For some couples, arriving at the miracle of birth is more complex than sperm + egg = embryo = pregnant. The human body is incredibly complex, and few processes are as complicated as human reproduction.

For example, consider the first five days in the reproduction process:

Day 0 – Egg meets sperm in the fallopian tube. Sperm penetrates egg.
Day 1 – Fertilization occurs and a zygote forms, which includes DNA from both the male and female.
Day 2 – The zygote has evolved into an embryo. Cell count is now four.
Days 3 to 5 – Even more growing as the cells split. There are now eight cells. The embryo leaves the fallopian tube and enters the uterus.
Day 5– Embryo hatches, blastocyst embryo erupts and implants into the uterine wall, and a woman is deemed pregnant.

As we close out National Women’s Health Week, Health Talk thought it fitting to provide women seven things they should know about their health.

Why seven? Why not? There are seven oceans, seven colors in the rainbow, seven wonders in the world, and most importantly – seven days in National Women’s Health Week.

To compile the list, Health Talk spoke to University of Minnesota Physicians women’s health expert Carrie Ann Terrell, M.D., director of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health at the University of Minnesota Medical School and director of the Women’s Health Specialists Clinic.

Here they are, in no particular order:

In previous posts, Health Talk has pointed to a number of benefits quality sleep can have on your personal health.

Despite the fact quality sleep can reduce your risk of heart disease, decrease stress and alleviate high blood pressure, sleep is a valued commodity that many people struggle to obtain. Others simply underestimate the affects it can have on their quality of life.

University of Minnesota Physicians sleep expert Michael Howell, M.D., recently investigated the relationship between sleep and human performance, with a focus on athletics in particular.

Howell found that athletic performance is improved by optimizing sleep.

The rise of social media is changing the way we interact, get our news and even conduct business. But the rise in this connectivity has also boosted concerns for teens, including bullying and negative body images.

As many people pin their at-home workout routines or follow Tumblr’s fashion blogs, experts say many young girls are being presented with increasingly troubling images and messages about a healthy body and how to get there.

Pelvic exam. Just the thought causes women of all ages to shudder. Yet, year after year, ladies make pelvic exam appointments because it’s the right thing to do.

What if it wasn’t necessary to endure the awkward and often uncomfortable procedure?

Susan Perry of MinnPost challenged the tradition in an article citing the New York Times, which said:

An increasing number of experts now challenge the value of this time-honored practice, which is done as a matter of course when women come in for routine gynecological checkups or Pap smears.

To clear up some questions, Health Talk turned to Carrie Ann Terrell, M.D., director of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health at the University of Minnesota Medical School and director of the Women’s Health Specialists Clinic.

A cord blood transplant is prepared for delivery to the patient at the University of Minnesota.

Cord blood transplants can do amazing things for people with very difficult diseases. But it’s important to remember that cord blood transplantation is a potentially life-saving but highly risky procedure, and is only used to treat the sickest patients, including one recently here at the University of Minnesota diagnosed with both HIV and leukemia.

A cord blood transplant does complex work inside the body, and preparation and recovery is hard work for both the patient and the doctor.

So it might be surprising to know that despite such a transplant being one of modern medicine’s most amazing treatments, the procedure itself is quite simple when compared to major surgery like a joint replacement or solid organ transplant.