Women's Health Handbook Electronic Edition

90% of women's daily health problems can be solved by "avoiding 3 common misunderstandings + 4 basic examinations that must be done every year + precise maintenance according to age groups". We will also give you objective advice from different schools on controversial maintenance projects that are making a lot of noise on the Internet, so you don't have to read dozens of marketing articles to distinguish the true from the false.

Last week I was attending a gynecology clinic and met a 22-year-old girl who drank two large cups of freshly squeezed thick soy milk every day to nourish her skin and resist aging. After drinking it for three months, her breast hyperplasia was so painful that she shed tears. When she came in, she asked if the soy milk contained estrogen. In fact, there have been different opinions on this issue in the industry: Traditional Chinese medicine schools generally believe that people with estrogen-sensitive problems such as breast nodules and uterine fibroids should avoid foods with high estrogen content such as concentrated soy milk, royal jelly, and snow clams to avoid stimulating the growth of nodules; Western medicine schools generally believe that the activity of phytoestrogens is only one ten thousandth of human estrogen. As long as you do not drink five or six liters a day, it will not affect the body at all, and there is no need to be excessively tabooed. Both sides are reasonable. In fact, the most reliable criterion is your own feeling: after drinking it, you don’t experience breast tenderness or menstrual irregularities. It’s absolutely fine to drink it normally. If you feel really uncomfortable after drinking it, just drink less. There is no need to listen to either side.

Oh, by the way, there are still many girls who always feel that their private parts "need to be washed cleanly." Last summer, my best friend followed the trend and bought an Internet celebrity private part lotion, and rinsed the inside of her vagina every day before going to bed. As a result, she got fungal vaginitis within two weeks. It was so itchy that she couldn't sit still. It took two months of treatment before she was completely cured. This is actually a misunderstanding that the medical community has reached a consensus for a long time: the vagina itself has self-cleaning bacteria, and washing it casually will destroy the acid-base balance, causing even the disease to come out. It is enough to wash the vulva with warm water every day. If you really have itching, odor, or abnormal leucorrhea, go to the hospital to check the routine of leucorrhea. You can find out the problem for a few dozen yuan. Don't buy lotions blindly.

There is also a saying that has been passed down for decades, "You cannot wash your hair or exercise during your aunt's period." This is also the most controversial. The older generation always said that washing your hair during menstruation will cause headaches and exercising will cause menstrual leakage. Now many fitness bloggers say that exercising during menstruation will double the weight loss effect. My own experience is that there is really no need to adhere to standards: if you have severe menstrual cramps and the pain is so painful that you can't straighten your back, just lie down at home and don't force yourself to exercise to make it worse; if you don't feel any discomfort during menstruation, low-intensity exercise such as jogging and yoga can promote pelvic blood circulation and relieve the feeling of bloating. Wash your hair as long as you dry it with hot air in time and don't catch cold. It's totally fine. Whatever makes you feel comfortable.

In addition to these pitfalls that are easy to step into, don’t be lazy about the annual check-ups. Many people think that they don’t need to check if they don’t feel uncomfortable. This is really not the case. Last year, during the physical examination in our unit, three nurses in their twenties were all found to have thyroid nodules. Normally, they didn’t even feel any pain. Later, they adjusted their schedules and stayed up less late, and most of them had shrunk during the six-month review. No matter you are twenty or sixty years old, there is really no need to save on these examinations: routine gynecological examination + routine leucorrhea can detect the most common inflammatory problems, and can be done for a few dozen yuan; after having sex, do HPV+TCT joint screening every three years, even if you have been vaccinated against HPV Vaccination cannot be saved, as it can screen out more than 90% of the risk of cervical cancer early; breast ultrasound should be done once a year for those under 30 years old, and a mammography target should be added for those over 30 years old. Don’t wait until it hurts to check; there is also a thyroid ultrasound. The incidence of thyroid disease in women is three times that of men, so don’t ignore it.

In fact, the maintenance points for different age groups do not need to be too complicated. Young girls in their twenties should not blindly diet to lose weight. A few months ago, I met a girl who ate only boiled vegetables for three months in order to wear a size S skirt. Finally, her aunt ran away for half a year, and she was diagnosed with premature ovarian failure. It was too late to cry. Drinking less iced milk tea and staying up late at night is more effective than applying any expensive skin care products. Sisters in their thirties, don’t hold your breath all the time. There are seniors at the top and small ones at the bottom. Many people have breast nodules and thyroid nodules caused by gas. Occasionally take half a day to go shopping and drink milk tea by yourself. Don’t hold yourself too tight all the time. Aunts in their 40s and 50s who have reached menopause, don’t believe those “ovary maintenance” programs in beauty salons. The ovaries grow deep in the pelvic cavity and cannot be touched by massage. If the symptoms of hot flashes, night sweats, and insomnia are too severe, go to a regular hospital to check your hormone levels. Follow the doctor’s advice to supplement hormones, which is better than anything else. Don’t waste your money.

Finally, let’s talk about some controversial items that people ask about most. Many people have been waiting for the nine-price HPV vaccine for two or three years, thinking that the two-price and four-price vaccines are useless. In fact, the WHO has long made it clear that the bivalent HPV vaccine covers the most dangerous types 16 and 18 and can prevent more than 80% of cervical cancer. If you can’t get the nine-price HPV vaccine, don’t wait. Take the second-price vaccine first, which is equally effective. There are also collagen drinks and anti-sugar drinks that have become very popular recently. Nutrition experts say that drinking them can supplement some amino acids at most, and the price/performance ratio is not as good as eating two eggs. Dermatologists say that if you have a sufficient budget, drinking them will not hurt your mood. To put it bluntly, it depends on your wallet. There is no need to save money to buy them, and there is no need to think that drinking them is paying IQ tax.

In fact, there are no "golden rules" that must be followed in this manual. Your body will always know you better than the standards on the Internet. If you really feel uncomfortable, don't frighten yourself by searching Baidu blindly. Go to a regular hospital to see a doctor, which is more reliable than anything else.