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Heart Disease Killing More Women Globally

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Heart  disease is the prevalent health threat to women across the globe now. This is an important information which women should know and guard against.
According to Internat-ional studies, heart disease used to be a men’s issue, but in the last few decades, women had closed up and over taken men in deaths from heart disease.
Cleveland clinic report states that heart disease affects women of all ages and ethnicities, making it the leading global cause of death in women. It further notes that, many women don’t know that heart disease is seven times deadlier than breast cancer.
Meanwhile, researchers have found many sex related differences in the cardiovascular system.
Studies revealed that women have smaller blood vessels and heart chambers, and the walls of their ventricles are thinner.
Also, women have fewer blood cells, as a result, women can not take in or carry as much oxygen at any given time and are prone to heart failure. More so, body position, like quickly standing up or lying down affect women more than men thereby making women more likely to have sudden drops in blood pressure or faint.
The hormones, Estrogen and Progesterone are dominant in women while Testosterone dominates in men. These hormones can impact many aspects of overall health.
Studies also have it that,in women, as Estrogen drops, they face a higher risk of blood clot, plaque in the arteries and high cholestrol which can lead to stroke.
Also,though sleep apnea (a potentially serious sleep disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts) is common in both men and women, research has shown that a woman with sleep apnea without treatment have a higher risk of hypertension, coronary artery disease, stroke and a trial fibrillation. Therefore, treatment for sleep apnea is highly effective at reducing the risk.
An obstetrist and gynaecologist, Dr Kirtly Jones in a review stated that, the risk of coronary artery disease in preme-nopausal  women is much lower than the same aged men, but after menopause, women start to catch up from 60 years, they had passed men in the incidents of heart disease.
Dr Jones said that some changes in midlife that increase the risk have to do with the ovary, menopause and ageing.
According to him, “Estrogens keep arteries elastic, after menopause women  are at higher risk of high blood pressure. Estrogens also help keep good cholesterol a little higher for reasons we don’t understand, also diabetes is a little less likely before menopause and diabetes is a risk factor for heart disease”.
He also said that women as they get older gain weight in the middle and they exercise less, All these add to the risk of hypertension, diabetes and heart disease which combine with things that are related to the ovary. The risk factors include diabetes, overweight, obesity, poor diet, physical inactivity, excessive alcohol intake and smoking”.
According to reports published by the Harvard Health Publishing (Harvard Medical School) before menopause, a woman’s own Estrogen helps protect her from heart disease by increasing HDL (good) cholesterol  and decreasing LDL (bad) cholesterol. But after menopause, women have higher concentrations of total cholesterol than men do.
The report states that elevated triglycerides are important contributor to cardiovascular risk in women. Also, Low HDL and high triglycerides appear to be the only factors that increase the risk of death from heart disease in women over age 65.
Harvard Medical School research therefore, suggests that, for women, metabolic syndrome is the most important risk factor for having heart attacks at an usually early age.
These include large waist size, elevated blood pressure and glucose intolerance.
“Women who smoke are more likely to have heart attack as male smokers. For diagnosis and treatment, women have smaller and lighter coronary arteries than men do. This makes angiography, angioplasty and coronary bypass surgery more difficult to do thereby reducing a woman’s chance of recieving proper diagnosis and having a good outcome”, the report stated.
However, in another view, a senior researcher and an Associate Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Dr Erin Michos revealed that cardiovascular disease mortality is going up in younger women.
She noted that younger women have to advocate for their own health. That they need to know their blood pressure, chole-sterol and blood sugar levels and they need to make sure that they are getting treatment for these and other risk factors for heart disease.
“We know that women who have had history of preclampsia or gestational diabetes or preterm delivery are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease. Also, women who go through menopause early before age 45 are at increased risk of heart disease. There is still this misconception that women are at lower risk especially if they are before menopause. But this is not necessarily true”, she added.
She also said that stress is leading to an increase in risk factors, “Women are not able to take care of themselves, they are last on the list which is the problem”, she added.
Other studies explain that women now lead stressful lives than men by balancing corporate jobs with household responsibilities, noting that also more women now smoke and drink all sorts of alcohol making them more vunerable.
More researches show that stress may impact health negatively, making it important for women to understand their mind-body connection and how to focus on improving both their physical health and mental well being. However, the risk factors include high blood pressure, high LDL (Low density Lipoprotein), cholesterol and smoking.
According to Center for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States of America, symptoms of heart disease include full and heavy or sharp chest pain or discomfort, pain in the neck, jaw or throat or pain in the upper abdomen or back. These symptoms may happen while resting or doing regular daily activities. Other symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, fatigue, indigestion, heart burn, upper body discomfort, dizziness and shortness of breath, palpitations, swelling of the feet, ankles, legs, abdomen or neck veins.
To reduce heart disease, women should regularly test for high blood pressure, diabetes, quit smoking, check blood cholesterol and trigly-cerides, be more active, get at least 30 minutes walk, limit alcohol intake, manage stress levels by finding healthy ways to cope

By: Ibinabo Ogolo

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Women

The Desire Of Every Woman In Marriage

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A woman needs a man that is honest,  trustworthy,  nice,  loving and financially stable.
There are no two ways about finance in marriage. No matter the level of love, If there is no money,  it is always difficult.


