Nutritional Concerns of Women PDF

Preface

More than a decade ago, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), recognizing the lack of inclusion of women in health research and realizing that many diseases are unique to, more prevalent among or affect women differently from men, established the Office for Research in Women's Health (ORWH) with the goal to improve women's health status across the life span. Since that time, the ORWH, with the collaboration of the scientific community and different community groups, has worked diligently to increase awareness of the uniqueness of women's risk factors to different diseases and the need for women's inclusion in research studies. Their efforts culminated in the Institute of Medicine's 2001 report Exploring the Biological Contribution to Human Health: Does Sex Matter? This report outlined a plethora of sex differences in the prevention, manifestation and treatment of disease, which, in turn, necessitated and encouraged research in the above areas.

For the 21st century, the NIH National Research Agenda has expanded to include not only biomedical but also behavioral and psychosocial research. Since determinants of health include physical, mental, social and spiritual (such as education, economic status, housing, environmental and discrimination based on culture and ethnic background), the NIH 21st-century agenda focuses on women's diversity with respect to race or ethnicity, age, ability or disability, socioeconomic class, education and sexual orientation.

The second edition of Nutritional Concerns of Women is a product of recent advances in women's nutrition as it relates to health. New chapters on subjects unique to women, such as menopause, and prevalent among women, such as rheumatic disease and diseases of the thyroid, have been included. Additionally, a chapter on the role that gender and culture play on nutrition has been added.

The first edition was very well received indeed and used by a wide range of nutritionists and interested laymen. We were especially happy that the first edition found use as a text for university courses on women's nutrition. In this expanded second edition, we have again assembled an excellent team of writers, acknowledged experts in their fields, and we, the editors, are proud to appear alongside them. We have tried to be as comprehensive as possible in the selection of topics and trust that this volume will help facilitate nutrition recommendations for women and will formulate principles for them to follow in everyday life. Updated Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) can be found in the Appendix.