Trying to find solid ground between the shifting sands of scientific studies and the celestial claims of food industry marketing can put consumers in a dizzying spin. The short solution to eating right for maximum health seems to be: eat real food, don’t eat too much of it and, when in doubt, go for plants.
The rare lung disease known as LAM has a complicated name and a tragic history. It is a silent killer that almost exclusively affects women. Lymphangioleiomyomatosis is a progressive, frequently fatal disease, characterized by an unusual type of smooth muscle cell that invades lung tissue. As clumps of cells and cysts grow through the lungs, they destroy normal lung tissue and block airflow, reducing the body’s oxygen intake. More than 7 of every 10 patients are between 20 and 40 when they begin having symptoms. Because most women and many health care providers are unfamiliar with the diagnosis and the disease symptoms, LAM may not be diagnosed until a woman reaches her thirties or forties.
Even a young woman tends to take care of her face at least a little and a new line or incipient wrinkle will send a woman of any age scurrying for her creams and lotions.
Unfortunately, the one area that is often neglected is between the tip of her chin and the beginning of her decollatage. The neck is most vulnerable to aging lines, unwanted folds and double chins. Although most women spend a great deal of time worrying about the appearance of their face, they often overlook their neck, which is even more susceptible to wrinkles because the skin there is so thin. It is certainly prone to damage from sun, tanning beds and other light rays.
Although a woman’s urinary system is structured in a way that helps ward off infection, good design isn’t enough for many women. Urinary tract infections account for 8.3 million doctor visits each year according to the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services and women are especially prone to UTI’s. One woman in five develops a UTI during her lifetime. Nearly 20 percent of women who have a UTI will have another, 30 percent of those will have yet another, and 80 percent of those will have still more recurrences.