34 THE QUEENS COURIER • WELLNESS • JULY 19, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
wellness
5 tips for busy women to take charge of their health
If you’re an American woman today,
chances are your busy lifestyle is preventing
you from seeking out the regular
check-ups and screenings so important
to maintaining your health. And that’s
true regardless of your economic status
or whether you live in a rural, urban or
suburban area.
So reports a recent HealthiHer survey
showing that only 66 percent of U.S.
women ages 30 to 60 feel “somewhat in
control” of their own health, although 83
percent are happily managing the health
of their families. Th e study, co-sponsored
by Redbook magazine, HealthyWomen
and GCI Health, found that a full 77 percent
of women in that age group say that
their job schedules prevent them from
attending regular check-ups.
“Women today wear many hats - they’re
wives, mothers, caregivers, employees,
business leaders and breadwinners, oft en
at the same time,” says Wendy Lund,
CEO of leading communications agency,
GCI Health. “Even when it feels like
there are not enough hours in the day, we
somehow manage to integrate everything
in our lives to ‘make it work’ and accomplish
insurmountable tasks. And this constant
juggling can come at the cost of our
own health.”
Th e good news? Th e survey also reveals
that 79 percent of respondents see positive
change as achievable. Th e HealthiHer
movement aims to give women the tools
they need to make such changes at home,
at work or in their communities. If you’re
among those struggling to take good care
of yourself because of other obligations,
consider how these suggestions might help.
• Truth: You can’t help others without
caring for yourself. Why do emergency
airline instructions tell you to attach
your own oxygen mask fi rst? Because
you could otherwise pass out before
helping others. Th at same principle
applies to your general health; you must
maintain your own energy and well-being
so you can stay around to be an
eff ective mom, wife, daughter, sister
and/or friend.
• Take stress seriously. While not all
stress is bad, long-term unrelieved
stress can have major adverse eff ects
on your health, reducing the eff ectiveness
of your immune, digestive, sleep
and reproductive systems. Recognize
the risks, plan methods for fi ghting
stress and carve out time for exercise,
sleep, meditation, yoga and/or other
remedies.
• Try online resources. An annual in-person
physical is always recommended,
but health issues in between checkups
can oft en be taken care of through
online sites that diagnose issues through
questionnaires or video chats - then
prescribe medicine or other therapies
without need of an offi ce visit.
• Make exercise a no-brainer. As the saying
goes, sitting is the new smoking.
If you don’t make daily movement of
some sort a priority in your life (doctors
recommend at least 150 minutes of
brisk exercise per week) you’re putting
your physical and emotional health at
substantial risk. Among other benefi ts,
exercise can help prevent diabetes and
heart disease while reducing stress, back
pain, arthritis, asthma and other common
ailments.
• Set health care appointments well
ahead. To secure the slots that work best
with your schedule, call or go online
way ahead of time so you have a wider
range of options. Some clinics now
off er evening or weekend hours to help
those with demanding daytime jobs or
roles. Planning ahead, and writing each
appointment in ink on your family calendar,
helps ensure you’ll make your
own care a priority even if your schedule
ramps up.
“It isn’t selfi sh to put ourselves fi rst,
but in all honesty, we know that will
never happen, our kids will always come
fi rst,” says HealthyWomen CEO Beth
Battaglino. “However, can we shoot for
second? Th is is an investment in both
our health and the health of our families.
Women who don’t take care of themselves
are not going to be around or it will
aff ect their ability to care for their loved
ones, and this survey revealed that those
who don’t make time to get their health
screenings, like mammograms, pap tests,
eye exams, blood pressure, etc., actually
had more health concerns.”
More women’s health tips related to
the HealthiHer Movement can be found
at HealthyWomen.org or Facebook.
Participate in the movement by posting a
photo on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram
depicting you taking charge of your
health (Use the hashtag #BeHealthiHer).
Courtesy BPT