The most common misconception anyone could have is they don’t need to worry about health problems when they are young. More specifically, age-related ailments like cancer and strokes. However, that’s not how things work, and given certain circumstances, any disease can affect them, no matter how old or young they are.
To illustrate, a report by the American Cancer Society has shown that age-related diseases like colon and rectal cancer are affecting younger adults as well. Specifically in the age group of 20-30 years. Similar data have also been published for arthritis and strokes in young individuals.
Experts have suggested that women can essentially prevent some of these health problems by making a few lifestyle changes. Here is some detailed women’s health information that can help you know what to look out for and prevent early onsets of these diseases.
Colon or Rectal Cancer
As mentioned before, studies have shown that more and more young adults are falling prey to colon and rectal cancers. Earlier, aging was a significant risk factor for colorectal cancer, but now it can happen to anyone. Experts have not been able to determine why this is happening.
If you are a young adult and suspicious that you might have this type of cancer, it’s perennial that you talk to your doctor at once. Look out for any change in your bowel habits and blood in your tool. Since this type of cancer doesn’t commonly affect young individuals, it often gets diagnosed late.
Get tested if any one of your parents or siblings has had colorectal cancer before the age of 50. It’s advisable to start getting checked ten years ahead of the age at which your family member was diagnosed.
The Decline in Brain Volume
The decline in brain volume, the mere thought of it, is enough to send a shiver down anyone’s spine. However, bear in mind that brain shrinkage is a normal part of the aging process. Individuals suffering from high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes, are prone to age faster, and as a result, your brain decline speeds up as well.
Health experts suggest leading a healthy lifestyle in your 20s for the brain shrinkage to happen at its normal pace. The lifestyle choices you make in the first half of your life usually determine how healthy you will be in the later stages of your life.
Diabetes
The Office on Women’s Health claims that about 1 in every nine women in the US or around 15 million women have diabetes. The worst part about having diabetes is that you could have and be blissfully unaware because often the symptoms don’t show up.
The leading risk factor for diabetes in women is obesity. Lifestyles with a lot of junk food, high-sugar food, and beverages with no exercise can easily cause diabetes in young women. Moreover, women can experience gestational diabetes during pregnancy as well. In case you do, there are high chances of developing type-2 diabetes down the line.
Therefore, if your body mass index is higher than it should be, there’s a history of diabetes in your family, or you experienced gestational diabetes, it’s a must to keep up with checkups.
High BP
Just like diabetes, high blood pressure is also a silent killer since its symptoms don’t show up until it’s too late. High blood pressure means your heart is pumping aggressively through the veins, and it ends up damaging critical organs like the heart, kidneys, brain, and blood vessels.
Thanks to the stress and anxiety born out of having to multitask between job and family, high blood pressure is on the rise in women between the age of 20 to 35 years. The main issue here is that high blood pressure is often put on the backburner in young adults.
However, if not addressed on time, the condition may cause serious heart ailments down the road and increase the possibility of strokes as well.
Strokes
Speaking of strokes, in general, the medical condition is associated with people over 65. While strokes are more common in men, a report showed that among young adults between the age of 25 to 44, women are more likely to experience a stroke than men.
So what gives? The primary risk factors are tobacco smoking, obesity, high cholesterol, diabetes, and high blood pressure. The risk up several notches in pregnant women or those on birth control.
To conclude, multi-managing career, family, parenthood, and school might lead you to ignore your health. However, keep a check on your blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and weight. Additionally, quit smoking, take time out for workouts, and maintain a healthy diet. Doing so will have a positive impact on your health down the lane in time.