TEN TIPS FOR STAYING HEALTHY

1. Immunize.
Immunization is the best way to prevent serious diseases such as diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio, measles, mumps, rubella, hepatitis B virus, and Hib, a type of bacteria that causes meningitis. Protect your family by keeping your immunizations and those of your children up to date.

2. Keep moving.
A minimum of 30 accumulated minutes of moderate exercise almost every day can improve your health significantly. Regular physical activity helps to maintain a healthy body weight and also helps control cholesterol and blood pressure. Moderate exercise will also help you enjoy life more. The best exercises to strengthen the heart and lungs are the aerobic ones like brisk walking, jogging, dancing, and swimming. Weight bearing exercises such as walking, jogging, dancing, and tennis also build stronger bones.

3. Eat right.
A well-balanced diet of nutritious high-fibre, low-fat foods will give you energy and help prevent many health problems such as high blood pressure and high blood cholesterol.

4. Control stress.
Learning to relax can help you avoid the wear and tear on your immune system that comes with unrelieved stress. Simple relaxation exercises can slow heart rate and breathing, lower blood pressure, and help relieve muscle tension.

5. Be smoke-free.
The best approach is never to start smoking. If you do smoke, quitting brings tremendous health benefits. It is one of the most important things you can do for yourself and the health of those around you.

6. Avoid illicit drugs and excess alcohol.
Many medical problems are associated with the overuse or abuse of alcohol or illicit drugs.

7. Put safety first.
To stay healthy, practice safety at home, at work, and at play. For example, two important practices that will help you stay healthy are safe driving and safe sex.

8. Allow time for healthy pleasures.
Enjoy the company of friends and family, take naps, play with your kids, laugh, care for a pet, get involved in your community, and pursue your passion. Enjoyment can add to your health.

9. Think positively about yourself and your options.
Your immune system responds to your thoughts, emotions, and actions. People with positive attitudes are often healthier. On the other hand, pessimism often aggravates ill health. See change as a challenge, an opportunity instead of a threat. Strong spiritual beliefs can also support your pursuit of healing and health.

10. Seek peaceful solutions to the conflicts in your life.
Look for constructive, non-violent ways to resolve conflicts at home, at school, at work, and in your community. Contact a health professional or your local women’s center for help if you are concerned about violent behavior in yourself, a family member, or a friend.

What Women Should Know

1. Women are not only half the population; they more often take the lead in the management of health in their families. An investment in women’s health has large payoffs for the entire population–not just

2. Women face more barriers to good health

3. Women live longer, but with lower quality of life in their later years.

4. Simple things can be done to improve women’s health, with large gains for little investment.

5. Primary health care embodies many of the basic health-promoting principles identified through years of research as critical to achieving gains in women’s health.

What Women Should Do

Avoiding tobacco, increasing physical activity, making informed nutritional choices, and regularly visiting their health care provider, will ensure that Wisconsin women are included in the vision of "healthy people in healthy Wisconsin communities." Women’s use of the health care system exceeds that of men by 25 per cent, and even more when health services associated with pregnancy and birthing are considered. Consequently, when changes to the health system are made, it is essential that the health care needs of women are considered throughout the planning and change process. Primary health care in B.C. requires health system change. It has been identified as a priority for the province, based on data and results from many jurisdictions, including leading-edge primary health care rojects in British Columbia. As a result, both the provincial and federal governments have committed resources to improve primary health care services. The basic premise for ensuring long-term health is that the best opportunities to improve health occur when health care services are focused on prevention, integration and patient involvement.