Menopause Resource Center
Menopause
& Hormones
article syndicated from FDA
What is menopause?
Menopause
is a normal change in a woman's life when her period
stops. That's
why some people call menopause "the
change of life" or "the change." During menopause a
woman's body slowly produces less of the hormones estrogen
and progesterone. This often happens between the ages
of 45 and 55 years old. A woman has reached menopause
when she has not had a period for 12 months in a row.
How
do hormones help with menopause?
Reduce hot flashes
Treat vaginal dryness
Slow bone loss
Who should not take hormone
therapy for menopause?
Women who...
Think they are pregnant
Have problems with vaginal bleeding
Have had certain kinds of cancers
Have had a stroke or heart attack in the past
year
Have had blood clots
Have liver disease
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What is hormone therapy for menopause?
Hormone therapy for menopause has also been called
hormone replacement therapy (HRT). Lower hormone levels
in menopause may lead to hot flashes, vaginal dryness
and thin bones. To help with these problems, women
are often given estrogen or estrogen with progestin
(another hormone). Like all medicines, hormone therapy
has risks and benefits. Talk to your doctor, nurse,
or pharmacist about hormones. If you decide
to use hormones, use them at the lowest dose that helps.
Also use them for the shortest time that you need them.
What are the symptoms of menopause?
Every woman's period will stop at menopause. Some
women may not have any other symptoms at all. As you
near menopause, you may have:
-
Changes in your period--time between periods or
flow may be different.
-
Hot
flashes ("hot flushes")--getting
warm in the face, neck and chest.
-
Night sweats and sleeping problems that lead to
feeling tired, stressed or tense.
-
Vaginal changes--the vagina may become dry and
thin, and sex may be painful.
-
Thinning of your bones, which may lead to loss
of height and bone breaks (osteoporosis).
Who needs treatment for symptoms of menopause?
-
For some women, many of these changes will go away
over time without treatment.
-
Some women will choose treatment for their symptoms
and to prevent bone loss. If you choose treatment,
estrogen alone or estrogen with progestin (for a
woman who still has her uterus or womb) can be used.
What are the benefits from using hormones for menopause?
Hormone therapy is the most effective FDA approved
medicine for relief of your hot flashes, night sweats
or vaginal dryness.
Hormones may reduce your chances of getting thin,
weak bones (osteoporosis), which break easily.
What are the risks of using hormones?
For some women, hormone therapy may increase their
chances of getting blood clots, heart attacks, strokes,
breast cancer, and gall bladder disease. For a woman
with a uterus, estrogen increases her chance of getting
endometrial cancer (cancer of the uterine lining).
Adding progestin lowers this risk.
Should hormone therapy be used to protect the heart
or prevent strokes?
Do not use hormone therapy to prevent heart attacks
or strokes.
Should hormone therapy be used to prevent memory
loss or Alzheimer's disease?
Do not use hormone therapy to prevent memory loss
or Alzheimer's disease.
Do hormones protect against aging and wrinkles?
Studies have not shown that hormone therapy prevents
aging and wrinkles.
How long should I use hormones for menopause?
You should talk to your doctor, nurse or pharmacist. Again,
hormones should be used at the lowest dose that helps
and for the shortest time that you need them.
Does it make a difference what form of hormones I
use for menopause?
The risks and benefits may be the same for all hormone
products for menopause, such as pills, patches, vaginal
creams, gels and rings.
Are
herbs and other "natural" products
useful in treating symptoms of menopause?
At
this time, we do not know if herbs or other "natural" products
are helpful or safe. Studies are being done to learn
about the benefits and risks.
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