Menopause For Dummies

by Jones, Marcia L.; Eichenwald, Theresa; Hall, Nancy W.

• ISBN13: 9780470053430
• ISBN10: 0470053437
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-12-06
• Publisher: For Dummies

Summary

Although menopause is a natural and inevitable stage in every woman's life, its physical, mental, and emotional manifestations can vary greatly from one person to the next. Add to this all of the conflicting "expert" information about the benefits, risks, and side effects to which women are exposed on a daily basis, and it's easy to see why most find it difficult to make informed choices about how to deal with their menopausal symptoms. Authored by a team of acknowledged experts in treating menopausal symptoms, Menopause For Dummies arms you with all the information you need to stay in control every step of the way. In plain English, it explains the role menopause plays in a variety of common health problems, such as osteoporosis, stroke, and heart disease. It walks you through proven measures for minimizing your risk of developing complications through including diet and exercise, stress management, hormone replacement, and other techniques. And it arms you with authoritative, up-to-the-minute coverage of: Premenopause how to identify it and what it means The stages of menopause How menopause can affect your body, emotions, and libido The latest facts about hormone replacement therapy The pros and cons of various alternative treatments The best ways of handling hot flashes Easing symptoms with diet and exercise Preventing bone loss Helpful lifestyle changes With Menopause For Dummies in your corner you'll have a kinder, gentler "change of life."

Author Biography

Marcia L. Jones was a freelance writer for more than 20 years.

Theresa Eichenwald, M.D., is an internist with experience in caring for menopausal women.

Nancy W. Hall has written extensively on health, pregnancy, and child development for over 18 years.

