The term "women's health" can mean different things to different people. Some think reproductive health, some think diet and exercise, and some think doctor visits. That's part of the reason National Women's Health Awareness Week exists to teach women about all the different facets of their health and encourage them to make their well-being a priority in their lives

To celebrate the week, many different events have been taking place.

Monday was National Women's Check-up Day, a day to encourage women to visit their doctors for health and wellness screenings. It's not too late to schedule your next visit.

Sunday was the first day of the eight-week Woman Challenge, a program to encourage women to get more active. Whether it's walking around the block or taking an aerobics class at the gym, there are so many ways women can be active. If you need a little motivation, join the challenge.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services offers this list of tips for healthy women:
Get at least 2 ½ hours of moderate physical activity, 1 hour and 15 minutes of vigorous physical activity, or a combination of both each week.
Eat a nutritious diet.
Visit a health care professional for regular checkups and preventive screenings.
Avoid risky behaviors, like smoking and not wearing a seatbelt.
Pay attention to mental health, including getting enough sleep and managing stress.

If you're a woman, what's one thing you will do to be more healthy this month? If you're a man, what's one health tip you will share with the women you love?

Getting stuck in traffic is stressful, especially if you're running late for an appointment or to pick your child up from school or for an important work meeting. Unfortunately, a new study shows that our risk for a heart attack triples in the hour after we've been stuck in traffic.

For a healthy person, that might not mean much, but for someone already at an increased risk, this study could be troubling.

The study didn't say specifically what about being stuck in traffic prompted such an increase in risk, but being in a backlog seems to affect driver and passenger in the same way, and if you have angina, are elderly or are a woman, your chances increase even more.

For tips on staying mellow, no matter how long you're stuck, you can check out these resources on managing stress and keeping your heart healthy.

How to Keep Your Heart Healthy
Healthy Heart Handbook for Women
Exercise and Your Heart
Managing Stress
Win Control Over Stress in Your Life

If those don't work, you could always crank the radio and have yourself a karaoke session until traffic starts moving again.

(Writer's note: What follows is a short excerpt from an article I wrote for my college paper about a young woman who suffered from an eating disorder. I'm posting part of it here in honor of National Eating Disorder Awareness Week. If you're interested in reading the entire story, you can find it here.)

As the petite young woman knelt on the bathroom floor for more than three hours, holding her shoulder-length blond hair away from the toilet bowl and retching up the remains of a night at Cornerstone Grill and Loft, she had only one thought in her mind: "At least I'm getting my dinner up."

For the sophomore business major, who shared her story on the condition of anonymity, this was as low as it got. Sitting there in a drunken haze, she reached for her cell phone and, without thinking, speed-dialed her boyfriend. She told him everything - how she lamented every calorie, how she could go for days on end without eating and how she hid it from everyone.

While that night may have been an all-time low, it proved to be a turning point by bringing her anorexia, a disease suffered in secret, out into the open.

The young woman I interviewed was brave enough to share some of the thoughts that swirled around in the mind of a person suffering from a terrible eating disorder. She felt comfortable telling me how there were days she ate nothing, but how on days when she ate only a single cracker and a diet soda, she felt fat and ugly. Unlike this young woman, many people who suffer from similar disordered eating patterns will never share their thoughts with anyone and may never reach out for help.

National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, which runs February 22 to 28, exists to encourage people to embrace their body no matter what its shape or size. It exists to raise awareness of eating disorders and bring light to resources available both for those who suffer and for their friends and family.

It never hurts to familiarize yourself with the warning signs of an eating disorder. The National Eating Disorders Awareness organization provides additional information for teachers and coaches as well as information on counseling and other help options.

It's been a few years since I wrote that story, but in the time that's passed, I'm happy to say the young woman found a counselor, put on much of the weight she had lost and seems to be more comfortable in her own skin. She's also happily engaged. She was one of the lucky ones, who had supportive friends urging her to get help and was brave enough to admit she needed it.

My nose is running, my ears are clogged and I’m coughing. Ah yes, the beginning of another cold and flu season is upon us. Every other week my daughter brings home a new and exciting virus from the germ factory (that’s how I like to refer to the elementary school at this time of year). Bailey brings home the cold and is sick for a few days, then her little sister picks it up and she’s sick for a few days and it seems like my husband and I are constantly battling a virus. Sometimes we get it and sometimes we don’t. Does this sound like your house? I suppose we’re not alone.

It's important to know the difference between colds and flu and try to prevent colds and flu by following the advice of the experts. I eat really well, exercise, drink plenty of fluids and even take a multi-vitamin regularly, just to be sure I’m getting the nutrients I need. I try to get enough rest, but with a full time job and two little kids, sometimes I have trouble getting the rest I need. I’m even an almost compulsive hand washer, and still, I get sick.

So what do I do? I stay warm, I drink plenty of fluids. I especially like nice, warm cups of tea. Green tea, white tea, red tea, herbal teas with honey and lemon are soothing and I drink tea all day long. Our old family remedy for, well anything, was whiskey with honey and lemon, but I don’t find that to be a very good prescription on a work day. I’ll stick with my tea and hope that one of you has a comforting cold remedy for me to try.

I had no idea that it's been around for two decades already, but this is the 20th anniversary of National Hispanic Heritage Month. My life is filled with friends and coworkers who have been really generous in teaching me about the differences and similarities in their experiences as Americans with Mexican, Puerto Rican, South and Central American backgrounds. In celebration of them, I wanted to share with you some favorite National Hispanic Heritage Month websites:

Headed up by the Library of Congress, a group of government agencies created the National Hispanic Heritage Month homepage. It's filled with images and stories of Hispanic culture, politics and life in the US.

Each year, the National Register of Historic Places features historic properties, national parks and trails that are important to Hispanic history in America.

Some health issues affect everybody about equally, regardless of who you are or where your ancestors come from. And some health problems are more common in certain ethnic groups. The Medline Plus website from the National Institutes of Health has a great section on health issues that affect the Hispanic community.

My go-to place for numbers, the Census Bureau, has National Hispanic Heritage Month stats and facts about the Hispanic experience in the United States.

Even if you can't get to Washington, DC to visit in person, the Smithsonian Latino Center has a website filled with colorful art and engaging history exhibits.

The Information Please Almanac people have their own National Hispanic Heritage Month page with quizzes, a list of notable Hispanic Americans, a collection of American English words with Spanish origins and a lot more.

I'm a foodie, and I love eating—and trying to cook—foods with a Latino flavor. From plantains to paella, quesadillas to empanadas, they're all covered here, and categorized by country.

My favorite Hispanic website is created just a few doors down the hall from my office. GobiernoUSA.gov is the government's official web portal filled with links to the government's online resources in Spanish. The site isn't just a translation of its sister site, USA.gov. It features unique resources created especially for the Hispanic community, whether you're new to the U.S., just visiting, or you're running your own business.

I get to work on the production of GobiernoUSA.gov's public service ads. It's helped me remember a lot of the Spanish I thought I lost between here and high school. And it's given me an even greater appreciation for the creativity and the spirit of America's Latino community.