eHealth Connection | Cooper University Hospital

National Women’s Health Week (May 9-15) is a weeklong health observance coordinated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health. Its goal is to help American women make their health and wellness a top priority.

With the theme “It’s Your Time,” the nationwide initiative encourages women to take steps to improve their physical and mental health, and lower their risks for certain diseases.

In accordance with the national effort, physicians at Cooper University Hospital offer women of all ages the following advice to stay healthy and prevent disease. The most important things women can do are: Read the full story

Menopause is a stage of development in a woman’s life that involves the gender hormones estrogen, the so-called female hormone, and androgen, the so-called male hormone. Both estrogens and androgens are produced in the ovaries.

During a woman’s reproductive years, her ovarian estrogen production occurs in a very controlled, direct and efficient way. The process involves the production of androgen first, followed by conversion to estrogen.

In a woman’s fourth decade, a chronic and progressive loss of this conversion begins, resulting in both estrogen deficiency and increased androgen activity (from the unconverted male hormone), and symptomatic effects such as night sweats can begin.  When a woman completes the transition through menopause, typically in her fifth decade, the loss of estrogen can have a negative impact on her overall health.

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When it comes to men and women, differences exist beyond the obvious. Research has shown that women are more vulnerable than men to some diseases and may have different symptoms and responses to treatment in many major areas of health, including heart disease and some cancers.

Medical practice and therapies have kept pace with these new findings, addressing and defining women’s health more broadly than only issues related to the female reproductive system.

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Did you know that heart disease affects women and men at equal rates, but research shows that women may be more likely than men to die after a heart attack?  Here is important information to help you understand the symptoms and to keep you healthy.

More women die from heart disease than from anything else. The higher incidence rate may be due to unrecognized and/or misdiagnosed symptoms of heart disease in women, which can be more difficult to detect than the symptoms of heart disease in men. As a result, women, and even some doctors, may fail to heed the warning signs associated with heart disease.

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Studies show that women are more likely than men to look up health information on the Internet. Although doing your own research is a good thing, Cooper physicians say, it also can spur unnecessary worry and fear.

“What’s needed is a careful balance,” said Rosemarie A. Leuzzi, M.D., an internist and medical director of Cooper for Women.

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Women of all ages can improve and maintain their health with annual physical examinations and screening tests. Physical exams and screenings are an important part of good preventive care. Taking care of yourself should be a high priority for you and your family.

Screening is an important step to staying healthy. As you get older, your risk for certain medical conditions increases. Your physician should review your medical history and your family’s medical history to assess your risk for developing certain conditions. It’s also important to get your blood pressure and weight checked and screenings done for diabetes and cholesterol. Read the full story