While both women and men are affected by diabetes, there are some diabetes-related issues that are unique to or of particular concern in women. Changes in hormone levels throughout the menstrual cycle can affect blood glucose levels. Pregnancy can also affect blood glucose levels, and high blood glucose levels can affect a pregnancy. The articles in this section deal with women's health concerns, from reproductive health to heart health to staying healthy in your golden years.

Menopause by Pat Dougherty, C.N.M., M.S.N., and Joyce Green Pastors, M.S., R.D., C.D.E.

For most women, menopause—the cessation of menstrual periods—is a normal, natural occurrence. The average age at menopause is 51, although any time after 40 is considered normal. The years leading up to the menopausal transition—a time known as the...

Also inside: Resources for Readers

New Contraception Options by Monica J. Smith

Given that approximately half of all pregnancies in the United States every year are unplanned, birth control is an important consideration for all sexually active women at risk of becoming pregnant. In the case of women with diabetes, however...

Pregnancy With Diabetes by Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer

Women with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes who are considering pregnancy have reason to feel optimistic. That’s because women with diabetes can and do experience healthy, uneventful pregnancies and give birth to perfectly healthy babies. That said, however...

Also inside: Preconception Planning Checklist

Pregnant and Pumping by Laura Hieronymus, M.S.Ed., A.P.R.N., B.C.-A.D.M., C.D.E., and Patti Geil, M.S., R.D., L.D., C.D.E.

A healthy pregnancy with diabetes is a challenge, but consider this: Less than 100 years ago, before the discovery of insulin, many young women with Type 1 diabetes didn’t even live to reach childbearing age. And less than 30 years ago, physicians...

Also inside: Is Pump Therapy Right for You?

Preventing Coronary Heart Disease by Heidi Mochari, M.P.H., R.D.

Coronary heart disease is the single leading killer of women in the United States, and women with diabetes are at particularly high risk. High blood glucose itself is believed to contribute to this increased risk, but diabetes is also associated with...

Top 10 Health Tips for Women Over 65 by Helen L. Sloan, R.N., C.S., D.N.S., and Anne White Robinson, R.N., D.N.S.

An ancient Chinese proverb says, “One disease, long life; no disease, short life.” For many women, diabetes is that one disease that, perhaps ironically, leads to a longer, healthier life. That’s because a big part of the treatment for diabetes is...

Urinary Incontinence by Jeanette S. Brown, M.D., and Janis Luft, N.P., M.S.N.

“I wake up four or five times a night to use the bathroom. I’m exhausted!” “I must know every public restroom in the city.” “I had to cancel the trip I was planning because I didn’t think my bladder could handle it.” “I’ve stopped going to my exercise...

Also inside: Continence Resources

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