Women's Health Issues

Nancy E. Avis & Laura Coker & Michelle Naughton

Women's health issues have traditionally been defined in terms of reproductive health such as menstrual cycles, infertility, pregnancy, and menopause. However, women's health is now considered to encompass a much wider range of topics, including diseases that are more common in women (such as osteoporosis, lupus, depression, and diabetes) as well as the leading causes of death among women (coronary heart disease, AIDS, and lung cancer). Women's health issues also include gender differences in health risks (such as substance abuse and physical inactivity); how societal influences such as social norms, poverty, and caregiving impact women's health; and violence against women. Sex differences in physiology and anatomy related to health consequences are also a growing area of interest. A 2001 report from the Institute of Medicine concludes that differences in the prevalence and severity of a broad range of diseases and conditions exist between the sexes and that the distinct anatomy ...

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