as compiled by Good House Keeping Health.
Get Moving
Better health is promoted by an active lifestyle. It could mean anything from a gym membership, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, or simply allotting time doing household chores that require extensive amounts of physical effort. The recommendation by WHO involves 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity physical activity each week. To make exercise less of a burden, an effective approach is to take simple steps instead of making huge leaps abruptly.
Have A Breast Self-Examination
The time before your monthly period is the best time to conduct a breast self-examination, because the breasts are less dense at this time. Breast self-examination helps detect lumps that can be detrimental to your health.
Stop Smoking
According to the WHO, there has been an alarming increase in tobacco use among women. Statistics show that when the habit starts, women have less success in quitting smoking compared to men. Women who drop the habit relapse more frequently and are less successful in using nicotine patches that can help in eliminating tobacco use.
Minimize the Risk of Infections From Sexual Activity
An intervention introduced in the last decade is immunization against the human papilloma-virus (HPV), which can definitely make a great impact on cervical cancer rates all over the world. A big guarantee against the transmission of this disease is being in a mutually monogamous sexual relationship. Consistent and appropriate use of condoms also helps stave off the likelihood of transmitting not only HPV but many other sexually-transmitted diseases.
