Top Health Concerns for Women over 40

Being aware of your health as well as your current medical conditions is essential as you begin to hit your middle aged years. When women reach age 40, it is important to pay closer attention to your eating habits, exercise as well as your medical conditions. This stage of life for women can be very hard on your health and if you are not aware of the top medical conditions to prevent, you may find yourself in dangerous waters when it comes to your future health. It is during these years that your reproductive system begins to shut down and prepare for menopause; this can cause serious health conditions if not cared for properly. Learn about the health concerns that affect you as well as health and wellness practices to help prevent harmful conditions.

Heart disease is by far the greatest health concern for women of this age to be concerned about. Although health and beauty is often only related to the outer appearances of women in this age group such as wrinkles, there is more to health than this. Cardiovascular disease claims the lives of over 500,000 women in the USA every year. This equals approximately one death per minute which is nothing less than frightening if you are in this age group. Many medical studies have shown that heart disease is directly related to menopause and there is a great deal of evidence to support this theory.

The loss of natural estrogen being produced within the body is one of the main contributing factors. The woman’s body will begin to shut down the reproductive organs and therefore your ovaries will produce far less estrogen which is why many menopausal women choose natural supplements to aid in the balance within their systems during this transition. Changes also occur within the blood vessel walls and this can make your body more susceptible for blood clotting and clogged arteries, inducing heart disease. The level of fats within your body changes during this stage as well. This means that the amount of “bad” fats increase while the “good” fats continue to increase.

Osteoporosis is the second most common health concern for women in this age group. As your body begins to decrease or discontinue the production of estrogen, your body begins to lose 20% of its natural calcium supply. The main problem with this medical condition is that it can develop for years without symptoms or pain, making it even harder to treat at these advanced stages. Until about age 30, women continue to build bone tissue. When pre-menopause begins to set in, bone breakdown begins. As this bone breakdown continues, once it reaches a certain point you will be diagnosed with osteoporosis. This condition can be treated with health and wellness supplements and hormones but it cannot be reversed.

Breast cancer is another condition directed specifically towards women and maintaining proper and consistent health can help you combat this life threatening condition. Unfortunately, experts have reported that the fear of breast cancer has been so greatly exaggerated that millions of women throughout the USA today are avoiding their mammogram testing and therefore taking a larger risk than they realize. Every time you ignore or miss a mammogram you are actually increasing your chance of breast cancer. Although this type of screening can be painful, it only last 15seconds where breast cancer can last a lifetime.

With more and more focus being placed on women’s health today, you have a better chance to fight these dangerous health conditions before they even enter your system. Your health works as a cycle and when the wheels begin to move you have to act quickly to stop them.