Archive for the ‘Menopause’ Category

HRT Early in Menopause Does Not Protect Against Heart Disease

Wednesday, February 24th, 2010

The current guidelines for HRT (hormone replacement therapy) are that women take HRT for the shortest time and in the smallest dose possible to treat symptoms of menopause. Studies in the past suggested that taking HRT early on in menopause protected women from heart disease, but new data does not support this idea.

The Women’s Health Initiative was a huge study of 16,000 women, half of whom received HRT while the other half received placebos. The study was halted in 2002 when it was discovered that the women taking HRT had higher rates of blood clots, heart disease and breast cancer. It was this study that ignited the fierce debate about HRT therapy and its safety that has raged ever since.

Researchers recently turned their focus to the women in the study who began HRT early in menopause and discovered that there was a slight increase in risk of heart disease, although the numbers were not considered significant. The researchers debunked the theory that HRT taken early in menopause has a protective effect against heart disease. It should be noted that the women in the WHI study took higher doses of hormones than women typically use today.

Women should consider the risks and benefits of HRT and should discuss these factors with their personal physician. Many women are choosing to use lifestyle and natural remedies to cope with menopause symptoms.

PreMenora is a twice-daily all-natural formulation that decreases menopausal symptoms by 80% and provides immediate and long-term results. It is easily affordable and offers a safe alternative to HRT.

Source: Early HRT Doesn’t Reduce Heart Risk

What is Perimenopause- Frequently Asked Questions

Wednesday, February 10th, 2010

Menopause is an inevitable part of every woman’s life. Some women sail through relatively unscathed, while others experience every symptom in the book. Menopause is an intensely personal experience for every woman. Perimenopause precedes menopause, although some of the symptoms can overlap, and can occur at varying ages.

When does perimenopause begin?

Symptoms perimenopause generally begin when a women is in her 40’s, although they may start sooner than this.

What triggers perimenopause?

Perimenopause is triggered by a gradual and slow reduction in the amount of estrogen produced by the ovaries.

How long does perimenopause last?

Perimenopause can last for many years, with the average being 4 years. For some women, this period may only last for months, while for others perimenopause will last for up to 10 years.

When does perimenopause end?

Just before menopause, the reduction in the amount of estrogen the ovaries produce accelerates. This is when women are more likely to experience menopausal symptoms. Perimenopause is officially over when a woman has not experienced a period for 12 months, at which point she is said to be in menopause. For women who no longer experience menstrual periods due to hysterectomy, levels of hormones can be measured by blood sampling.

What are the symptoms?

  • Hot flashes
  • Mood changes
  • Vaginal dryness
  • Fatigue
  • Breast tenderness
  • Menstrual period irregularities
  • Sleep disturbances

Can I still become pregnant during perimenopause?

Yes! Although hormone levels are reduced and fertility declines, you may still become pregnant. You should continue to use birth control if you do not want to become pregnant until you have gone 12 consecutive months without a menstrual period.

Source: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/perimenopause/DS00554

Study Finds Link between Menopause and Rising Cholesterol Levels

Wednesday, January 27th, 2010

The symptoms of menopause can be overwhelming for some, including hot flashes, night sweats, menstrual irregularities, fatigue, sleep disturbances and mood swings. These symptoms herald major changes occurring in the body, mainly a decrease in the hormones that regulate menstruation. As if these symptoms weren’t enough to contend with, new research reveals that menopause can signal an end to healthy cholesterol levels for some women.

A study of 1,054 women revealed that, as women entered menopause, total cholesterol levels and levels of LDL cholesterol rose dramatically. This rise in cholesterol levels began one year prior to menopause and continued for one year after the study participants’ last menstrual periods. Risk factors and ethnicity of the participants had no bearing on this rise.

The take-home message of this study is that women going through menopause need to be mindful that the decrease in estrogen levels brought about by menopause can have a broader impact on their health than the annoying, and sometimes unbearable, symptoms mentioned above. Menopause should signal the need to examine personal risk factors for heart disease and stroke, as these risk factors can be somewhat modified through lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise.

