Focus is on women's health this week

By BETTY SMITH
Press special writer

TAHLEQUAH DAILY PRESS May 15, 2008 11:52 am

— Today, many women keep busy juggling their job and household responsibilities.
They make sure the kids get to the doctor for their checkups or whenever they’re sick, but they don’t always take such good care of themselves.
For this reason, national officials encourage women to sit back and take a look at their health this week. It’s a good time to schedule that regular checkup or mammogram you’ve been delaying, to decide to eat healthier meals or get more exercise, even if it just means walking up the stairs at work.
“The health department encourages all women to get a regular well-woman checkup; to participate in smoking cessation programs, if they are currently smokers, and to use alcohol only in moderation,” said Linda Axley, administrator of the Cherokee County Health Department.
“We also know how hard it is to incorporate enough aerobic activity into women’s busy lives, but it’s so important to try to prioritize at least 30 minutes to focus on our own health and wellness with a daily fitness routine,” Asley said. “Most women take care of other folks on a day-in, day-out basis and tend to neglect caretaking for themselves.”
Women’s Health Week kicked off Monday and runs through Sunday. It is designed to empower women to become healthier by taking action.
The U.S Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women’s Health, sponsor of the event, promotes women making their health a top priority. Families, communities, businesses, government, health organizations and other groups work to educate women about steps they can take to improve their physical and mental health and prevent disease.
The program recommends:
• Physical activity most days of the week.
• Healthy food choices.
• Visiting a health care provider for regular checkups and preventive screenings.
• Avoiding risky behaviors.
“We’re lucky in Cherokee County to have the resources and opportunities to participate in walking programs, such as Walk this Weigh, which lets you have fun with other folks at the same time you’re helping improve your own health,” Axley said.
Just being busy doesn’t mean a woman is getting enough exercise, said Lisa Bracken, instructor at the Yoga Barn at the Canebrake Resort.
“Running errands isn’t exercise,” she said. “Walking from the sofa to the refrigerator is activity, but it is not exercise.”
Exercise means getting the heart rate up and the blood circulating, promoting better health.
“When women take care of themselves and make a commitment to a program, whether healthy eating, yoga, a walk every morning when the sun comes up, that’s one of the greatest gifts a woman can give herself,” Bracken said. “I think the most important thing is to not set the goals so large they’re unachievable.”
Rather than vowing to run a half-marathon the next month when you’ve not been off the couch in ages isn’t realistic. But getting some form of exercise is essential, especially as women age, Bracken said.
Throughout the week, the Cherokee Nation is promoting women’s health for Cherokee citizens in general, as well as female tribal employees, at clinics around the nation’s 14 counties.
“A lot of time our own employees don’t even take the time for our well-women’s events because they are so busy,” said Angela Leach, program manager for the Cherokee Nation breast and cervical cancer family detection program. “We have case managers at each of our clinics this week.”
Most of the clinics have a display and several are sponsoring special events in conjunction with women’s heath week.
W.W. Hastings Indian Hospital had a display and health fair Monday. On Tuesday, Jessica Moore, Miss Indian Oklahoma, appeared at the new Three Rivers Health Clinic in Muskogee to discuss the importance of women’s health.
On Wednesday, women employees at the Three Rivers Center, which include a number of Tahlequah residents, received health exams.
On Friday, there will be a healthy lunch emphasis, and a presentation on colon cancer.
Other events are scheduled at clinics in Bartlesville, Nowata, Salina and Vinita.
Although it falls later than Women’s Health Week to fit scheduling, the Wilma P. Mankiller Health Clinic in Stilwell will provide well-women’s exams and mammograms for employees Friday, May 30.
The Cherokee Nation contracts with Hillcrest Medical Center to provide mobile mammogram services at its outlying clinics, and the mobile unit visits the clinics monthly. Women should have a baseline mammogram at age 35, and annual mammograms beginning at 40, Leach said. The mobile unit also provides screenings for the employees at the Cherokee clinics.
“We also encourage monthly breast self-exams for women,” she said.
While no one wants to contract cancer, improved screening and treatment has reduced the impact of the disease.
“People are getting screened earlier, cancers are getting caught earlier and treated earlier, so their chances of survival are greater,” Leach said.
She said the Cherokee Nation encourages women to make physical health a priority, get more exercise, and eat the right foods.
Principal Chief Chad Smith signed a Women’s Health Week proclamation supporting those principles.
Michelle Goss, clinical dietitian for the Cherokee Nation, and her staff educate people on how to improve their nutrition.
“Probably first off is looking at portion sizes,” she said. “Try not to go back for seconds on the main dish. If you do go back for seconds, try to go back for vegetables.”
Many people don’t eat the recommended five to nine daily servings of fruits and vegetables, which are lower in calories than many other foods and provide important nutrients.
Goss recommends baking, grilling or broiling rather than frying foods.
“We’re focusing on fiber for digestive health and a healthy heart,” she said.
She recommends using whole grains and cereals to achieve more fiber in the diet.

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