Table of Contents

Introduction	1	(1)
About This Book	2	(1)
Foolish Assumptions	2	(1)
How This Book Is Organized	3	(2)
Part I: The Main Facts about Menopause	3	(1)
Part II: The Effects of Menopause on Your Body and Mind	4	(1)
Part III: Treating the Effects	4	(1)
Part IV: Lifestyle Issues for Menopause and Beyond	4	(1)
Part V: The Part of Tens	5	(1)
Part VI: The Appendixes	5	(1)
Conventions Used in This Book	5	(1)
Icons Used in This Book	6	(1)
Where to Go from Here	6	(1)
Part I: The Main Facts about Menopause	7	(46)
Mapping Out Menopause	9	(8)
Defining Menopause	9	(4)
Getting the terminology right	10	(1)
Approaching the change: Perimenopause	11	(1)
Menstruating no more: Menopause	12	(1)
Getting past menopause: Postmenopause	12	(1)
Anticipating Menopause	13	(1)
Transitioning to Menopause	13	(2)
Starting out	14	(1)
Identifying symptoms	14	(1)
Calling in the professionals	15	(1)
Seeing it through to the end	15	(1)
Treating Menopause	15	(1)
Promoting Longevity	16	(1)
Talking Biology and Psychology: Your Mind and Body on Menopause	17	(14)
Setting the Stage	18	(1)
Making the Menstrual Cycle and Hormone Connection	19	(2)
Surveying the Role of Hormones	21	(5)
Linking your brain and body	22	(1)
Explaining estrogen	23	(1)
Promoting progesterone	24	(1)
Investigating androgens	25	(1)
Understanding the Stages of Menopause	26	(3)
Previewing perimenopause	26	(2)
Meeting menopause	28	(1)
Seeking Out Support	29	(2)
Fooling Mother Nature: Early Menopause	31	(10)
Understanding the Lingo	32	(2)
Induced menopause	32	(1)
Premature ovarian failure	33	(1)
Coping with Sudden Change	34	(2)
Knowing when you hit menopause	34	(1)
Getting the help you need for your body and mind	35	(1)
Prepping for Surgical Menopause	36	(1)
Taking Advantage of Assisted Living	37	(3)
Estrogen alone	37	(1)
Combination therapy	38	(1)
Alternatives to HT	39	(1)
Finding Support: Birds of a Feather	40	(1)
Getting In Sync with the Symptoms	41	(12)
Kicking Things Off with Perimenopausal Symptoms	42	(6)
Getting physical	42	(4)
Playing head games	46	(2)
Visiting the Menopausal Symptoms	48	(3)
Figuring out the physical facts	48	(2)
Discovering that it's more than skin deep	50	(1)
Understanding That It's Not Your Imagination	51	(2)
Part II: The Effects of Menopause on Your Body and Mind	53	(88)
The Business of Your Bones	55	(24)
Homing In on Bone Health	56	(1)
Growing big bones and strong bones	56	(1)
Understanding peak bone density	56	(1)
Keeping Pace with Bone Reconstruction	57	(3)
Making the calcium connection	58	(2)
Recognizing the role of sex hormones	60	(1)
Boning Up on Osteoporosis	60	(6)
Linking osteoporosis and women	61	(1)
Defining and diagnosing osteoporosis	61	(2)
Looking at causes	63	(1)
Avoiding the effects	63	(3)
Preventing Osteoporosis by Managing Your Risk Factors	66	(7)
Blaming your genes: Genetic factors and family background	67	(1)
Reviewing your personal health history	67	(2)
Looking to your lifestyle	69	(4)
Finding Out Whether You Have Osteoporosis	73	(3)
Doing the DEXA	74	(1)
Opting for another type of test	75	(1)
Treating Osteoporosis	76	(3)
Battling bone loss with medication	76	(1)
Using hormones	77	(2)
Getting a Handle on Heart Health	79	(16)
Keeping Up with All Things Cardio	80	(2)
Revealing estradiol's role in heart health	80	(1)
Linking cardiovascular disease and the menopausal woman	80	(2)
Considering Cholesterol	82	(5)
Breaking down the types of cholesterol	82	(1)
Decoding your numbers	83	(1)
Looking at the factors	84	(1)
Regulating estrogen's role	84	(1)
Connecting the dots between cholesterol and cardiovascular disease	85	(2)
Understanding Cardiovascular Diseases	87	(4)
Containing coronary artery disease	87	(1)
Avoiding angina	87	(2)
Holding off heart attacks	89	(1)
Fending off hypertension	89	(1)
