Women’s Health Tips For Every Age And Stage (NAPSA)—Women look and feel their best when they are comfortable with themselves and their state of health. While hectic schedules can often get in the way of simple tasks like exercising and making regular doctor’s appointments, it is important that these remain a top priority. By taking control of your health, you empower yourself to learn about the health issues associated with each stage of life and the best ways to address them. Here are some important health tips for women: Your 30s—Feeling good below the waist Turning 30 is a huge milestone for women. As you enter this stage of life, it is important to become more proactive about your health. While you hopefully started or continued getting your Pap test in your 20s, once you turn 30, just get- ting a Pap smearisn’t enough.It is important to ask your doctor for an HPV test to help protect yourself against cervical cancer. HPV, or human papillomavirus, is a very common virus and is the primary cause of cervical cancer. HPV tests like the digene HPV Test can help doctors identify women with the high-risk types of HPV infection that can cause cervical cancer, enabling diagnosis and follow-up to be put in place before cancer can ever develop. “We now know that certain types of HPV can cause cervical cancer, and today, women age 30 and older should be sure to ask their doctor to test for the cancercausing types of the virus,” said Dr. Peter Weeks, Medical Director of the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology at Edward Hospital in Illinois. “When used along with the Pap, an HPV test can help your doctor reduce your chance of developing cervical cancer.” The best part for women with hectic schedules is that both the Pap and HPV tests can use the same cell sample, so no additional appointments are needed, and no additional time or discomfort in the stirrups is required. Learn more about Pap and HPVtesting, and how to better understand your results, at www.theHPVtest.com. Quick Health Tips For Your 30s, 40s and 50s 30s—aAsk your doctor for an HPV test together with your Pap to help reduce your risk for cervical cancer. When these fests are combined, chancesof detecting abnormal cell changes before they become cancerous are improved. 40s—Schedule regular mammograms,in addition to your regular breast self-exams. 50s—tncrease physicalactivity, as new studies show that losing weight can help decrease severity of hot flashes and help with mood swings. @ Your 40s—Looking good above the waist You’ve probably read about and hopefully perform your own breast self-exams to feel for any lumps or unusual changes. But once you turn 40, it is time to move from self-exams to mammograms, which take a soft tissue X-ray of the breast. It is a common procedure that searches for abnormal cell growth in an effort to detect cancerous cells in their earliest stages. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that only 68 percent of women 40 and over have had a mammogram in the past two years. “Mammograms may not always be pleasant, but they remain the mosteffective detector for breast cancer,” said Dr. Weeks. Your 50s—Feeling and looking goodall at the same time Mood swings, short-term memory loss, and hot flashes are all frequent symptoms of the 50s tipping point known as menopause. According to the North American Menopause Society, more than two million women are currently in this phase of life, though symptoms can vary significantly from woman to woman. There is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to menopause, but incorporating exercise into a daily routine is a good first step to relieving symptoms. A recent study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that women who lost weight tended to have less trouble with hot flashes. The increase in serotonin from physical activity can even help mood swings.
