Mood: energetic
Long Walk May Help With Menopause April 5, 2007 STATE COLLEGE , Pa. (AP) -- A little exercise, even just a long walk, may go a long way toward helping women feel better while going through menopause. Women involved in a regular exercise program reported better quality of life during menopause compared with those who did not exercise, according a Penn State University study. The 164 volunteers were primarily sedentary before the four-month study led by Steriani Elavsky, a Penn State kinesiology professor. They were divided into three groups. One group met three times a week to walk for an hour, another group gathered for 90-minute yoga sessions twice a week, and a third group didn't exercise. Results were published in a recent issue of Annals of Behavioral Medicine.
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Mood: blue
When Moods Swing Women in early stages of perimenopause are prone to mood disorders.
by Jan Eickmeier
Women who are in the early phase of the menopausal transition are more likely to have mood disorders than women who are still in the late phase of their reproductive years. Researchers collected information on mood, lifestyle, sleep, etc., from 3,303 premenopausal and early perimenopausal women. Premenopause was defined as no decrease in the predictability of the start of menstrual periods in the previous 12 months, while perimenopause was defined as less predictable onset of menstrual periods in the previous 12 months. The rates of mood disorders ranged from 8 to 12 percent among premenopausal women and from 14.9 to 18.4 percent among perimenopausal women. Perimenopausal women were more likely to suffer from irritability, nervousness, and frequent mood changes, but not depression. According to the study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology , women with less than a high school education are especially susceptible to mood disorders in early perimenopause.
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Mood: a-ok
Get Out the Big Guns
Despite the risks uncovered in the WHI trials, experts say that if you're experiencing severe and persistent symptoms and nothing else is working, hormone therapy may be your best option. They recommend taking the lowest dose for the shortest time possible; your doc can help you determine what is best for you. The WHI study found that heart disease risk rises in the first year; the danger of blood clots was greatest during the first 2 years; and breast cancer risk increased 24% after 5 years.
Saying no to discomfort
Sales of personal lubricants rose 11% to $51.6 million in 2004. The average customer: a 52-year-old woman who buys lubricants three or four times a year.
This is Your Mood on Menopause
Science shows that menopause can cause hot flashes, night sweats, and vaginal dryness, but proof that it alters your emotions is elusive. An NIH panel on menopause found that mood swings and memory misfires could not be tied to this hormonal shift. Many women experience neither. If you feel moody, there's a good chance that sleep loss because of night sweats and hot flashes is responsible. However, if you've battled depression or an eating disorder in the past, you may experience a recurrence during menopause.
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Mood: a-ok
Chew a little soy.
Though many women swear by soy to ease menopausal symptoms, there's been little solid research on its effectiveness. Recent news, however, is promising: Scientists at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine put 35 women on 160 mg of a soy isoflavones supplement (Revival) or a placebo. After 3 months, the supplement group reported nearly a third fewer flashes than those taking the fakes.
The study used about 10 times the amount of soy found in the typical American diet. But study coauthor Adrian Sandra Dobs, MD, doesn't recommend popping large doses of supplements. Instead, she says, try to eat more tofu (20 mg isoflavones in 3 ounces), tempeh (37 mg), and other soy foods, which have additional nutritional benefits.
Still No Relief? Meds May Make Sense
Take an SSRI.
No one thinks hot flashes are caused by depression. But a 2003 study of 165 women by the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center found that a 12.5 mg dose of Paxil (an antidepressant known as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, or SSRI) reduced flashes by 62% in 6 weeks. Although these numbers are less impressive than the 75% reduction you may get with hormones, SSRIs don't carry the heart disease dangers of HT.
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Mood: a-ok
Smell the relief.
If you need an excuse to pamper yourself, a recent Japanese study of 15 women found that those who got two 20-minute aromatherapy rubdowns and performed self-massages with scented oil three times weekly reported fewer hot flashes and sounder sleep after 1 month.
Next, Consider Emerging Treatments
Try an herb.
Research on black cohosh has shown that it can reduce the severity of hot flashes and night sweats. The latest good news comes by way of a German study of 304 women. Half took 40 mg of a black cohosh supplement (Remifemin); the rest got a placebo. After 12 weeks, those on the herb experienced a reduction of symptoms similar to that seen with estrogen therapy.
Unfortunately, supplements aren't regulated, but the watchdog group ConsumerLab.com recently reviewed several other black cohosh supplements and deemed Jarrow Formulas Black Cohosh, Sundown Black Cohosh, and Swanson Health Products Premium Brand Black Cohosh among those with accurate label claims. (Always keep your doctor informed of any new supplements you're on.)
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at 8:13 PM EDT
Mood: cool
Managing Menopause
First, Try Low-Risk TechniquesTake a breath.
Researchers at Wayne State University randomly assigned 33 women with frequent hot flashes to receive eight lessons in belly breathing, muscle relaxation, or a placebo treatment. The belly breathers reported a 50% drop in the frequency of flashes; the others had no change.
