Hit the gym, whip up a low-fat meal, meditate. Sometimes there aren’t enough hours in the day to hold down a job and do everything you’re supposed to do to stay in tip-top shape.
Rather than try to squeeze it all in, take stock of what’s most important for your health right now. “As you age and your lifestyle changes, your priorities naturally shift, and your habits should reflect that,” says Dr Brent Agin, co-author of Healthy Ageing for Dummies (For Dummies).
That’s why we asked the experts to spell out the steps women in their 20s, 30s, and 40s should never miss. Follow this simple tailor-made guide and you’ll fight disease, ward off weight gain, and feel your best for years to come.
Stay healthy in your 20s
Now that you’re focusing on starting your career, finding the perfect man, and having as much fun as possible, you’re probably not terribly concerned with your long-term health. But the truth is, the more you invest now, the better off you’ll be in the long run. Start banking on your future with these smart steps.
Count your cocktails Given those happy hours with the girls at the office, dates at the local wine bar, and all those summer sundowners, you may find you’re having a drink most days of the week. No big deal, rightw “Actually, it depends on your family history,” says researcher
Dr Arthur Klatsky. Studies have found that a daily drink can increase your chances of developing breast cancer by 10 percent. Toss back three cocktails a few times a week and those odds jump to 30 percent. “Alcohol causes your body to pump out more oestrogen,” explains Klatsky. “Over time elevated levels can activate hormone-sensitive breast cancer tumours.”
The bottom line is that “If breast cancer runs in your family, it’s probably best to scale back to a few drinks a week, tops,” he says.
Practice safe sun Melanoma is the top cause of cancer among 25- to 29-year-old women, according to the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. In part, this is due to the fact that more than 60 percent of young adults suffer at least one sunburn per year, according to another study. So before you venture outside, apply a sunscreen of at least SPF30 to all exposed body parts.
Research your family tree Everyone tells you that you have your grandmother’s smile, but what they may not realise is that you might also have her propensity for high blood pressure, type-2 diabetes, osteoporosis, or Alzheimer’s. “The majority of diseases and conditions have some type of hereditary factor,” says Angela Trepanier, a genetic counsellor. Knowing which conditions are floating around in your gene pool can help you and your doctor be on the lookout for problems in their earliest and most curable stages. Ask you relatives about any health problems they may have had, such as cancer, heart disease, depression, birth defects, and alcoholism.
Get to know your gynaecologist
“Even if you’re in a monogamous relationship, it’s vital that you visit your gynaecologist every year,” says Dr Agin. “Some diseases have few if any symptoms, so years can go by before they’re detected.” Chlamydia and gonorrhoea, for example, can cause pelvic inflammatory disease, a potentially dangerous infection of the uterus, Fallopian tubes, and other reproductive organs. Left unchecked, these conditions can lead to permanent damage.
“If you’re not in a committed relationship, always use a condom,” says Agin. That seems like a no-brainer, but one study found that less than 20 percent of single women say they use a condom every time.
Stay healthy in your 30s
These days, your schedule may be jam-packed, thanks to your flourishing career or a new baby. And often socialising, exercise and preparing healthy meals are neglected. The result Research shows that women tend to gain weight in their 30s, setting the stage for chronic illnesses like diabetes and heart disease.
Put your friends on speed dial Remember when you had time to meet up for a movie after work, or go away for a weekend on a whimh Even though you have more pressing priorities lately, it’s still important to connect with friends. “Having a strong network is essential for your overall wellbeing,” says Dr Agin.
Without a shoulder to lean on, he says, your stress levels can go unchecked. In the short term, this can make you snappy and irritable, but in the long run, it can raise your blood pressure and blood sugar (a risk factor for diabetes). In fact, a study in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine found that lonely women were more likely to have heart disease and twice as likely to die than those with large social circles. To stay connected, schedule a regular girls’ night at least once a month.
