In recent years as our knowledge of women's health has grown we have become more aware of the big physiological differences that there are between men and women and how because of this the need to treat each gender differently and look at sex when diagnosing certain conditions is beneficial.

Our attention should be drawn to the primary areas of concern for all women such as reproductive health, heart disease, female cancers and diet.

Looking at our diet is one of the most predominant ways to ensure good health. We know that over half of all women are overweight today and of that number a good many are classed as clinically obese. Aside from being a key factor for low self esteem and possibly more importantly, the knock-on effect of obesity has on health, it has strong links with conditions such as diabetes and infertility along with high blood pressure and heart disease. Adopting a healthy eating regime for women along with moderate daily exercise is something that should be encouraged if the aforementioned are to be avoided.

Another health issue specific to women is of course the female cancers. Where as some improvements have been made, specifically to breast cancer, with the treatment being vastly improved and the detection being far earlier, over the past ten years the survival rates have improved quite dramatically.

Ovarian cancer however has not had the same luck. Ovarian cancer is a difficult to diagnose illness. Most women experience many of its symptoms on a monthly basis without ever having anything wrong with them. However, those same symptoms can be a warning that ovarian cancer is present. So if you suffer from excessive gas, changes to your weight or a felling of fullness in your pelvis it's wise to get checked out by your doctor, just to be sure.

Heart disease is actually modern societies biggest killer of women and men but it is much more likely to kill a woman than a man therefore it is of utmost importance that women keep a careful eye on all heart disease triggers. As mentioned earlier diet and exercise and of course not smoking play a massive part ion combating this disease.

There have been many changes in birth control over the years the most recent and most notable one being a pill. This dispenses a low dose of hormone over 84 days and produces menstruation only 4 times a year rather than the 12 times we are familiar with. This has a double positive effect due to the side effects of the pill becoming far less noticeable. It is better tolerated by women prone to experiencing them because of the low dosage administered and also the fewer periods of bleeding are also an obvious attraction for most women.