Women must assert their special concerns and take action to control their health care and improve their health. Healthy practices throughout life, including the later years, can have a significant positive impact on the quality of life. Improvement of women's health means taking action through prevention, detection, and treatment. Preventive actions include: (1) eating right through sufficient intake of calcium and fiber, and limiting intake of fat and sodium; (2) getting exercise through finding a form of exercise that meets one's physical abilities, such as walking in the neighborhood, joining a fitness club or class, and looking for senior swim activities; (3) quitting smoking, first through changing to a brand lower in tar and nicotine and reducing the number of cigarettes smoked and then by joining a support group to kick the habit for good; and (4) keeping a healthy frame of mind through group participation, making regular visits to a community center, taking a class, volunteering, maintaining friendships, and reaching out to other women. Detection actions include an annual check-up and screening for blood pressure, cholesterol levels, colon cancer, breast cancer, and uterine cancer. Of special importance to older women is the ability to use the health care system effectively. Acting as a wise and assertive consumer of health care includes finding out about services available through Medicare/Medicaid, getting a second opinion if surgery is recommended, and expressing needs to one's doctor and insisting that he or she listen. (Additional resources are listed.) (ABL)