Source: J Am College Cardiol. 2009;54:2366-2373 and 2374-2375.

How To Choose Cost Effective Supplements

Monday, August 10th, 2009

There is no doubt natural supplements, vitamins and herbs are less expensive than prescription medications, but even these more natural alternatives can quickly become expensive when you start taking more than one at one time.

One of the reasons people turn to natural medicine is because of its holistic approach to health and wellness. Natural medicine looks to treat the whole body and not simply the symptoms of a specific disease. Proponents of natural health believe the body will naturally seek to restore internal balance, healing itself when faced with illness or disease, a state known as homeostasis. Natural remedies are therefore used more as a means to support this process than an actual cure for symptoms that result from a diseased state. Each remedy serves a specific purpose whether it be to boost immunity or to support the organs for example, so it is common when someone is facing an illness that they are prescribed more than one remedy. The problem however, is that while each of these remedies may in fact be useful and even highly effective, when you must take them each 2-3 times a day, it can become not only overwhelming, but also expensive. It is at this point, that many people simply opt to go back to a medication that is geared to relieving symptoms. Despite the risk and the inevitable side effects most medications come with, they are usually easier to deal with than having to remember to take numerous supplements several times a day.

For those who don’t give up and continue to look to the natural approach, some will opt for combination supplements. These products offer remedies that contain numerous ingredients geared to treating a much broader range of issues. While in theory, these supplements may be easier to take simply because you no longer need to take an array of different pills to achieve the same result, the problem then becomes the efficacy of the product itself.

Clinical studies are typically done to determine not only the actual effectiveness of an herb for example, but also the most effective dosage. The therapeutic properties of each herb will be examined, and the specific medicinal chemicals analyzed to determine the safest manner in which to take (or not take as the case may be) the remedy. So, when you buy a product, hopefully it contains the exact ratio of therapeutic ingredients so the remedy works as it should. While you would think this would be the case of all natural supplements, the truth is, it is still a very unregulated industry so in many cases, there are no real laws that state a product must contain the ideal ratio of medicinal ingredients. This is especially true in the case of “all in one” remedies.

When herbs are combined, they can either help or hinder each other. While each herb may have specific therapeutic properties, when they are combined with other herbs, these same chemical properties can be enhanced or in some cases, cause adverse reactions. It becomes even more important therefore in cases of combined remedies, that the herbs used have not only been tested individually, but that they have also been tested together. Unfortunately, this is not always the case, which is why you will often hear about products that have been suddenly pulled from the shelves because people have had severe reactions.

There is no question the most cost effective way to take natural supplements is in these combined formulas. Taking this type of remedy can significantly reduce the overall cost of treatment. The trick however, is to find a product that has also been clinically tested to work synergistically within the body. Each herb and or nutrient must be tested to determine its effectiveness and safety when used in that specific formula. So, before you purchase a combination product, do a little research yourself to see if the company has also done their research. In the end, it can save you money and ultimately make the difference in whether or not the product will be effective.

For more information about clinically tested and proven all natural supplements, visit: http://www.predisease.com

Menopause Treatment – Understanding Your Options

Saturday, August 8th, 2009

Hot flashes. Sleepless nights. Ugly mood swings. The “change of life” certainly brings does bring about changes, doesn’t it? The problem is most of them are changes women can do without. As a matter of fact, many times they are so unbearable women will do just about anything to get rid of them, including taking medication. The problem with that is that synthetic hormones, those usually prescribed by doctors, come with their own set of perils.

Synthetic menopause hormone therapy can lead to bloating, blood clots, sexual dysfunction, stroke, and the risk of cancer
. Because of this frightening list women who decide to try hormone treatment usually do so for a short period of time and take the lowest dose possible. Once their symptoms disappear or become more manageable, they stop taking the drug.