Staving off stroke	90	(1)
Checking Out Your Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease	91	(2)
Being Smart about Your Heart	93	(2)
Weighing an ounce of prevention	93	(1)
Treating what ails you	94	(1)
Dealing with Vaginal and Urinary Changes	95	(12)
Understanding the Normalcy of Vaginal and Urinary Changes	95	(1)
Talking Shop with Your Doc	96	(1)
Overcoming Vaginal Changes	97	(2)
Understanding what vaginal atrophy is and what it isn't	97	(1)
Looking at what less estrogen means for your vagina	98	(1)
Doing something about vaginal atrophy	98	(1)
Talking about Urinary Problems	99	(8)
Getting a grip on types of urinary problems	100	(1)
Tracking urinary-tract infections	101	(1)
Covering interstitial cystitis	102	(2)
Encountering incontinence	104	(3)
Examining Your Skin and Hair on Menopause	107	(8)
Getting the Skinny on Skin	108	(4)
Making the skin and hormone connection	108	(1)
Shining a light on the sun's dangers	109	(3)
Preventing premature skin aging	112	(1)
Handling Hairy Issues	112	(3)
Losing it --- your hair, that is	113	(1)
Taking care of your hair	113	(2)
Maintaining Your Sex Life Through Menopause	115	(14)
Looking at Menopause and Your Libido	116	(5)
Letting your feelings be your guide	116	(1)
Turning up the heat	117	(1)
Dealing with a lowered libido	118	(3)
Talking Turkey about Testosterone	121	(1)
Keeping Sex Sexy	121	(3)
Flirting with Fertility	124	(5)
Staying fertile after all these years	124	(1)
Taking one more chance on the stork	125	(2)
Taking the good with the bad	127	(2)
Mental and Emotional Issues	129	(12)
Understanding the Mental and Emotional Stresses of Menopause	130	(1)
Finding the link to menopause	130	(1)
Separating menopausal symptoms from psychological disorders	131	(1)
Deciding Whether You're Depressed	131	(2)
Understanding the differences	131	(2)
Knowing the signs	133	(1)
Dealing with the Head Games	133	(3)
Knowing the symptoms	133	(1)
Looking at the research	134	(1)
Beating the memory game	135	(1)
Straightening Out the Commotions with Your Emotions	136	(5)
Feeling your way through the symptoms	137	(1)
Understanding the physiology and getting relief	138	(1)
Managing life changes	139	(2)
Part III: Treating the Effects	141	(98)
The Basics of Hormone Therapy	143	(18)
Defining Hormone Therapy	143	(3)
Slaying the symptoms	145	(1)
Preventing serious health problems with hormone therapy	145	(1)
Ticking Through the Therapies	146	(7)
Unopposed estrogen therapy	147	(2)
Combination therapy	149	(2)
Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators (SERMs)	151	(2)
Prescribing Pills, Patches, and Pomades	153	(3)
Popping pills	153	(1)
Pasting on a patch	153	(1)
Applying creams	154	(1)
Slipping on a ring	155	(1)
Searching for Sources	156	(3)
Synthetic versus natural hormones	156	(1)
Estrogen	156	(2)
Progestin	158	(1)
Combinations of estrogen and progestin	158	(1)
Androgens	159	(1)
Doing the Dosing	159	(2)
Understanding Hormone Therapy and Your Heart	161	(12)
Meeting the Players: Hormones and Your Heart	162	(1)
The star: Estrogen	162	(1)
The supporting actor: Progesterone	163	(1)
The assistant: Testosterone	163	(1)
Understanding the Difference Between Hormones and Hormone Therapy	163	(2)
Using estrogen plus progestin	164	(1)
Taking unopposed estrogen	165	(1)
Identifying the Heart Disease Culprit	165	(2)
Considering the age of menopause	165	(1)
Factoring in other factors	166	(1)
Skimming the Fat: Hormone Therapy and Your Blood	167	(3)
Combating hypertension	167	(1)
Cleaning out clots and clogs	168	(2)
Oiling the Pump: HT and Your Heart	170	(3)
Slowing the pace	170	(1)
Keeping angina away	170	(1)
Avoiding the big one	171	(2)
Checking Out Hormone Therapy and Breast Cancer	173	(12)
Beginning with Breast Basics	173	(1)
