Women are complicated sexual beings.  As the topic of women’s health and sexuality has grown in interest over the last ten years, so have studies to discover ways to increase sexual satisfaction in women.  I am excited to see women and doctors talking about this subject and openly addressing the idea that women might need to work a little harder to be sexually satisfied.
Zestra is a new product made from natural botanical oils that is applied on a woman’s body to increase sexual satisfaction.  I wanted to hear a little more about how Zestra works, so I conducted an interview …read more

Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty is helping to promote a healthy lifestyle in India. She has just opened a health spa, along with Kiran Bawa, in Mumbai. Shilpa feels that a medi spa will help women get into the wellness mindset and make them feel more beautiful.

She said, “I think it’s every woman’s and every man’s right to look good.” She added that with the faced paced life many of us lead, finding time to have a healthy treatment done is hard to do. She hopes that by combining health and beauty she will encourage women to …read more

More and more medical professionals are going into the area of women’s health. To accommodate this change, the University of Indianapolis is offering two new women’s health related options for School of Nursing graduate students.

For students in the Master of Science in Nursing program, a new women’s health nurse practitioner program is being offered. This program devotes “special attention to women’s health issues from preconception through post-menopausal care.”
The state is also offering a first-ever affiliated forensic nursing certificate program in their sexual assault nurse examiner certificate. This course helps “prepare students for the physical, psychological and legal/evidentiary …read more

If you’re like most women, you probably spent part of yesterday making food, watching kids, and entertaining guests, all while trying to sit down and have a (somewhat) healthy meal yourself. Now that the festivities for the 4th of July are over, you probably feel like kicking back and doing nothing today. And you should. But there are also a few other things you should do.

Take a Walk
Women are often the ones that encourage other family members to get out and exercise. Today, do yourself and your family a favor by suggesting a walk. The …read more

If you’re a middle aged lady who gets frequent migraines, you may be at a higher risk for stroke. A migraine is defined as “the flashing lights, a certain smell, or other sights or sounds that can signal oncoming pain.” Research suggests that the more frequent your migraines, the greater the risk.

Five percent of women had migraines once a week or more. These women were “four times as likely to have had a stroke” as women without migraines.
Image: sxc.hu

It’s just a fact of life today, that when we have a question about our health, the first place we’re likely to look for an answer is on the Web. But when it comes to the Internet, who do you trust? After all, there is so much misinformation out there that it can be difficult to get a straight answer.
Here are some trusted resources listed by MSN Health that are especially good with questions regarding women’s health issues:

• Go Ask Alice, a question-and-answer service maintained by Columbia University
• The Center for Young Women’s Health, an educational effort of Children’s Hospital …read more

It’s long been thought that the reason most people take a big, long nap after Thanksgiving dinner is because of the tryptophan in turkey. Low and behold, however, scientists are now claiming that turkey doesn’t have enough tryptophan in it to put you to sleep.

So if you are having troubles sleeping at night, they advice eating something that is “light but high-carbohydrate snacks” because they increase your natural level of serotonin. Snacks like:
• Half of a whole-wheat English muffin or raisin bagel drizzled with honey
• Two cups of air-popped popcorn
• A small slice of angel …read more

How many times do we hear about a doctor who doesn’t listen to us? Or one that doesn’t take the time to figure out what’s really wrong when we tell them our health concerns. I suppose sometimes doctors become immune to hearing patients complain.

Well Jessica Terry, an 18-year old student from Washington was in her Advanced Placement high school science class and looking at her own tissue slides. Terry had been suffering from terrible stomach pain that “brought her to her knees. The pain, along with diarrhea, vomiting and fever, made her so sick, she lost …read more

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has awarded a grant to the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). Researchers at VCU will help :
“determine the role of genetics in the composition of vaginal microorganisms, changes in the vaginal microbiome associated with disease, and changes associated with common physiological states such as pregnancy or menopause, as well as those that occur in chronic states such as diabetes.”

They have just been awarded the first year of the $11.5 million federal grant. The vaginal microbiome can be affected by things such as vaginosis, sexually transmitted disease, viral infections such as HPV …read more

Another form of parenting consists of caring for one’s parents or elderly relatives. You’ve gone from being parented to parenting that older person.   Most caregivers go into this stage of life without adequate preparation or support.
Finding caregiver support groups in your area, or online, can be a challenge.  Here are a few suggestions.
Check out the following places in your community to see if they have a support group or know of any:

Home health agencies
Senior Center
Local Hospital
Local Nursing homes
State Alzheimer’s Association
State Department of the Elderly or Family Services
Others caring for elderly parents or spouses

If there is nothing in your community, the …read more