Health Checklist For Women In Their 30s, 40s And 50s (Part One)

Mark Wealth

Health is wealth, they say and so like wealth, we should take good care of it, never taking our foot of the pedal. Looking at it from another angle, the human body is not like wine that gets better being passive with the passage of time. For a woman who has to endure childbirth and nurturing, taking care of the home, work/career and aging, extra effort has to be taken to maintain and preserve good health.

In order to maintain good health, you have to keep an eye and a finger on the different parts of your body that could suffer debilitation through diseases, aging and our lifestyles.

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Not everyone is a health expert to know what to look for but that doesn’t mean there aren’t things we can do on our own. To help you out, we’ll be presenting health checklists for women that include self checks and clinic checks. We’re going in.

Women In Their 30s

• Cholesterol Levels

Cholesterol is a fatty substance that exists in the cells of the body. It helps in building hormones and other substances the body needs for growth. A high amount of this substance however, is not good for the health. It’s a major cause of heart disease which could be life threatening.

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The test should be done every three years except your doctor tells you otherwise.

• Blood Pressure

This is measured with the sphygmomanometer (whew! Tongue twister ????). I bet you didn’t know it had such a complex name. It’s used to measure the blood pressure, a significant factor in accessing your health. Your blood pressure is either high (hypertension), low (hypotension) or normal. High and low blood pressures have negative effects on the kidney, heart and nervous system (stroke).

• Pap Smear

This is a screening test that’s carried out on the cervix and pelvis. It’s used to detect the presence of cancer causing cells, inflammation and infections that affect the cervix. This is a very important test as it could affect the female reproduction system and cause infertility. It is closely linked to the next test on the checklist.

• HPV TEST

HPV is short for Human Papilloma Virus. It is the most common form of sexually transmitted infection. If not treated, HPV could cause genital warts and cancer that affects the cervix, vagina, vulva, tonsils and throat.

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Usually, there are Pap Smear tests that include HPV tests or HPV tests that include Pap Smear. Otherwise, there are stand-alone HPV tests. Note that HPV is the sole cause of cervical cancer. Although the strain that causes genital warts is not the same that causes cancer. The test should be done every three years if results are good (it can take HPV as long as three years in the body before it becomes cancerous).

• Thyroid Hormone Test

The thyroid is responsible for the hormone that regulates the digestive and heart functions of the body. It also supports bone maintenance, brain development and muscle control. There are two risky conditions that relate to the thyroid gland: an overactive thyroid gland and underactive thyroid gland. Overactive thyroid gland is associated with auto immune diseases while an underactive thyroid gland contributes to weigh gain.

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The thyroid hormone test is a blood test that should be carried out once a year except the doctor instructs otherwise.

• Breast Test

Checking the breast is one of those things a woman can and should do on her own. Although self-check is not enough, she still has to go for a clinical check up. Lumps in the breast is what they are on the lookout for. Some lumps could be benign (or harmless) while others can be malignant. This is why a clinical test (Mammogram) should be scheduled.

• Sexually Transmitted Disease

Most women this age are sexually active so it’s a compulsory test. Tests should be run for such diseases as HIV, Gonorrhoea, Chlamydia, Syphilis, etc

To be continued

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