For some women synthetic hormone therapy isn’t even an option. Women who have had breast or uterine cancer, have a history of blood clots, have liver or heart disease, or problems with vaginal bleeding are not candidates for this type of therapy.

Perimenopause

Even women who have not fully entered menopause have worrisome menopause symptoms and seek relief. Perimenopause is when women began their transition into menopause and lasts 2 to 8 years. Usually menstrual irregularities begin sometime in the 40s, however, some may start noticing changes in their mid-30s.

During this time women experience menstrual irregularities, hot flashes and insomnia, irritability or depression, vaginal and urinary problems, and decrease libido. Even though medication is often prescribed to treat the symptoms, it’s important to understand that menopause is not an illness. It’s a natural stage of life where women’s ovaries stop producing estrogen. This causes her reproductive system to slowly cease functioning.

A natural alternative to synthetic hormone therapy

Natural hormones contain products derived from plants. The body actually recognizes them as being a natural substance and will therefore readily utilize the product. The side effects seen with synthetic hormones do not exist when natural hormones are used. Even better, natural hormones deal with more than hot flashes, water retention, or insomnia. They combat many of the different symptoms menopause can bring about.

Why take a chance, even for a short while, on a synthetic hormone that carries such risks as cancer and heart disease? Luckily, there is an alternative, one that many authorities believe to be superior to synthetic hormones.

Preemptive Meds’ PreMenora™ eases symptoms safely and naturally

PreMenora™ is an all-natural supplement based on a formulation that contains 10 botanicals acting together to relieve the symptoms of perimenopause. Doctors from across the United States and Canada have recommended treatment with PreMenora™ so women can find relief from their symptoms without having to resort to synthetic hormone therapy. That way you can have your symptoms in control before the onset of full-blown menopause.

With PreMenora™ hot flashes, night sweats, bloating, insomnia, vaginal dryness, tiredness, and irritation decrease up to 80%. Libido, attentiveness, memory, and bone and joint health increase.

Now you have a choice. If you’re suffering through the symptoms of perimenopause or you are already in menopause, you don’t have to rely on dangerous synthetic hormones. PreMenora™ is 100% natural and safe with no known side effects. And it’s extremely affordable at only $9 per week, which is less than many prescription co-pays.

You can find out more about PreMenora™ by visiting this website.

Natural and Safe Treatments for Menopausal Symptoms

Thursday, August 6th, 2009

Every woman will experience menopause at some point during her lifetime. While it is a very natural phase of a woman’s life cycle, it can also bring with it some uncomfortable and in some cases, serious, symptoms. Right now, it is estimated 6,000 women reach menopause every day in the US, that’s about 2 million women every year.

Menopause is essentially the time when a woman ceases to have a menstrual cycle. As a woman ages, her estrogen levels naturally decrease and her ovaries slowly stop producing eggs. A woman typically reaches this menopausal state between the ages of 35 and 50, although in 10 percent of cases, doctors are now finding women do not experience changes in their menstrual flow.

Prior to menopause, women go through a stage called perimenopause. During this time, a woman’s body begins the transition into menopause. Typically, perimenopause lasts anywhere from two to eight years, plus another year following her final period. Estrogen levels rise and fall at irregular intervals during perimenopause. A woman’s menstrual cycles may increase or shorten, and she could begin to have menstrual cycles in which she doesn’t ovulate, so she would be unable to become pregnant during this time. For the most part, a woman will start to notice signs of impending menopause sometime during her 40s, although in some cases, a woman may actually enter this cycle during her early or mid-30s. According to the North American Menopause Society, the average age for perimenopause is actually 47.5 years.

As a woman goes through this natural change, her body also undergoes a myriad of changes brought on by the gradual loss of ovarian function. This action triggers dramatic shifts in four hormones that regulate the menstrual cycle: estrogen, progesterone, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and luteinizing hormone (LH). These hormonal changes can bring about numerous symptoms, which include a slowing of her metabolism, often resulting in weight gain, a loss in bone mass and strength, mood swings, fatigue, insomnia, forgetfulness, irritability, headaches, hot flashes accompanied by heart palpitations and dizziness, increased sweating, muscles aches and pains, water retention, vaginal dryness, a loss of muscle tone and changes to her breast size, shape and firmness and even depression. Not all women will experience every symptom and some women may experience more intense changes than others depending on a combination of her genetic makeup and lifestyle.

