January
According to Marla Ahlgrimm, January is a month that sheds light on a number of issues relating to women. These include cervical cancer, cervical cancer detection, intimate partner violence, birth defects and developmental disabilities, and slavery and human trafficking prevention, the latter of which is an official presidential proclamation. January 7-13 is National Folic Acid Awareness Week.
March
Fast forward to the early spring where March is positioned to bring awareness to reproductive health, endometriosis, and colorectal cancer. March 10 is National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day.
May
Things warm-up in May when the US begins to pay attention to heart disease, stroke prevention, lupus, arthritis, osteoporosis, teen pregnancy, and preeclampsia. May 14 is National Women’s Checkup Day and Marla Ahlgrimm stresses this is a great time to schedule a visit to your doctor.
August
Marla Ahlgrimm says breast-feeding, human papilloma virus, and immunizations are a hot topic as summer rolls in. August 1-7 is World Breastfeeding Week.
October
The ghost and goblins of Halloween can’t scare the US away from National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. October 11 is Day of the Girl while October 19 puts breast health in the spotlight with National Mammography Day.
November
November is the perfect time to give thanks for modern medicine. Marla Ahlgrimm explains that this is American Diabetes Month, Lung Cancer Awareness Month, and National Family Caregivers Month.
December
The year closes with World AIDS Day on December 1.