Defining Breast Cancer	174	(1)
Taking Care of Your Breasts	175	(1)
Examining your breasts every month	175	(1)
Making time for mammograms	176	(1)
Determining Estrogen's Role	176	(1)
Checking the Link between HT and Breast Cancer	177	(1)
Assessing Your Risks	178	(3)
Recognizing risks you can't control	179	(1)
Recognizing risks you can control	180	(1)
Using Hormones as Therapy	181	(2)
Counting the ways	182	(1)
Reviewing the risks and benefits	182	(1)
Choosing Your HT Regimen	183	(2)
Reviewing Reproductive Cancers and Hormone Therapy	185	(12)
Colorectal Cancer	185	(4)
Recognizing the signs	187	(1)
Finding out for sure: Screenings and tests	187	(2)
Determining the role of hormone therapy	189	(1)
Assessing your risks	189	(1)
Endometrial (Uterine) Cancer	189	(4)
Recognizing the signs	191	(1)
Finding out for sure: Tests	191	(1)
Determining the role of hormone therapy	192	(1)
Assessing your risks	192	(1)
Ovarian Cancer	193	(2)
Cancers Unaffected by Hormone Therapy	195	(2)
Vaginal and vulvar cancers	195	(1)
Cervical cancer	196	(1)
Considering Hormone Therapy and Other Health Conditions	197	(12)
Dealing with Deep Vein Thrombosis	197	(2)
Recognizing the signs	198	(1)
Determining the role of hormones	198	(1)
Dissecting Diabetes	199	(2)
Recognizing the signs	200	(1)
Determining the role of hormones	200	(1)
Facing the Facts about Fibromyalgia	201	(1)
Recognizing the signs	201	(1)
Determining the role of hormones	202	(1)
Getting the Goods on Gallbladder Disease	202	(1)
Recognizing the signs	202	(1)
Determining the role of hormones	203	(1)
Thinking about Your Thyroid	203	(1)
Recognizing the signs	203	(1)
Determining the role of hormones	204	(1)
Looking at Lupus	204	(2)
Recognizing the signs	205	(1)
Determining the role of hormones	205	(1)
Monitoring Migraines	206	(1)
Recognizing the signs	206	(1)
Determining the role of hormones	206	(1)
Considering Cognition	207	(2)
Recognizing the signs	207	(1)
Determining the role of hormones	207	(2)
Making the Decision about Hormone Therapy	209	(16)
Outlining Attitudes about HT	209	(1)
Taking Everything into Consideration	210	(2)
Weighing the Benefits and Risks of HT	212	(2)
Rounding up the benefits	212	(2)
Corralling the risks	214	(1)
Getting to the Heart of Cardiac Health	214	(3)
Going along on estrogen alone	215	(2)
Assessing Your Personal Risk	217	(1)
Summing Up the Studies	218	(1)
Presenting the Options for Perimenopause	219	(1)
Option 1: The lifestyle solution	219	(1)
Option 2: The herbal solution	220	(1)
Option 3: The HT solution	220	(1)
Quitting HT	220	(1)
Recognizing Whether HT Is for You	221	(4)
Deciding that HT may not be for you	221	(1)
Thinking you may be ready for HT	222	(3)
Taking an Alternate Route: Non-Hormone Therapies	225	(14)
Weighing the Pros and Cons of Herbs	226	(2)
Considering conventional concerns	227	(1)
Seeking safety in herbal therapy	227	(1)
Relieving Your Symptoms with Plants	228	(5)
Cataloging herbal therapies by symptom	228	(1)
Getting the scoop on individual herbs	229	(4)
Getting Touchy about Acupuncture	233	(1)
Soothing Symptoms with Mind-Body Therapies	234	(1)
Tuning in to biofeedback	234	(1)
Getting your yoga groove on	234	(1)
Slip Sliding Away with Topical Treatments	235	(1)
Offering Options for Bone and Heart Health	235	(4)
Battling bone loss with medication	235	(1)
Controlling cardiovascular disease	236	(3)
Part IV: Lifestyle Issues for Menopause and Beyond	239	(58)
Eating for the Change	241	(20)
Eating to Promote Good Health	242	(7)
Getting the right mix of nutrients	244	(4)
Rethinking how you eat	248	(1)
Eating to Prevent or Contain Problems	249	(5)
Strengthening your bones	251	(2)
Pumping up your cardiovascular system	253	(1)
Weighing in on the Weight Issue	254	(7)
How much weight is too much?	254	(2)