Post menopause typically brings some relief to symptoms. Once the body has completed the menopausal cycle and a woman has not had a period in over one year, symptoms tend to subside, although there are serious health risks linked to decreased estrogen levels. Post menopausal women are at higher risk for heart disease, osteoporosis, breast cancer and ovarian cancer for example. In 2000, there were 45.6 million postmenopausal women in the US, 39.9 million of which were over 51. According to the International Menopause Society, over half of all women over 50 will experience a bone fracture caused by osteoporosis. As well, menopausal women are 33 percent more likely to develop Alzheimer’s, a condition in women researchers are now linking to menopause.

By 2025, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates 1.1 billion women will be over the age of 50. This being the case, it is currently suggested a woman will actually spend 33 – 50 percent of her life in post menopause, so it becomes increasingly important she starts to take care of her body now, especially during the time leading up to post menopause.

Conventional medicine tends to look to hormone replacement therapy (HRT) as a way to treat menopause. Synthetic estrogen and progesterone are typically used in an attempt to even out declining hormone levels. In many cases this therapy may reduce climacteric symptoms such as flushing, insomnia and sweating and osteoporosis but many women on synthetic estrogens may suffer from irregular vaginal bleeding and studies now show there is an increased risk of breast cancer and/or endometrial cancer when using HRT.[1] Other studies suggest HRT also dramatically increases a woman’s risk of heart disease and thrombosis especially in women who start the therapy years after menopause.[2]

As studies continue to uncover the risks of HRT, many women are now turning to natural HRT and menopause relief. Studies repeatedly show there are many herbs, vitamins and supplements that can help provide natural relief from vaginal dryness, hot flashes and other bothersome symptoms of menopause without the risks associated with synthetic HRT.

Saraca indica, for example, is a herbal menopause treatment shown to decrease symptoms of menopause through its natural steroidal properties. Shatavari, also known as asparagus racemosus, is a widely used herbal treatment for menopause. It is essentially considered an aphrodisiac or fertility enhancer in women and has beneficial effects on the female reproductive system during menopause. This natural herbal remedy also has considerable cooling effects on the body, which makes it an effective natural treatment for hot flashes.

Another helpful herbal treatment for menopause is actea racemosa or black cohosh. This natural treatment is widely used in Germany as a natural treatment for hot flashes, depression and sleep disturbances often experienced during menopause. Ashwagandha (withania somnifera) is a very popular herbal remedy for menopausal symptoms such as insomnia and mood swings. It is also known as Indian Ginseng. Other helpful herbs include bacoppa monnier (brahmi), Celastrus paniculata (jyotismati), Cyperus rotundus (Xiang fu), Centella asiatica (Gotu Kola) and aloe vera. There is also increasing evidence that nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D and wheat germ are effective natural treatments for menopause, especially for bone loss associated with decreased estrogen levels.

Today, women have more choices than ever when it comes to treating menopause symptoms. Evidence clearly shows synthetic HRT is increasingly dangerous and any benefits are far outweighed by the risk associated with this type of treatment. Natural remedies are just as effective for most symptoms and are clinically proven safe. When looking for a natural herbal treatment for menopause, look for a supplement that incorporates a variety of herbs and nutrients that will treat a wide range of symptoms. It is also important to find a supplement that uses the proper ratio of therapeutic properties of each specific herb so that it can be effectively assimilated by the body.

For more information about natural herbal treatments for menopause, visit: www.premenora.com.


[1] Koukoulis GN. Hormone Replacement Therapy and Breast Cancer Risk. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2000;900:422-8.

[2] British Medical Journal, 2007; 335: 239-44