Healthyfemales

Lice Lice are small parasites that live on humans or animals. They bite through the skin to suck blood. There are three types of lice -- head, body, and pubic lice. Head lice are the most common types. They feed on the scalp and lay their eggs, called nits, at the base of a strand of hair. The nits look like small white ovals and are easiest to see behind the ears and at the back of the neck. Body lice live in the seams of clothing and not on the skin at all. Pubic lice live in the hair around the sex organs and lay their eggs on shafts of hair. Pubic lice can also live in beards and eyebrows, eyelashes, in the armpits and on chest hair. The main symptom of lice is severe itching. The skin may also become red and inflamed. When the louse bites, it injects a toxin into the skin that causes itching and irritation. Head and body lice are spread by contact with an infected person or by sharing combs, towels, sheets, blankets, or clothing. Pubic lice are usually spread by sexual cont

  Viral hepatitis Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver that may destroy some parts of the liver. Viruses are the most common causes of hepatitis. Hepatitis can also be caused by alcohol, drugs, chemicals, bacteria, fungi, and parasites. The most common types of viral hepatitis are hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C. Hepatitis A is caused by a virus and spreads by contact with fecal matter or bowel movements. This can happen by eating food that an infected person with hepatitis handled, or by drinking water or milk or eating food that has been contaminated with sewage. It can also be spread by contact with household members or sharing toys at day-care centers. Hepatitis A does not lead to chronic inflammation of the liver. Hepatitis B is also caused by a virus and is the most widespread. It is carried in infected body fluids such as blood, semen, or saliva and is usually spread through infected needles or sexual contact. It can also be passed from mother to child at bi

  Antibiotic Resistance The percentage of a common type of infection that is resistant to treatment by ordinary antibiotics is rising in Iowa, according to a statewide survey from University of Iowa researchers and other state health professionals. Data from surveillance of the state's most serious infections, conducted by the Iowa Task Force for Antibiotic Resistance, shows that 27 percent of all invasive pneumococcal infections were resistant to penicillin in 2000, compared to 24 percent in 1999. "This is a concern," said Daniel J. Diekema, MD, UI assistant professor of pathology and internal medicine and a member of the task force, "because penicillin-resistant pneumococcus is frequently resistant to many other antibiotic classes, making it much more difficult to treat these common and serious infections." Pneumococcus is a leading cause of illness in young children and the elderly. It causes ear infections, sinusitis, pneumonia and one of the most f

Vagina The vagina is the female internal sex organ that begins on the outside at the vaginal opening and extends about three to five inches inside, ending at the cervix, or neck of the uterus (womb). Three Layers of Tissue The vagina consists of three layers of tissue. The mucosa is the layer on the surface that can be touched. It consists of mucous membranes and is a surface similar to the lining of the mouth. Unlike the smooth surface of the mouth lining, the vagina contains folds or wrinkles. The next layer of tissue is a layer of muscle, concentrated mostly around the outer third of the vagina. The third, innermost layer consists of fibrous tissue that connects to other anatomical structures. In the sexually unstimulated state, the vagina is shaped like a flattened tube, the sides of which are collapsed on each other. It is not a continually open space, or "hole" as often thought by both women and men. It is a potential space. Because of its muscular tissue, the vagina ha

Menstruation   Menstruation refers to the periodic vaginal discharge of blood and bodily cells that are shed from the lining of a woman's uterus. Menstruation begins at puberty and marks the onset of a woman's capacity to bear children, although other health factors may limit this capacity. Menstruation usually begins between 10 and 16 years of age, depending on a variety of factors, including the young woman's general health, nutritional status, and body weight relative to height. Menstruation continues approximately once a month until a woman is about 45 to 50 years of age, again depending on health and other influences. The end of a woman's ability to menstruate is called menopause and it marks the completion of a woman's childbearing years. Length of the Menstrual Cycle The average length of the menstrual cycle is 28 days, but ranges from 21 to 40 days. The length of the cycle may also vary for a woman during different phases of life, and even from one

Menopause   Menopause is a natural physical transition that every woman experiences as she ages. It is often loosely defined as the final cessation of menstruation in a woman's life. This implies an abrupt and complete transition, although the actual process is typically quite gradual. While most women undergo this change between the ages of 48 and 52, some women stop menstruating as young as their late thirties or early forties, and others continue to menstruate into their mid-fifties. The process leading up to menopause begins with a slow-down in the function of the ovaries, generally about five years before the last menstrual period, and additional physical and emotional changes continue for several years after the last period. What Happens during Menopause During this time, there is a change in the hormonal balance, with a decrease in the amount of estrogen produced by the ovaries. Finally, there is such a low level of estrogen production that periods become irregula

