Till a few decades ago, women used to age gracefully even though they turned grandmothers before they turned 45, they never had to face the health risks that the women of the 21st century are faced with. In the days of old, the major illnesses that troubled humanity were malaria, tuberculosis, whooping cough, diphtheria, small pox, plague, and the likes. Now with the availability of vaccines which helps us fight against microorganisms, we might consider ourselves safe against these, though the times have changed and newer threats have emerged.

Fast forward to today and it is the lifestyle based degenerative diseases like heart attacks, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, the Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, asthma, obesity, arthritis, etc., which are the major diseases that the present generation is facing and fighting against, one way or the other. Cutting across racial and geographical barriers, it is common to see women and men grow grey by 25, sport wrinkles at 30, menopause and hypertension at 35, heart attack at 45 and things could be even worse. Though aging, to a large extent depends on genetic factors, other associated extrinsic factors can also influence it, substantially. Stress, social habits, drinking late nights and environmental factors can speed it up.

Regular exercise, proper diet and nutritional supplements can help delay the process and help fight against sedentary lifestyle defects and illnesses. More so in the case of women, as the dietary needs of women and men have not been created equal, even though they claim equality in all others. Women, in general have special nutritional needs primarily due to the fact that the female body goes through so many hormonal changes through the stages of puberty, menstruation, pregnancy, lactation and menopause, which can cause severe nutritional imbalances and deficiencies if not attended to as it should be.

Women found deficient of proteins, vitamins and minerals would never feel the effect immediately though it is sure to manifest itself in symptoms of degenerative diseases. As proteins are the basic building blocks of our body if you have a low protein intake, your dead brain cells may not get replaced as frequently as it does in a normal woman and it slowly manifests as memory loss which might lead to Alzheimer’s disease. But this memory loss can be countered by taking protein supplements that can work wonders for your brain and body.

If you are fashion conscious and enjoy a social life, regular intake of protein supplements would make your skin glow with a youthful luster even if you are beyond the age of youthfulness. If your intake of protein is insufficient, you will simply look older than you are. Protein supplements with all nine amino acids are recommended for women of all ages who see tell tale signs of protein depletion manifest in their body. It is always best to consult a physician or a nutritionist to find the best protein supplements. Evening primrose oil, which is available as extracts can work wonders for pre-menopausal women.

Most women hitting 50 say good-bye to pregnancy, face a certain loss of libido, and some even go so far as to term it as the end of womanhood. Antioxidants, beta-carotenes and iso-flavones, should be consumed both in the natural form of fruits, greens and vegetables, as well as extracts and nutritional supplements to counter the psychological and physical effects of menopause. Bone mass usually decreases during the menopausal years and your best insurance against calcium deficient fragile bones and osteoporosis, is to build good bones before menopause by consuming daily rations of calcium through the food and also taking calcium and protein supplements to maintain a positive imagery while passing through the menopause.