Women’s Health: How to Make the Most of Your Options for Care

Apart from general health issues, women have multiple unique health care concerns throughout their lifespan. Some of these concerns include pregnancy, menopause, breast and reproductive health, and though men and woman share a lot of the same general health concerns, they can affect women very differently. Some of these differences are:

Heart Health – 40% of women do not survive their first heart attack
Mental Health – women are more likely to suffer from depression and anxiety
Sexually Transmitted Diseases – the effects of STDs are more serious in women than in men
Bone Density – women make up 80% of the estimated 10 million Americans with osteoporosis
Lupus – women make up 9 out of 10 adults with Lupus

With all of this to consider, it is important for women to remain aware of their state of health with regular visits to the doctor and healthy lifestyle choices, but keeping all of these issues in check can be costly. Between co-pays for doctor’s visits, the cost of lab work and the cost of the follow-up visit, a single check-up could run hundreds, if not thousands of dollars depending on access to health insurance and the level of coverage. To help keep health care costs under control and understanding that women’s health needs are particular, Health Care Reform under the Affordable Care Act has declared a list of eight preventative health services just for women that are available with no cost-sharing or co-payment due upon visit to the doctor*. These services became accessible to women on August 1, 2012 and include:

Breastfeeding: access to breastfeeding supplies as well as comprehensive support and counseling from trained providers for pregnant and nursing women
Contraception: Food and Drug Administration-approved contraceptive methods, sterilization procedures, and patient education and counseling
Domestic and interpersonal violence: screening and counseling for all women
Gestational diabetes: screening for women 24 to 28 weeks pregnant and those at high risk of developing gestational diabetes
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV): screening and counseling for sexually active women
Human Papillomavirus (HPV) DNA Test: high risk HPV DNA testing every three years for women with normal cytology results who are 30 or older
Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI): screening and counseling for sexually active women
Well-woman visits: to obtain recommended preventive services

*Coverage by doctors within network. Check insurance coverage policies to confirm Along with this increased standard of care it is also important for women to know that they have choices when managing costs and their level of care. For women with low-income that are possibly unable to afford health insurance, options such as Medicaid have been expanded to offer free or low-cost care, the Bronze plan is available within the Health Insurance Marketplace and covers 60% of health care costs with 40% of costs paid for out-of-pocket and Catastrophic Plans are available for those under 30 years of age and are considered healthy but want to have minimum coverage, “just in case.” Eligibility for these plans depend on income and family size. In addition, there are always Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) linked to high-deductable plans and cover most services such as lab tests, telemedicine services and prescriptions. Simple tips for women that want to keep their health and cost for care in check are:

Make healthy lifestyle choices such as healthy eating habits and dedicating to regular, moderate exercise
Create a calendar for the year for all necessary, preventative “Well-Woman” services and include a budget for each visit
Pay for affordable services out of pocket, such as lab testing whenever possible
There is no longer any need to go to your doctor for a baseline of your health – pay for cholesterol, heart health, hormone and wellness tests out-of-pocket or with an HSA or FSA at your local affordable, direct access lab testing facility ANY LAB TEST NOW®.

Take Control of Your Health® and stay up-to-date on the latest in women’s health issues by visiting our site regularly at www.anylabtestnow.com, by “liking” our Facebook Page, or following us on Twitter, and Pinterest.

Celebrating National Nutrition Month

Are you known in your social circle as the ‘foodie’ of the group? Who doesn’t enjoy celebrating food, right? Well all throughout the month of March you get a chance to celebrate your passion for food during National Nutrition Month and share your ‘foodie’ experience with your friends. However before you can share your love of food with your family and friends it is important that you know how to make nutritious food choices and that you incorporate them with good physical activity habits.

The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has given this year’s celebration the theme of “Eat Right, Your Way, Every Day”, encouraging individuals to personalize their eating habits towards a healthier path and help them to identify the factors that ultimately influence their food choices. Our food choices are influenced by the events in our everyday life, busy lifestyles, cultural traditions and most importantly our health concerns. Health concerns, depending on the condition, should be a main factor in how we personalize our eating plans.

So perhaps your food choices aren’t always the most nutritious. That can be okay, as long as you balance your overall daily intake and combine it with an active lifestyle. Nutrition boils down to learning about how our bodies work and how to create an eating plan that is tailored to our lifestyle, health needs and of course our tastes. In addition knowing how our bodies will react to the meals we enjoy is key to creating a balanced healthy eating plan. Let’s say that during one of your ‘foodie’ adventures you came across a meal that your body just did not agree with. That disagreement could have been caused by a number of things. It could be that your body is intolerant or sensitive, or perhaps you are allergic to one or more of the ingredients in that meal. Even if you are eating healthy, it is still possible that your body is deficient in specific vitamins and minerals.