Eating to control body weight	256	(5)
Focusing on Fitness	261	(24)
Recognizing the Benefits of Exercise	261	(5)
Tweaking your attitude	262	(1)
Flashing less --- sleeping more	262	(1)
Shedding pounds	263	(1)
Keeping your heart healthy	263	(1)
Shoring up your bones	264	(1)
Doing without diabetes	265	(1)
Steering clear of colon cancer	265	(1)
Sharpening your memory	265	(1)
Living long and prospering	265	(1)
Focusing on Fitness Fundamentals	266	(8)
Getting started	266	(1)
Fitting in fitness	267	(1)
Planning your program	267	(1)
Scheduling fitness fun time	268	(2)
Flexing through stretching	270	(1)
Warming up and cooling down	271	(3)
Exercises for Women with Osteoporosis	274	(7)
Strengthening bones and toning muscle	275	(5)
Adding balance to your routine	280	(1)
Exercises to Protect Your Heart	281	(4)
Working on and working up to heart health	281	(1)
Walking for fun and fitness	282	(3)
Enjoying a New Lease on Life	285	(12)
Going from Menopause to Infinity	286	(1)
Working and Playing Well with Others	287	(3)
Managing a family	287	(1)
You and your partner	288	(1)
Caring for aging parents	289	(1)
Retiring Gracefully (or Not)	290	(2)
Taking care of your body on the job	290	(1)
Looking before you leap	291	(1)
Finding Your Spirit in Whatever You Do	292	(3)
Appreciating the upside	292	(1)
Seeing things in a new light	293	(2)
Living Happily Ever After	295	(2)
Part V: The Part of Tens	297	(28)
Ten Menopause Myths Exposed	299	(8)
You're Too Young to Be Menopausal in Your 30s and 40s	299	(1)
Menopause Is a Medical Condition That Must Be Treated with Medicine	300	(1)
Menopause Isn't a Disease, So There's No Need to See a Doctor	301	(1)
You Lose the Urge to Have Sex after the Change	302	(1)
Irregular Vaginal Bleeding Always Means Cancer	303	(1)
Humps Accompany Old Age --- End of Story	303	(1)
Only HRT Can Relieve the Symptoms	304	(1)
Women Don't Need to Worry about Heart Attacks	304	(1)
Most Women Get Really Depressed During Menopause	305	(1)
You'll Break a Bone If You Exercise Too Hard	305	(1)
A Blood Test Can Determine Whether You're Going Through Menopause	306	(1)
Ten Medical Tests for Menopausal Women	307	(6)
Pelvic Exam and Pap Smear	307	(1)
Rectal Exam	308	(1)
Colonoscopy	308	(1)
Bone-Density Screening	309	(1)
Mammogram	309	(1)
Cholesterol Screening	309	(1)
Fasting Blood-Glucose Test	310	(1)
Thyroid Screening	310	(1)
Ovarian Hormone Screening	310	(1)
Stress Test	311	(2)
Ten Terrific Fitness Programs for Menopausal Women	313	(6)
Core Strength Training	313	(1)
Walking	314	(1)
Elliptical Training	315	(1)
Running	315	(1)
Swimming	315	(1)
Cycling	316	(1)
Yoga	316	(1)
T'ai Chi	317	(1)
Pilates	317	(1)
Water Aerobics	317	(2)
Ten Powerhouse Foods for Menopausal Women	319	(6)
Soy Joy	319	(1)
Nuts to You	320	(1)
Catch of the Day	320	(1)
I Yam What I Yam	321	(1)
The Berry Blues	321	(1)
Flax Flying	322	(1)
Orange You Glad	322	(1)
Tea for You	322	(1)
It's Easy Eating Greens	323	(1)
Yo! Yogurt!	323	(2)
Part VI: Appendixes	325	(2)
Appendix A: Glossary	327	(8)
Appendix B: Resources	335	(8)
Fabulous Books about Menopause, Health, Fitness, and Related Issues	335	(2)
Wonderful Web Sites for Women	337	(3)
American Herbalist Guild	337	(1)
Yoga.com	338	(1)
Dietary Guidelines for Americans	338	(1)
FitDay.com	338	(1)
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine Clearinghouse	338	(1)
National Osteoporosis Foundation	339	(1)
National Women's Health Information Center	339	(1)
North American Menopause Society	339	(1)
Third Age	339	(1)
WebMD	340	(1)
Women and Cardiovascular Disease	340	(1)
Women's Cancer Network	340	(1)
The Study Sites	340	(3)
Women's Health Initiative	341	(1)
The Nurses' Health Study	341	(1)
Kronos Early Estrogen Prevention Study	341	(1)
The Framingham Heart Study	341	(2)
Index	343