On International Women’s Day, it is even more important to talk about women’s health. Making a few small changes to our daily routine can help to improve our health, for now and in the years to come. Sona Nutrition has compiled some useful tips with 4 Ways You Can Protect & Future Proof Your Health Today.

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Studies have shown if women look after core elements of their health at crucial times in their 20s and 30s, it will lead to better health and wellness in later life. This is even more critical for women as they prepare to have children and in the years after their children are born.

Tips to Future Proof Your Health

#1. Body Awareness

Being mindful of key things like body weight, family health history, allergies and intolerances is crucial. General personal health education can lead to better choices when it comes to a health routine. If there’s a history of heart or brain related illness in the family, often lifestyle and diet can help towards preventing the onset of these conditions in later life.

Top Tip: Take a daily multivitamin, along with Omega 3 and B-complex vitamins, as they provide women with additional dietary support, ensuring their systems are working to maximum effect.

#2. Get Moving

It is recommended that we do at least 150 minutes (2.5 hours) of moderate aerobic exercise a week to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Regular exercise is proven to boost happiness levels, stave off diseases like heart disease, diabetes and arthritis and controls body mass which results in a healthier, happier life.

When women do not regularly exercise, they are far more likely to suffer from diseases like Osteoporosis, which is preventable if small actions like regular exercise and a healthy diet are adhered to.

Top Tip: Boost your diet with vitamins and supplements such as Calcium, Vitamin D and Magnesium in earlier life, which can help prevent the on-set of diseases like Osteoporosis in later life.

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#3. A Healthy Mind

Mental health is now a frontline issue for men and women in Ireland – especially as Ireland has the highest rate of depression among pregnant women in the OECD, according to a 2016 study from Trinity College Department of Psychiatry.

Ensuring mental health is treated with the same importance as physical health is crucial in promoting overall health and wellbeing. Some small steps can be taken to improve overall mood and happiness:

• Minimising time on social media and socialising face-to-face with people is proven to lift the mood
• Exercising regularly releases endorphins which act as the ‘happy hormone’ within the body
• Practising mindfulness or yoga regularly gives the mind a chance to slow down and de-stress.

Top Tip: New studies have shown that good gut health also leads to a happier life. Taking a good probiotic can help regulate the bacteria in the stomach thus resulting in improved overall bodily function.

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#4. You Are What You Eat

Although education on what constitutes as a well-balanced diet is improving, Irish people still have a way to go in eating the right foods. This is even more crucial for women of child-bearing age as they tend to lack certain vitamins and minerals at an important time in their lives. Iron is extremely important for women to take regularly.

The recommended daily allowance (RDA) is 14mg, compared to 10mg per day for men. However, recent research has shown that Irish women in this age group are not getting enough iron. According to the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Insititute, the iron in red meat can be absorbed up to seven times more easily than iron in fruit, vegetables, nuts and cereals.

Meat is also important because, when eaten at the same meal, it can help to increase the absorption of fruit, vegetables, nuts and cereals. Vitamin C also helps to promote the absorption of iron from these foods.

Top Tip: Eating a wide variety of healthy foods, and building occasional treats into a menu limits the levels of saturated fats in the body which is one of the main causes of heart-related diseases and stroke, which is common in Irish women. The Mediterranean Diet is proven to reduce the onset of cardiovascular disease. This consists of a mixture of oily fish, lots of vegetables and the use of olive oil on a daily basis.

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Thanks to Sona Nutrition for providing the tips, Sona is the oldest and largest Irish producer of vitamin mineral supplements in Ireland and has over 33 years’ experience in formulating quality vitamins, and herbal remedies.

What steps do you take to future proof your health? Leave a comment below and let us know – we’d love to hear from you!