5 ways women can support healthy ageing

When you read the words ‘women’s health’, what are the main issues that immediately spring to mind?

Chances are it’s conditions such as breast or cervical cancer, or what Professor Cassandra Szoeke calls “bikini health”.

“When it comes to thinking about ‘women’s health’, we're still seen in our bikinis,” says Professor Szoeke. “But when you look at the areas where women have poor health it’s predominantly things like depression, dementia, diabetes, heart disease, back pain and osteoporosis.”

Did you know that dementia is the leading cause of death for Australian women, closely followed by heart disease?¹

The reality is that many of us are in the dark about what’s really impacting our health and wellbeing, and most of us aren’t getting our most basic needs met.

A study of over 20,000 Australian women over 18 years old found:

• 80% are not eating enough fruit and vegetables
• 70% are not exercising enough
• 54% are overweight or obese.²

While breast checks and cervical screening tests are essential, Professor Szoeke says women and people who are transgender and gender diverse also need to think about their heart health, what they’re eating, how active they are and how they’re feeling in general.

The good news is, there are some simple ways you can support and promote your own health, wellbeing and happiness every day.

Three decades of research by the Women's Healthy Ageing Project found moving for an hour a day is one of the best things you can do for your health.³

“Movement helps the brain and the heart, it can help prevent strokes, it even helps osteoarthritis,” says Professor Szoeke.

“Movement can give people better quality of life and function, even if you have problems with mobility.”

And it doesn’t have to be rigorous exercise. Walking, gardening, swimming, vacuuming or a mixture of activities all count towards your hour a day.

You need to eat plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables, leafy greens, fish, and some nuts.

“Choose the healthy oils, avoid processed foods and sugars, and eat stuff that came off the farm,” says Szoeke.

Eating a well-balanced diet that’s low in salt and saturated fats can help reduce your risk of heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes.⁴ Avoiding smoking, drugs and alcohol also helps to lower these risks.

While always remembering to prioritise sun safety, a daily dose of vitamin D is important to help your body absorb calcium and plays an important role in bone and brain health.⁵

While you can take a vitamin D supplement, the best source is direct exposure from the sun. But that doesn’t mean ditching the sunscreen.

Stay out of the sun during high UV hours and always wear sunscreen even when getting your daily vitamin D hit.

Socialising is a vital part of ageing happily as research shows that people who are lonely have a higher rate of death and poorer physical and mental health.⁶

Staying connected doesn’t have to mean having dozens of friends or being a social butterfly. Finding the people in your life who bring you joy and comfort is what’s most important.

“We’re a very social species and it's a strength to be connected and maintain those connections,” says Professor Szoeke.

We all know how good it feels to get a good night’s sleep, which is around 7 to 9 hours for most adults.⁷ But Professor Szoeke says, from a medical perspective, sleep is an essential part of ageing well.

“We know if people are sleep deprived their cognition and mood is not as good and they have less capacity to fight infection.”

“We also know the body doesn't like inflammation, and inflammatory markers go up if you’re sleep deprived.”

Develop good sleep hygiene by going to bed and waking at around the same time each day, avoiding alcohol and devices that emit blue light (such as smartphones) at least 2 hours before bed and ensuring you have a cool, comfortable, quiet place to sleep.

It’s never too late to make positive changes. According to Professor Szoeke, what you do in your middle age can be transformative.

“The thing about ageing is that it takes decades for chronic diseases to develop,” she says. “So, the ages between 45 and 60 years are a really important time as you can change your entire trajectory.”

Speak to your GP about how you can support your health today.