Managing Menopause Naturally

Modifications to lifestyle can help you through menopausal symptoms such as a healthy diet, plenty of exercise, drinking plenty of water, giving up smoking and even trying to develop a positive attitude. However, there’s more to the menopause story.

Unfortunately, at some point in every women’s life her hormone production drops below the level required to continue her menstrual periods. Although many women welcome the end to monthly bleeding, bloating and inconvenience, menopause can bring on extreme emotional and physical changes caused by the reduction in the body’s production of hormones – especially estrogen.

These changes can start to occur many years before a woman stops ovulating as her ovaries slow their production of the hormones estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. But in most cases, they don’t really have a dramatic effect on the body until a woman approches menopause and sometimes before that time (called perimenopause).

During this time they can be subjected to irregular periods, anxiety, dry skin, fatigue, feelings of bloating, headaches, heart palpitations, loss of concentration, mood swings, night sweats, reduced stamina, urinary incontinence, vaginal dryness and itching, and weight gain. Sounds great, eh?

Menopause generally occurs between the ages of 45 and 55 and for the majority of women will last no more than a couple of years, although some unlucky women can experience symptoms for as long as five or six years. HRT (hormone replacement therapy) has been used by women for many years with the promise that it would not only manage menopausal symptoms but would also protect again osteoporosis by strengthening their bones, protect them against heart disease and preserve their youth.

However, recent studies suggest that there is a real danger that HRT might actually threaten their lives, with strong links to breast cancer, heart disease and an increased risk of Alzheimers disease. Thankfully there are natural estogens and progesterones that can replace the typical synthetic HRT.