Try your hand at something new “Starting in your mid-20s, you lose about seven percent of your brain agility every decade,” says neurologist Dr Vincent Fortanasce, author of The Anti-Alzheimer’s Prescription (Penguin). “The blood flow and nerve connections decrease, slowing down your thinking process.” But the good news is that every time you learn something, the nerve cells in your brain form new connections. “This creates a safety net that protects you against memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease,” he says. By simply stimulating your mind regularly, you can slash your risk of dementia in half, according to a study in Psychological Medicine. “Try doing something novel for at least 15 minutes a day,” suggests Dr Fortanasce, “such as taking a new route home or playing computer solitaire.”
Improve your partnership
No marriage is flawless, but a truly unhappy one can break your heart in more ways than one. When researchers at University College London (UK) tracked more than 9000 people, they found that those who weren’t content in their relationship were 34 percent more likely to have chest pain or a heart attack.
“Frequent conflicts are a form of chronic stress, which can weaken your immune system and raise blood pressure,” says Professor Jason Newsom, an associate professor of community health. To keep your household harmonious, tell your partner how much you appreciate him. One study found that people who frequently thanked their mates for little things, like taking out the rubbish, were more likely to say they were satisfied with their marriage.
Put it in writing Of course you’re busy, but that’s all the more reason to keep tabs on overeating and mindless munching. In fact, research shows that keeping a food diary is the best tool for maintaining your waistline. A diary is especially important now because experts say your metabolism slows by about three percent each decade — which means you burn roughly 200 fewer kilojoules a day than you did when you were in your 20s.
That may not seem significant, but those kJ can add up — to the tune of two extra kilograms every year. What’s more, many women in their 30s also struggle with shedding baby weight, which can be an uphill battle. The average mom weighs 6kg more than she did pre-pregnancy, even nine years after giving birth.
Stay healthy in your 40s
By this decade, you may begin to see the consequences of some of your unhealthy habits. About 10 percent of women in their 40s have diabetes, and by age 45, one in four have high blood pressure, a precursor to heart disease. Fortunately it’s not too late to turn the tide.
Eat your fill at breakfast Your coffee-and-slice-of-toast routine won’t do. Eating more food early in the day is one of the best ways to stop middle-age spread in its tracks. A new study in the American Journal of Epidemiology found that people who consumed 22 to 50 percent of their total daily kilojoules at breakfast gained less weight than those who took in less than half as much.
“If you have a substantial breakfast, you’ll be less likely to overeat during the rest of the day,” says sports nutritionist Molly Kimball. So if your kJ budget is around 382kJ a day, aim to have at least 150 of them first thing in the morning. “A nutritionist’s dream breakfast is a bowl of oatmeal with some fruit and nuts,” says Kimball. “They’re all high in fibre, which keeps you fuller for longer and protects against diabetes.”
Take up a hobby The lifelong pursuit of happiness gets even trickier in your 40s. “Many women are caught caring for their children and their ageing parents, which is stressful,” says Dr Agin. Plus, this is the time many women undergo peri-menopause, the two- to 10-year transitional period leading up to menopause. Because of fluctuating hormones, women in this phase are twice as likely to be depressed, say researchers at Harvard (US). To ward off the blues, find an activity you enjoy.
Researchers at the University of Nottingham (UK) found that happy people often named a hobby as one of their top pleasures. But if your moodiness is paired with sleepless nights and hot flushes, consult your gynaecologist.
Lace up your trainers “As you age, your oestrogen levels fall while your blood pressure and cholesterol levels rise, a triple whammy for the heart,” says gynaecologist Dr Donnica Moore. An important way to protect your ticker, she says, is to exercise regularly. Even if you haven’t been to the gym for years, you can still reap the benefits: Former couch potatoes who started working out a few days a week were half as likely to develop heart disease as their sedentary peers, found a study in the journal Heart.
Start off small by exercising for 20 minutes a day three days a week. Then work your way up to at least half an hour four to six times a week.
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