Breasts   Breasts are part of the anatomy of both females and males. On the inside, a woman's breast is made up of about 15-25 milk-producing sacs called milk glands, which are connected to milk ducts that converge inside the nipple. The remainder of the internal breast is composed of fatty tissue and fibrous connective tissues that bind the breast together and give it shape. On the outside of the breast there are nipples. Nipples, like all other anatomical structures, vary in appearance from woman to woman. They may stick out prominently, they may have a flattened appearance, they may be set a bit deeper in the breast, or they can be inverted. Each nipple is supplied with many nerve endings, which make it particularly sensitive to touch. There are thin muscle fibers in nipples that enable them to become erect. The darker pigmented area around each nipple is called the areola (plural: areolae). The size and color of the areolae vary from woman to woman. This area can be

Virginity Virginity is the state of never having had sexual intercourse. It is viewed positively or negatively depending on one's gender, one's age, one's culture and one's own personal beliefs and attitudes. In some cultures virginity has no special significance, and young people, of both sexes, engage in coitus very early and there is no special status associated with not doing so. In others, virginity is required of both sexes, and in many it is required of women only. Violation may result in severe punishment. For example, proving a bride's virginity became a public matter wherein the bed sheets used by the couple on their wedding night were hung out the window for the wedding guests to view. A bloodstained sheet was a sign that the groom penetrated the bride's intact hymen, causing it to bleed. Though not medically true, the theory was that the hymen would be unbroken if she were still a virgin. Retaining Virginity: An Important Goal In some North America

Female orgasm not the same as male orgasm For most men, sex ends with an orgasm. This is very important for most men. And after the orgasm, most men are satisfied and not willing to participate in active sex any more for some time. All this is different for women. All women do not always have an orgasm. Some women have an orgasm most of the time, some only sometimes, some never. In one typical report: 15 % of the women had orgasm every time they had sexual intercorse, 48 % most of the time, 19 % sometimes, 11 % occasionaly, 7 % never. For many women, sex can be satisfying even without an orgasm. They value the closeness, intimacy, cuddling, more than the orgasm. In a report asking women why they enjoyed sex, their most common answer was emotional intimacy, and the most pleasurable event during sex for women was penetration, not orgasm. A woman can continue to enjoy active sex after an orgasm. Some women can have more than one orgasm in succession. These differences mean tha

The clitoris is similar in sensitivity to the male penis. Most types of heterosexual (man-woman) activity allow for direct stimulation of the penis, and without this very few men would achieve orgasm. Similarly, most women need stimulation of the clitoris during sexual activity to reach orgasm. If a woman has experienced an initial orgasm, and sexual activity continues, less intense or less direct clitoral stimulation may be enough to achieve additional orgasms – in much less time. The truth is that a woman's vagina isn't the most sensitive sexual area – so activity that centers on penetration, without direct clitoral stimulation, is insufficient to bring most women to orgasm. The missionary position (man on top) does not provide enough stimulation for most women. The alignment of the man's body is toward the vagina, several centimeters below the clitoris. Most women need to tilt their pelvis or arch their backs to extract some clitoral stimulation in this position. The m

Sexual Excitement on Man In a man, if spooning? Create is persisted in, it leads to sexual excitement. This causes a surplus of energy to be secreted. The body can retain and use only a normal quantity of this energy; while spooning a man may form many times the normal. This surplus will be dissipated through involuntary losses, the secret vice or prostitution. If spooning is continued for a few months or years he will suffer from varicosed veins and varicocele, later he may become temporarily or permanently impotent or sterile.  Sexual Excitement on Woman Personal familiarities with men lead to ovarian troubles in girls which sometimes require an operation. Frequent excitement leads to leucorrhoea, or whites, corresponding to sexual weakness in the male. The eyes that once glowed with lustre will become pale and sunken. The cheeks once plump, ruddy and rosy with health will become thin and faded. Nervous prostration, invalidism, consumption or one or more of many other troubles m

Date Rape Drugs D ate R ape .. When people think of rape, they might think of a stranger jumping out of a shadowy place and sexually attacking someone. But it's not only strangers who rape. In fact, about half of all people who are raped know the person who attacked them. Most friendships, acquaintances, and dates never lead to violence, of course. But, sadly, sometimes it happens. When forced sex occurs between two people who already know each other, it is known as date rape or acquaintance rape. Even if the two people know each other well, and even if they were intimate or had sex before, no one has the right to force a sexual act on another person against his or her will. Girls and women are most often raped - one in three women will be sexually assaulted in her life. Guys can also be raped, though: 7% to 10% of rape victims are male. Even though rape involves forced sex, rape is not about sex or passion. Rape has nothing to do with love. Rape is an act of aggression and viol