The number of cancer deaths in the U.S. may have dropped but scientists still don’t know what causes cancer or why some people get it while others don’t. According to the American Cancer Society this year 178,480 women are expected to be diagnosed with breast cancer and 40,460 are expected to die of breast cancer. In West Virginia 1,180 new cases of breast cancer in women are anticipated.

Breast cancer is a local issue to all women, no matter where they live. Virtually every woman has a friend or a relative who has been affected by breast cancer. Women are always aware the disease may strike them personally or someone they love. But women have an opportunity to help find the cause and keep future generations of women from suffering the same fate?

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 No one wants a bad hair day on February 14, but sexy styling is only part of the package for a great look on Valentine’s Day. Las Vegas hair colorists and stylists say this year the trend is to stay simple but pack in a lot of sex appeal that can easily be transformed from everyday hustle to an evening full of love and lustful attraction. Great hair boosts self esteem, builds confidence and demands attention when styled right, according to the experts.

Hair is best managed when kept up to date with trims and color every six weeks. Every other salon visit should include a moisturizing treatment. Five or ten minute treatments that can be done at home are also available at beauty supply houses.

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In the last two decades, childlessness among women of older ages in the US has been increasing. A study in Journal of Marriage and Family found that, in the growing demographic of childless women aged 35-44, women who are voluntarily childless outnumber women who cannot have children or expect to have them in the future. Using the National Survey of Family Growth, the study determined that the percent of older women who are voluntarily childless is higher than when it was first measured in 1982.

In 2002, 42 percent of older childless women had consciously chosen not to bear children.Contrary to the public perception that all childless women are generally unhappy with their condition, the study showed that assumptions of older, childless women being dissatisfied with their status simply do not apply to the largest group of childless older women.

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Things do not always go as planned. Women forget to take their pill, condoms break, or another birth control method can fail. Date rape, sexual assault or forced sex can put a woman at risk for pregnancy against all her wishes. However, last August, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Plan B®, a contraceptive drug, as an over-the-counter option for women aged 18 and older. It contains the hormone levonorgestrel, the same ingredient found in many birth control pills, except with a larger dose than in a single birth control pill and the product has a different dosing regimen. Unlike many birth control pills, Plan B® does not contain any estrogen. When used as directed, two pills taken twelve hours apart, within three days of unprotected sex, will safely and effectively prevent pregnancy 89% of the time. The first pill should be taken as soon as possible, since the sooner it is taken, the more effective it has proved.

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Women turn to nutritional supplements for many reasons, including compensating for an inadequate diet, desire for “natural” products or treatments, or hope when medical science has not been successful. However, natural supplements lack many of the safeguards of prescription or over-the-counter drugs. The FDA requires supplements to bear an ingredient label, but the agency doesn’t verify the information or monitor the manufacturing process. Tests by Consumer Reports and others have found that bottles don’t always contain what their labels say they do or in the dosage stated. Some supplements have been contaminated with heavy metals, pesticides, bacteria or prescription drugs. And, even potentially helpful supplements can pose risks.

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