There is no better time to Take Control of Your Health®. ANY LAB TEST NOW® offers a variety of tests that can help you learn more about your body’s current state and help you reach nutritional wellness. In order to do that, it is important to learn about the different food ingredients your body might be sensitive, intolerant or allergic to. Understanding how your body reacts to food through lab testing can help you truly create a tailored healthy meal plan that works just for you. It is also good to know what vitamins and minerals you might be missing. Use National Nutrition Month to celebrate food in a healthy way and share with your friends and family all you have learned. Why not prepare a feast with the healthy foods you love for them and plan a fun, physical activity for everyone after the meal?

Remember you are what you eat, and ANY LAB TEST NOW® is here to help you Take Control of Your Health®. To learn more about our nutrition-based lab tests including nutrient testing, food sensitivity, intolerance or allergies visit www.anylabtestnow.com.

Getting in the Spirit of National Collegiate Health and Wellness Week

Going to college is a great experience. It is the time when you finally get to study the subjects you are really interested in and when you begin to work towards your future career. You are the one and only responsible for what comes next for Y-O-U, including meeting deadlines, paying bills on time and of course taking care of your health. Welcome to adulthood!

Now let’s talk about the process to get into college. Yes grades, tests scores and a comprehensive entry essay are a given; but the other side of this process believe it or not comes down to your health. Are your immunizations up to date? Have you been tested for venereal diseases? Some institutions may also require you to take a drug test. All these elements combined and perhaps an interview will determine whether you get in or not.

Next… Congratulations you got accepted! Now the grind begins, you are on a roll and burning the midnight oil has become part of your daily routine. You figured “why not I’m young I’ll catch up on Z’s once I graduate!” Ask yourself do these activities affect my overall health and wellness? The answer to that question is YES! Let’s be honest that midnight oil being burned is not just due to studying and once you graduate the time to catch up on Z’s decreases. It has been reported that some of the main health concerns on campuses across the country include lack of sleep, infectious diseases, alcohol abuse and lack of exercise.

The time to Take Control of Your Health® is now! You might ask yourself, but “how do I do that?” Perhaps doing the good old buddy system could work. ANY LAB TEST NOW® can be that buddy you need to help you stay on top of things and make sure you’re healthy. We have the tests that you don’t have to study for including titer testing, STD testing and overall wellness checkups. Plus, we have B-12 shots that can help you boost that energy after those all-nighters. Get in the spirit of National Collegiate Health and Wellness Week, increase your awareness about the importance of staying healthy, fit and get educated on how to do it. Visit www.anylabtestnow.com to find additional information on how to Take Control of Your Health® and visit a location near you.

Vitamin D’s Critical Link to Belly Fat

Are you one of the millions of Americans who struggles to lose weight, but is stuck and the weight is just hanging on, especially around your middle? You’re not the only one. Studies in exercising have shown us the unfortunate results that you may not be able to eliminate that spare tire no matter how many crunches you do. There is evidence that one way to eliminate belly fat specifically is to increase your intake of vitamin D. Not only is a thinner waist every overweight person’s dream, it is also much better for your health.

Research conducted at the Medical College of Georgia on 650 teens showed that those with a higher intake of vitamin D had lower overall body fat and lower amounts of fat in the abdomen. Abdominal body fat has been linked to a higher risk of some diseases. For women, a waist size above 35 inches and for men, a waist above 40 inches is linked to insulin resistance increasing the risk of diabetes and heart disease. When you have insulin resistance, your blood is flooded with glucose, which increases your risk for diabetes. It also fills it with other molecules that promote heart-clogging blood clots.

In the absence of the active form of vitamin D both adipose (fat) and cancer cells are allowed to multiply relatively unchecked. With a sufficient amount of vitamin D however, fat cells are signaled to shrink, making weight loss much easier when calories are restricted and keeping cancer cell growth in check. With so many of us trying to lose weight, we are working against ourselves by not providing our bodies with one of the major tools necessary to reach our weight loss goals. Because there is less sun in the winter and we spend less time outdoors it is even more difficult to get enough vitamin D, which may explain winter weight gain.

ANY LAB TEST NOW^® offers the 25-hydroxyvitamin D test which measures the level of active vitamin D in your body. This lets you know if you have the enough vitamin D circulating in your body to start losing weight and, specifically, losing it from your middle. There is hope for eliminating disease and preventing obesity and it may be as simple as popping a vitamin D supplement before you launch your weight loss program. Take the right steps now and your body will thank you.