What is Women’s Health?

When we discuss women’s health we can think of various specific events that occur at different stages of life. There are 6 distinguishing aspects in a woman’s life that can be discussed in isolation and they are:-

1. Menstruation
2. Pre-conceptional health
3. Pregnancy
4. Post-partum breast feeding
5. General women’s health issues
6. Menopause

In each case there are a number of health problems associated with each particular life stage that often need careful attention and treatment at various times. In some cases including pregnancy these can be life threatening too. However, in all cases there are potential solutions to alleviating the problems of these conditions if not curing or even preventing them occurring.

Menstruation

The critical issues in menstruation can be heavy menstrual bleeding along with severe cramps (dysmenorrhea). There is also the situation of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) which is often characterised by fatigue, swollen and tender breasts, mood swings and depression.

To control the issues associated with menstruation can include medication which may take the form of birth control. It is also reasonable to take over-the-counter medication such as paracetamol and ibuprofen. Premenstrual tension can be managed by increasing your level of exercise and improving levels of sleep.

Pre-conceptual health

At this stage of life women might suffer fertility issues and defects that prevent birth.

To help minimise the impact of issues associated with fertility there are many medical and homeopathic treatments available. When it comes to birth defects then supplementation with folic acid is attractive but also there is a reduction in consumption of alcohol and drugs generally but also less drinking of coffee because of the caffeine content.

Pregnancy

One of the most important times in the health of a woman’s life. There are a number of consequences associated with this particular phase of life. They include fatigue, dizziness, mood swings, constipation. frequent weeing (urination), morning sickness, fluid retention, anemia, insomnia, abdominal pain, too early contractions, hemorrhoids (piles), yeast infections involving Candida and muscle cramps.

Treatments are many varies if pregnancy is difficult. In severe cases treatment including gas at birth helps provide comfort but generally the handling of pregnant women is undertaken with care and sympathy because of the nature of the situation regarding the unborn child. In all cases, when the 9 months of pregnancy are over, a new set of potential conditions take over.

Post-Partum Breast Feeding

For many women in this phase of life, women have to deal with hormonal shifts, emotional disbalances and imbalances, weight gain, the ‘baby blues’, perineum soreness, constipation, hair loss, mastitis, breast engorgement, not enough human milk produced to too much milk being produced.

To alleviate severe cases most treatment is designed to give comfort. In most cases it is about recovering immediately from the birth and managing the situation that then follows afterwards.

General Women’s Health Issues

A number of health issues can occur throughout life. A number specific to women are cancers of the breast and ovaries. An overactive bladder and urinary tract infection are also major annoyances throughout life.

Treatments for cancers are highly specific and require intense medical care that is not available over the counter. Urinary tract infections are usually treated with antibiotics.

Menopause

The final phase in life before old age starts to set in can involve hot flashes and night sweats, sleeping issues, mood changes, weight gain, loss of hair along with general thinning, bone loss which can lead to osteoporosis, chills and vaginal dryness.

The most effective treatment for post-menopausal conditions happens to be hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

Women’s Needs in Health

The female population is much more open about its needs and wants but society is still responding too slowly. Society has focused on inclusion but also recognizes different needs.

Women are taking plenty of steps to improve their health according to FMCG Gurus in their ‘Women’s Health Consumer Survey’ in 2021.

The top 3 most common steps taken by women to improve their health in order of importance are to improve dietary habits (66%), to exercise more (53%) and to seek more relaxation (47%).

When it comes to improving dietary habits, 71% of women wanted to reduce their sugar intake, with 69% increasing their intake of fruits and vegetables and then 59% wanting more vitamins, minerals with or without supplements.

What was surprising was the lower number of women interested in taking in more functional ingredients such as probiotics (36%), increasing their intake of herbal extracts (24%) and even switching to a plant-based diet (22%). These aspects of diet are all highly trending at the moment but it seems that women want to adopt more traditional approaches to managing their overall health. These older approaches are probably more associated with levels of understanding about nutrition that have become main stream aspirations rather than concentrating on the latest trends.