Marla Ahlgrimm | Lose Weight and Lower Risk of Breast Cancer

Breast cancer affects women of all ages, races, and lifestyles. It’s a devastating disease that can threaten a woman’s self-esteem, diminish her sense of femininity and be life threatening. Here, Marla Ahlgrimm offers pointers on reducing the risks of breast cancer.

Q: How does obesity contribute to a woman’s risk of breast cancer?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Fat cells produce estrogen from the time a woman is born. However, after menopause, fat cells become the body’s primary source of estrogen. An overweight woman will produce more estrogen than her average-weighted counterpart, increasing her chances of getting breast cancer. Additionally, obese women tend to have higher levels of insulin, which has also been linked to breast and other cancers.

Q: Does a woman’s weight at any certain stage of her life have a more profound effect on her risk for breast cancer?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Studies have found evidence that suggests weight gain later in life, and especially after menopause, contributes to a woman’s risk of breast cancer more so than weight acquired in the pre-teen stages. A woman who has always been obese will have a slightly lower chance of getting breast cancer than a similarly-sized woman who gained the excessive weight in adulthood.

Q & A with Marla Ahlgrimm | PCOS and Progesterone

PCOS, polycystic ovary syndrome, is an endocrine disorder which often presents in early adolescence with weight gain, menstrual irregularity, and embarrassing body hair. Here, women’s healthcare and hormone treatment pioneer Marla Ahlgrimm offers answers to four frequently-asked questions from women facing PCOS.

Q: What are the symptoms of PCOS?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Unfortunately, there is no definitive list of symptoms that every woman will experience. However, most common are noticeable facial and abdominal hair, androgenic alopecia, acne, obesity, and polycystic ovaries. Women with the disease may be at an increased risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and endometrial cancer. PCOS is often undiagnosed until a woman’s childbearing years, when infertility issues may arise. Interestingly, polycystic ovary syndrome may be diagnosed with or without the actual presence of cysts.

Marla Ahlgrimm: Progesterone Plays Vital Role in Fertility

In this article, pharmacist Marla Ahlgrimm explains the connection between progesterone and female fertility.

Progesterone is a naturally-produced chemical that helps a woman’s body ready itself for pregnancy, according to women’s healthcare expert and pharmacist Marla Ahlgrimm. It’s a vital steroid hormone, both before and during gestation.

Before pregnancy

Prior to implantation, the uterus must undergo certain changes in order to sustain a viable pregnancy. This, reports Marla Ahlgrimm, is accomplished by the ovaries releasing progesterone which thickens the uterine lining.

Marla Ahlgrimm on Yoga's Benefits for Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis leads to painful fractures due to loss of bone mass, according to Marla Ahlgrimm. More than 44 million Americans suffer from low bone mass, and osteoporosis is responsible for 1.5 million fractures annually. Surgery and drugs can alleviate pain, but studies have shown that exercise is the best treatment, especially low impact, bone-strengthening yoga.

Q: Who is typically at risk for developing osteoporosis?

Marla Ahlgrimm: A number of factors can increase the likelihood that a person will develop osteoporosis, including age, being female, race, low body weight, medical conditions, and lifestyle choices.

Q: How can I prevent osteoporosis?

Marla Ahlgrimm: A good preventative strategy is to do some bone-strengthening exercise, and eat a bone-healthy diet. Don’t smoke and limit your alcohol and caffeine intake.

Marla Ahlgrimm Explains Cardiac Arrest vs. Heart Attack

You might think that sudden cardiac arrest is similar to a heart attack, but it’s not. Sudden cardiac arrest strikes without warning. If left untreated, it can lead to death within minutes, according to women’s health expert Marla Ahlgrimm.

Q: Sudden cardiac arrest is not a heart attack. How are they different?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Sudden cardiac arrest happens when the heart starts beating very fast and quivers instead of beating in a regular and organized way. As a result, very little or no blood gets pumped to the rest of the body and brain. A heart attack results from plaque buildup in the arteries that support blood flow to the heart. The plaque stops blood flow to certain areas of the heart, causing the heart muscle to die.

Q: What happens to a person experiencing cardiac arrest?

Marla Ahlgrimm: A person experiencing sudden cardiac arrest can lose consciousness quickly and if health professionals don’t reverse what caused the heart to do that, a person can die within six minutes.

Pharmacist Marla Ahlgrimm Talks Healthy Vision Tips

As with every other organ in the body, our eyes function best if they receive the right nutrients. Eating a diet rich in vitamins and nutrients can help keep the eyes healthy and even help prevent the onset of eye diseases, says Marla Ahlgrimm.  Below, Ahlgrimm discusses the various foods we should eat to keep our eyes healthy.

Q: Okay, I understand that eating a healthy diet helps keep my eyes healthy. But let’s start with the foods that are bad for our vision….what are they?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Anything with saturated fat and trans fats is unhealthy. Trans fats are often found in processed snack foods like packaged baked goods. Cutting items that are high in fat and low in nutrients will help you keep your eyes healthy and might even slim down your waistline.

Q: Can obesity have an impact on my eye health?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Yes, being overweight and obese increases diabetes and other conditions which can lead to vision loss.

Women’s Health Expert Marla Ahlgrimm Provides Flu Season Tips

Marla Ahlgrimm talks about how to treat and prevent flu – the natural and healthy way.

Q: What is the difference between a common cold and influenza?

Marla Ahlgrimm: The flu is a respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses and usually comes on suddenly. Symptoms include fever and chills, cough, body aches, fatigue, and headaches. Common cold symptoms are less severe and include stuffy or runny nose, sore throat, and coughing.

Q: What is one of the biggest mistakes people make during flu season?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Not washing their hands. Keeping the hands clean is one of the best ways to prevent the spread of infections.

Q: When should I pay special attention to washing my hands?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Any time you’ve been out in public, touching doorknobs; after you use the bathroom; anytime before and after you eat, and before or after you touch a computer keyboard.

Marla Ahlgrimm | How to Recognize Women’s Heart Attack Symptoms

We all know men and women are different and this includes heart attack symptoms, too. You may be surprised to hear what some of the symptoms are, especially in women. Here to help us with this important issue is women’s health expert and pharmacist Marla Ahlgrimm.

Q: Are there distinct recognizable symptoms of the onset of a heart attack?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Yes, although for women, a heart attack is a little more challenging to diagnose. In fact, she might not even see the typical squeezing chest pain that you see in men. Women sometimes experience shortness of breath, back pain, jaw pain, even flu-like symptoms. Some just have nausea.

Q: How can a woman be sure that she’s having a heart attack?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Women need to pay attention to their risk factors and symptoms and know if these symptoms are happening with exertion and relieved with rest. If you have risk factors it’s very important to get evaluated for your heart.

Q&A with Marla Ahlgrimm: When Menopause Strikes Early

“When will I reach menopause?” This is a question many women contemplate, says women’s health expert and pharmacist, Marla Ahlgrimm. While there is no predetermined age at which a woman will enter menopause, certain factors may accelerate it, says Ahlgrimm.

Q: What does the term “early menopause” refer to?

Marla Ahlgrimm: The average age for menopause in the United States is 51. Generally, most women experience menopause between the ages of 40 and 60. Early menopause usually refers to cases where menopause starts before the age of 40.

Q: What causes early menopause?

Marla Ahlgrimm: Sometimes there is a medical reason for early menopause. Women who have had a surgery such as hysterectomy or experience breast cancer may enter early menopause. When there’s no obvious medical reason for early menopause, the cause often lies in a woman’s genes, sometimes in her lifestyle.