Referring to the Biblical belief in Genesis 3:Your desire  shall be unto you……..
That is one aspect  the woman expects her husband to take care of.
A woman wants a husband that is not lazy,  at least helping to do one or two things.   A man that is educated and intelligent.
She knows that there is a trait that her husband has.  Traits of taking care of people,  giving freely to people and caring for her family.
A woman wants to love a husband that has family interest at heart. A man that spends time with his family,  remembering his family even as he is away from home.
A woman should not antagonise her husband because of one error or the other. No matter the level of offence he may have committed, you still show some love.


According to the Scripture, it is with wisdom that the women builds her home.
It is not as if the woman will not monitor her husband, but to certain limit.  Don’t be a monitoring spirit.  Don’t allow anything to take your joy.
Don’t loose trust in your husband.
The idea of checking your husband’s phone should be discouraged. The more you check your husband and his phone, the more you loose your joy.


The home should not be a battle ground for a woman and man.  A woman should be able to ask herself if the check on her husband will pay her any good.
Draw a line to a point where you checkmate your husband’s activities.
A woman wants a man that will love her and telling her you love her will be all she desires.

Eunice Choko-Kayode

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Women

What Women Want In Yet-To -Be Husbands

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What women want in their yet-to- be husbands matters a lot as far as marriage is concerned.
A woman desires a good fnancial prospect. Interestingly, some modern women place a man’s financial potential as more desirable than they have in the past.
Many decades ago, women ranked it lower on the list. It still comes in after items like love and maturity, but perhaps today’s women realise that a good economic partner is good husband material.
Good health has been an important characteristic for women through the 20th century and remains so these days. One might argue that because we’re living even longer, health plays a huge role in the success of a marriage. Women are anxious to know that their partners are healthy to be able to run the family together.
You discover that in most faith based organisations, would- be couples are mandated to go for medical tests to ascertain their health status as it concerns HIV/AIDS, Genotype and other related ones. This according to stakeholders is to ensure that couples raise healthy families.
Ambition has become less important to women over time, though it still being considered even if women nowadays are thriving in the workforce competing with the male folk. It may be because more women are thriving in the workforce, they want a husband who has earning power but are not looking for him to be the sole provider.
More women want husbands with pleasing disposition. They may not want a man who is always moody. A man who is always cheerful is whom they desire.
Surprisingly, a man’s likes do not rank as high on women’s list of wants as it used to. Until recently, women are more willing to accept a man for who he his, despite the inevitable mood he may be.
Sociability from both men and women rank very high on their marriag material list. And for both sexes, it has been steadily moving up the list for many years. The rise of the “love marriage,” a partnership based on attraction rather than practicalities (like wealth or status) might mean that married couples are more likely to be friends and have mutual circles of friends.
A lot of couples want to associate with others and then socialise. Attending parties of other friends forms part of their marriage requirements.
Women have placed education and intelligence top making it one of their most desirable male traits for decades. This timeline coincides with more and more women receiving college education themselves. Once education becomes important in women’s lives, it is a more attractive trait in potential husbands.
Of course when a woman is educated, she is likely to go for an educated man. When they are gainfully employed, their income boost the family affairs faster.
Today, women are much more attracted to men who are interested in home and family than they ever have been. Men who have desire for their home and children is whom they desire.
After a days job, a man will come home to ensure that his children are comfortable. Because most women today are expecting to be in dual-earner relationships, they want husbands who will be happy and willing to contribute at home. More women today even report that they hope he will take the lead at home.
A woman wants a man who is emotionally stable and mature. Growing big physically is not the issue but maturity in the heart.
Men, too, place a heavy emphasis on a potential wife’s emotional maturity, signaling that it is a key quality for a stable partnership. Women seem to look past appearance to the heart of the matter.
A woman wants a man who is not easily provoked. Dependable character is what some women want in marriage.
Women want husbands that they can count on, and this has not changed in recent years. Yes, women look to their spouses to be lovers and friends, they also want them to be supportive and trustworthy. They want to know that their husbands will be there and remain loyal. Men, too, desire dependable character from their yet-to be wives.
Mutual attraction and love from the first appearance is what they want till they become old.
The highest-rated characteristic women seek from men is mutual attraction and love. Some no longer look for a man who will provide everything, afterall they are also educated and are gainfully employed, they want to be in love.
For some women, even when the man do not provide household needs, the love shown on her is enough. When women had no job prospects and needed to marry, they desired love . The women’s movement has not only helped women pursue careers, it has also given them more choice in love.

