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A recent article from Bustle titled "How to Save forRetirement in Your 20s" powerfully explained why saving for thefuture is one of the best financial decisions young people canmake. This is particularly true for women, who typically livelonger than men and need their retirement funds to stretchfurther.

However, according to a recent study by GOBankingRates, women are onlycontributing half as much to their retirement accounts annually asmen are. In addition, women's median earnings were 81% of men's in 2018. Until the income gap getsclosed for good, women will likely receive less in Social Securitybenefits, since those benefits are based on individuals' lifetimeearnings.

For these reasons, it is imperative that women establish astrong foundation early in their careers for their retirementsavings. If you're like most people, you probably associate savingfor retirement with a 401(k) or IRA. And while 401(k)s and IRAs aregreat retirement savings vehicles, there's an often-overlookedvehicle that outshines them both: a health savings account, orHSA.

Simply put, an HSA is a medical savings account that allowsaccount holders to save money on current and future health careexpenses. HSAs are individually owned, so you can have one even ifyour employer doesn't offer one. You just need to be covered by anHSA-qualified health insurance plan.

HSA contributions are tax-free or tax-deductible, earnings andinterest grow tax-free, and withdrawals used to pay for qualified medical expenses are tax-free as well. Thistrio of tax breaks means HSA account holders can save more money ontheir health care costs than anybody else.

Many people think of HSAs simply as a way to save taxes oncurrent medical expenses. However, using your HSA as a retirementsavings vehicle by investing funds long-term is one of the bestthings you can do to prepare for the future. Here are three reasonswhy investment-focused HSAs should be on every young woman'sradar:

1.     HSAs give you more money to startsaving with.

As you start in your career, you might not have much disposableincome, so every dollar counts. And not only do HSAs help you savemore money in taxes, they also give you more money to put into yoursavings.

Remember, you must be enrolled in an HSA-qualified healthinsurance plan to contribute to an HSA. If you are generallyhealthy, HSA-qualified plans are perfect because they generallyhave lower monthly premiums than other health plans. There's noreason to be paying higher premiums each month for health coverageyou don't use, but that's what can end up happening with otherhealth plans.

This gives you more dollars to contribute to your HSA now. Asyou incur more medical costs later in life, you'll thank yourselffor growing your HSA early and putting yourself in a position whereyou have tax-free funds to use.

2.     Retirement medical expenses are real,and HSAs are the best way to pay for them.

Have you thought about how much you'll spend on health care inretirement? The answer is: a lot. According to HealthView, the average married couple retiringat age 65 should expect to pay over $387,000 in out-of-pocketmedical expenses. Medicare isn't free and doesn't cover everything,so you want to have a plan in place to cover those additionalexpenses.

That's where HSAs come in. While 401(k) or IRA dollars are taxedwhen withdrawn to cover medical expenses in retirement, HSA fundsare tax-free.

Using the numbers above, paying $387,000 in medical expenseswith an HSA instead of a 401(k) could save you nearly $100,000 intaxes, assuming a 20% tax rate.

It can be easy to think that a 401(k) is the best way to coverall your costs in retirement, but that's not the case. By using HSAdollars to pay for your retirement health care costs, you canmaximize your tax savings and help your retirement funds lastlonger.

3.     HSA funds can be used for non-medicalcosts in retirement too.

If you stay healthy in retirement, you might end up withleftover HSA funds you don't need to spend on medical expenses.Fortunately, once you're 65 you can use those funds to pay fornon-medical expenses with no tax penalty.

HSA funds used for non-medical costs in retirement are treatedexactly the same as 401(k) funds; you just pay regular income taxeson them.

This means there's no reason to only put as much in your HSA asyou think you'll need to cover your health care costs. Even if youend up with leftover funds in retirement, you can use those dollarsto pay for non-medical costs just like you would with any otherretirement account.

For women in their 20's, now is the time to begin planting thefinancial seeds that will grow throughout your working life to beharvested once you retire.

And since they help you save money on your health care costsnow, as well as accumulate tax-free funds for the future, HSAs areone of the first seeds you should be planting. Invest in a happy,healthy future now; your future self will be thrilled you did.

Alison Moore is vicepresident of marketing for HealthSavings, one of the country's originalHealth Savings Account (HSA) providers. HealthSavings empowersconsumer-driven health plan participants to invest ininstitutional-class funds so they can grow their savings tax-freeand meet their financial goals for a happy, healthy future. Overthe last five years, Moore has brought attention to trends inretirement and the convergence of health and financialwellness.