Women's Health and Wellness: An Illustrated Guide by Anatomical Chart Company (Editor)

From the Publisher

Women face a vast array of health and wellness issues over the course of a lifetime. One of the major goals of Women's Health and Wellness: An Illustrated Guide is to make these issues more understandable and to facilitate communication between women and their health care providers. This unique health resource uses over 100 meticulously illustrated images to teach the reader about the female body. These illustrations, along with current and concise information, make it easy to learn about women's most common health problems.

• Anatomy
• General Ailments
• Reproductive Health
• Cancer
• Healthy Aging
• Emotional Wellness
• Healthy Lifestyles

• Brief Definition
• Detailed Description
• Risk Factors
• Symptoms and Signs
• Prevention and Management

What People Are Saying

McClellan
Women's Health and Wellness: An Illustrated Guide is an excellent tool for women who are interested in taking an active role in maintaining good health. It includes information specific to women and its illustrations further educate women about their bodies. I will use it as a reference for my patients.
— Obstetrician/Gynecologist and Medical Advisor in the Women's Pavilion of the Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach, California

Ada P. Kahn
This comprehensive resource is essential to help women understand their bodies and communicate better with health care providers. Easy-to-understand illustrated anatomical images and concise text make this unique reference tool a must for every woman's personal bookshelf.
— author of Stress A-Z: A Sourcebook for Facing Everyday Challenges

Kamel
Women's Health and Wellness is aimed at facilitating communication between patients and physicians. It serves as a quick and understandable reference guide for all women, ultimately educating readers on the uniqueness of the female body and allowing for a more proactive approach to preventive healthcare. Filled with valuable illustrations, female-specific health topics, and insights into disease processes, this book is an invaluable resource focused on integrating health behavior changes and medical management strategies. I will strongly recommend it to my patients.
— author of the foreword of Women's Health and Wellness: An Illustrated Guide, Obstetrician and Gynecologist, The Women's Group of Northwestern, Assistant Clinical Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Northwestern University

Product Details

• Table of Contents
• Read an Excerpt

Table of Contents

Read an Excerpt

Type 2 Diabetes Chaper

About 17 million people*6.2 percent of the U.S. population*have been
diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. It is estimated that another 5.9 million
Americans have type 2 diabetes but have not yet been diagnosed1.

Heart disease rates are three to seven times higher among women ages 45 to
64 who have diabetes than in healthy women in the same age range2.

BRIEF DEFINITION
Type 2 diabetes mellitus occurs when the body's cells develop a resistance
to the insulin and/or when there is a decrease in insulin secretion. Insulin
is needed to transport glucose from the bloodstream to the cells in order to
supply energy to the body.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Type 2 diabetes mellitus is the far more common type of diabetes. About
90-95 percent of women with diabetes have Type 2 diabetes3.  It develops
primarily in adults, but can also occur in children. 

People with Type 2 diabetes form an insulin deficiency (lack of insulin)
and/or an insulin resistance (inability to use your own insulin), which
causes glucose (blood sugar) to build up in the bloodstream, causing
complications in many parts of the body.

RISK FACTORS
Type 2 diabetes often develops in adults and children who are obese. Other
risk factors include:
-A family history of diabetes.
-Native American, Hispanic American, or African American race or ethnicity.
-A history of diabetes during pregnancy (known as gestational diabetes).
-An inactive lifestyle.
-Age (older people are more at risk for Type 2 diabetes).
-Pre-diabetes-blood glucose levels that are higher than normal but not yet
high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes.

SYMPTOMS AND SIGNS
Symptoms of type 2 diabetes may include:
-Frequent urination.
-Excessive thirst.
-Extreme hunger.
-Weight loss despite increased appetite.
-Sudden blurred vision.
-Fatigue.
-Very dry skin.
-Numbness, tingling, or pain in the legs, feet, or fingers.
-Frequent infections of the vagina, bladder, or skin.
-Sores that heal slowly.

PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT
Measures to help prevent Type 2 diabetes include:
-Maintain a healthy weight.
-Eat a high-fiber, low-fat, low-cholesterol diet.
-Exercise regularly: 30 minutes of moderate physical activity on most, if
not all days.

Experts recommend that adults age 45 and older be tested for diabetes.
People in high-risk groups should be tested earlier.

For people already diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, treatment is focused on
keeping the level of blood sugar (glucose) within a normal range.  The
following are key components of a Type 2 diabetes control strategy:
-Meal plan to control weight, glucose levels and cholesterol. 
-Blood sugar monitoring to control the disease and prevent diabetic
emergencies.
-Oral diabetes medications to improve insulin release, reducing glucose
and/or decrease insulin resistance.
-Exercise plan to maintain a fit body, lower blood glucose, improve
cholesterol levels, and increase insulin sensitivity.
-Regular doctor checkups.

Sources:
1. National Diabetes Clearinghouse, 2002.
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2001.
3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2001.