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Echoes Of IWD : Need To Invest In Women

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As this year’s Internatinal Women’s Day (IWD) has come and gone, there are calls from different quarters on the need to invest in women so that we can achieve accelerated growth.
It was, indeed, a thing of joy when Rivers Women Unite For Sim, took delivery of large quantities of sanitary towels and some bags of rice provided them for this year’s celebration.
Many young women expressed joy that they got such gesture since some of them have financial problems getting sanitary towels whenever they are on.
Some secondary school students were also lucky to have a share of the benefits. They also got some sanitary towels.
The Rivers State Commissioner for Women Affairs organised a platform to celebrate and honour the women for the remarkable jobs they perform in their homes and society.
Addressing women on the occasion, the Hon. Commissioner for Women Affairs, Dr. Roseline Apawari Uranta, noted that women from time immemorial have been great pillars in achieving remarkable heights and stressed that IWD across the globe is pivotal all women for the roles they play in bringing, nurturing and sustaining life.
Dr. Uranta said that IWD, which started in 1911 and celebrated annually on March 8, is a global day that provides women a platform to address economic inclusion, participation in political and public life.
She said the day was set aside to look into lack of access to education for the girl-child, gender-based violence, child marriage, child trafficking, harmful cultural practices as well as other challenges facing women around the globe.
The Hon. Commissioner, who described March 8 as a day to celebrate the socio-economic, cultural and political achievements of women, emphasised that it is a day that offers women the opportunity to reflect on progressive achievements.
Noting that it is an opportunity to call for change, she stressed that it is also an opportunity to celebrate acts of courage and every achievement made by ordinary women who did extraordinary things and are remembered in history.
She noted that the IWD2024 theme:”Invest In Women, Accelerate Progress”, is timely and apt because according to her, to achieve gender equality, we must ensure that the rights, responsibilities and opportunities of women do not elude them.
Her words: ” We must see investing in women as a human right issue and consider investing in women as a social tool to eradicate poverty since women are helpmeet in the homes while a handful are breadwinners in their respective families”.
The commissioner urged women to uphold the deliberate act of investing in themselves, be it furthering formal education, developing a new skill as well as learning a trade.
“Shun idleness, always find something positive and productive to do, regardless of your age, social status and financial capabilities”, she said.
In a paper presentation, Dr. Dabota God’swill Jumbo, reiterated that investing in women would attract good and positive dividends to herself and the society at large and noted that it is essential in addressing poverty, hunger and climate change.
The guest speaker said women need more opportunities in elective and appointive positions, hence the need to encourage and support them in politics.
According to her, when you invest in women, they will be able to create safer environment devoid of gender-based violence.
In a goodwill message, the spokesperson, Rivers Women Unite For Sim, Mrs Charity Deemua appreciated the organisers for making it possible for women to gather and celebrate themselves.
She commended those who created a day like March 8 of every year to celebrate women and regretted that the girl-child was seen as a second-class person decades ago.
The former commissioner, Rivers State House of Assembly Commission, described those who taught it wise for women to celebrate as conquerors, tough and strong.
International Association of World Peace Advocates, a world-class organisation with the United Nations, honoured different categories of women.
In Cross River State, 150 women were empowered with about N15m to boost their small and medium scale businesses.
According to stakeholders, the women empowerment is vital in addressing social, economic and political challenges and will make them self-reliant.
An NGO, Association of Professional Women Engineering Technologists (APWET), said it’s aim is to promote professional excellence among engineering personnel, advocating for women and girl-child education.
With what we saw in terms of response to women’s call on issues affecting them from relevant authorities, we are optimistic that the women will do better whenever they are empowered.
If we must kick out cervical, breast and other forms of cancer in women, underage marriage, prostitution, we must invest in women.
There were goodwill messages from National Council for Women Societies (NCWS), International Federation of Female Lawyers (FIDA), Medical Women Association of Nigeria (MWAN), Nigeria Copyright Commission (NCC, Nigeria Association of Female Journalists (NAWOJ), among others.

By: Eunice Choko-Kayode

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