Cervical Health
With cervical cancers hitting women more than before, let’s get more aware as women on how to protect women against the human papillomavirus HPV and cervical cancer. One of the things that have kept me going since I was very young, is getting my annual pap smear done. Most women forget to do this, and it is actually the best way to detect any changes in abnormal cell growth before they get into the cancerous stage.
Any abnormalities like excessive bleeding between periods, unusual discharge, pain while urinating and frequency going up (actually anything abnormal) should be reported to your gynecologist.
Giving up smoking, keeping the immune system healthy, having a happy gut, handling stress, and practicing safe sex are some of the ways to protect yourself for being at risk.
Here are some fascinating things you may not know about your cervix (1) You can bruise it while having sex (2) It is the first place in your reproductive area which will show an infection (because its hormonally sensitive) (3) Cervical mucous is a strong indicator of how fertile you are, when you will ovulate (4) When you are not pregnant it helps by keeping stuff away like tampons, pool water, and other interesting stuff that end up there. When you are pregnant it keeps the baby safe in the uterus.
Here are the foods that can help you:
- Broccoli has folate that keeps the cervix in good health
- Grapefruit and tomatoes have lycopene which helps those who have HPV infection
- Red pumpkin (lal kaddu/bhopla) or any other coloured vegetables have beta carotene which that converts to Vitamin A and helps the immune system
- Bell peppers also rich in Vitamin C as are citrus fruits helping with immunity
- Spinach and leafy greens have Vitamin E which is also a big help when it comes to cervical health