Try it at home: Sit comfortably in a quiet spot. Inhale slowly and deeply through your nose for 5 seconds so that your belly expands; then exhale through your mouth for 5, continuing for 15 minutes. Once you've mastered the method, put it into action for 2 to 3 minutes whenever you feel a flash. The more you do it, the fewer heat waves you'll have. "It may be that deep breathing drops the body's core temperature slightly," says lead researcher Robert Freedman, PhD.
Get up and go.
Taking regular Spin classes won't nix hot flashes, but menopausal women who exercise do report less flash-induced discomfort. Apparently, the heat and soaking that come with flashes and night sweats don't seem so distressing if you're a regular exerciser, say researchers. Bonus: Thirty minutes of moderate-intensity exercise most days of the week can offset the increased heart disease risk that comes with menopause.
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Mood: a-ok
Key Stats
6. Some studies find a diet high in soy products can reduce postmenopausal hot flashes.
7. Some women continue to experience premenstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms as they approach menopause. These symptoms can include swollen or tender breasts, bloating, nausea and moodiness.
8. Fertility decreases gradually as menopause approaches. However, you can still get pregnant, even if your periods are irregular. The second highest unintended pregnancy rate is for women between the ages of 40 to 44. Thus, the need for reliable contraception remains important.
9. As estrogen levels decline, vaginal tissue and tissue in the lower urinary tract become thinner, drier and less supple, which can cause painful intercourse and more frequent urinary tract infections. Osteoporosis and heart disease are other consequences of declining estrogen levels in the decades following menopause.
10. As you approach menopause, you may notice that you feel more irritable and moody than usual. Some researchers believe this moodiness is due to the changes in your estrogen levels, but others think it may be more the result of the other symptoms that accompany menopause, such as hot flashes and fatigue, coupled with other stressors that often plague women in middle age. Severe depression, however, is not a symptom of menopause.
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Mood: a-ok
Key Stats
1. Before they turn 50, women are less likely to have a heart attack than men. Ten years after menopause, however, their heart attack risk is close to men's. Women can protect themselves against heart disease by not smoking, eating a healthy diet and getting regular exercise.
2. Osteoporosis--a disease in which bones become thin, brittle and more likely to fracture--affects one in four women after menopause.
3. In a 1998 Gallup survey sponsored by the North American Menopause Society, more than half (51 percent) of American women between the ages 50 and 65 who had reached menopause said they were happier and more fulfilled than when they were in their 20s, 30s, or 40s.
4. The same Gallup poll revealed that 16 percent of women surveyed said their sexual relationship had improved since menopause, while 17 percent said it had gotten worse and more than half (51 percent) said it had remained unchanged.
5. Most women in the 1998 Gallup poll said they discussed menopause with a friend or someone from their own generation, compared to a smaller percentage who said they discussed it with someone from their mother's or daughter's generation.
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at 6:01 PM EDT
Mood: chillin'
General Menopause
The change of life. The end of fertility. The beginning of freedom. Whatever people call it, menopause is a unique and personal experience for every woman. It's a natural event that marks the end of fertility and childbearing years. Technically, menopause results when the ovaries no longer release eggs and decrease production of the sex hormones, estrogen, progesterone and, to a lesser extent, androgen. Menopause is said to have occurred when a woman has not had a period for 12 months.
During the reproductive years, a gland in the brain generates hormones that cause a new egg from the ovaries to be released from its follicle each month. As the follicle develops, it produces the sex hormones estrogen and, after ovulation, progesterone, which results in a thickened uterine lining. This enriched lining is prepared to receive and nourish a fertilized egg, which could develop into a fetus. If fertilization does not occur, estrogen and progesterone levels drop, the lining of the uterus breaks down and menstruation occurs.
For reasons unknown, your ovaries gradually begin to function less efficiently during your mid-to-late 30s. In your late 40s, the process accelerates along with greater hormone fluctuations. This affects ovulation and levels of the hormone progesterone. During this transition period, called perimenopause, you may experience irregular menstrual cycles and unpredictable episodes of menstrual bleeding. By your early to mid-50s, your periods will finally end
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Updated: Friday, 27 April 2007 3:06 PM EDT
Mood: a-ok
The psychological and spiritual aspects of menopause . The post-menopausal years can be a truly wonderful and gratifying period of a women's life, maybe even the best ever. It is a time, for most women, when they no longer have to attend to children and can focus more love and attention on themselves and their own needs. There is no longer the concern about becoming pregnant, which is a relief to many women, and make make sex a freer experience. And there is the opportunity to enjoy the fruits of one's professional, personal, and spiritual wisdom. In India, the time when one's children are grown is considered the beginning of sanyas or renun-ciation for men or women who so choose. They are encouarged to spend the rest of their life seeking their Oneness with God. If you find yourself, during or after menopause, filled with despair, resentment, fears about the future, get help so that this can be the beautifully rewarding change in your life that you have waited for and so fully deserve.
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