Recently I treated myself to lunch out with the pleasure of a new issue of More magazine as my dining company. As I plunged my fork into my salad, my interest was piqued by an advertisement by General Electric promoting National Women’s Health Week. GE’s promotion is designed to encourage women to take an active role in their own health as well as that of loved ones through making a Pledge for Better Health.
When I returned home, I headed to the computer to go to the More and GE website to see what pledges have been made. By the time I landed on the website, almost 63,000 pledges had been made throughout the country. By the time I left the page, the number of pledges had increased by several hundred. By this morning, there were 78,666 pledges. They range from Jackie in Pennsylvania pledging to cut out trans-fats from her diet. Bobbie from Oklahoma pledged to do water aerobics every day. The most common pledge that popped up was to lose 10 pounds by July 4th.
So what type of pledges can women who are perimenopausal make. Here are my suggestions:
1. Cut high stress levels in order to improve not only your mood, but also to prevent heart disease, depression, sleep disorders and memory issues that can crop up as we go through menopause. You may opt to do this through exercise or meditation; also, stopping multi-tasking and focusing on what you're doing that moment will help ease this reaction.
2. Protect your bones through a commitment to weight-bearing exercises, nutritional supplements, and dietary selections.
3. Protect your heart through regular cardio exercise, lowering salt intake, eating a heart-healthy diet, and lowering stress levels.
4. Select a doctor who will serve as a partner on your journey through menopause.
I wanted to learn more about this week, so I clicked on the link embedded in the page. It turns out that National Women’s Health Week, scheduled for May 9-15, is a week-long observance coordinated by the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health. The event initially started 11 years ago.
“It is important to celebrate National Women’s Health Week to remind women that taking care of themselves is essential to living longer, healthier, and happier lives,” the website states. “Women are often the caregivers for their spouses, children, and parents and forget to focus on their own health. But research shows that when women take care of themselves, the health of their family improves. During National Women’s Health Week it is important to educate our wives, mothers, grandmothers, daughters, sisters, aunts, and girlfriends about the steps they can take to improve their health and prevent disease. After all, when women take even the simplest steps to improve their health, the results can be significant and everyone can benefit.”
Celebrations are planned for across America for that week as well as the month of May. These events are being organized by a variety of entities and focus on various topics. Some examples of events include:
