Early Menopause.org

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Background
Since publication of results of the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) trial in 2002 and the Million Women study in 2003, there has been much confusion around the use of HRT, with media reporting frequently emphasising the risks and ignoring the benefits of HRT. As a result, many women worldwide either chose to, or were advised to stop their HRT. Although for some there has been no adverse effect from stopping, it is unclear how many women have suffered from recurrence of menopausal symptoms, which may have affected their quality of life. Further analysis, particularly from the WHI trial has shown that in fact the majority of women who use HRT for control of menopausal symptoms within 10 years of the menopause, are unlikely to come to any harm and are much more likely to benefit from taking HRT.

Some women find hot flushes/flashes no big deal. Others find the hot flashes, but maybe also those flash-free women annoying. It's no fun to suddenly turn red in the face, break into a sweat and possibly feel palpitations during an important meeting. Disrupted sleep from night sweats can hurt your mood, concentration and energy.

For Karen Drexel, the waves of sudden, burning heat began a few years ago, at age 45. "It starts sort of low and works its way up," says Drexel of Greece, N.Y., now 48. "Your whole body starts perspiring. By the time it reaches your upper body, you're like this," she says, fanning her face with her hand to illustrate. If home when a hot flash hit, she'd press an ice pack to the back of her neck for some relief - or stand in front of an open refrigerator.

About one in five women residing in India are likely to experience menopause by the age of 41, according to a study conducted by Bangalore, India-based Institute for Social and Economic Change, London's Times reports. According to the Times, the onset of menopause usually begins between ages 45 and 55, with a worldwide average of 51. Premature menopause is the end of menstruation before age 40 and affects about 1% of women worldwide.

For the study, T. S. Syamala and M. Sivakami of ISEC used data from the National Family Health Survey, conducted in 1988 and 1999, which examined about 90,000 married women ages 15 to 49 across 26 Indian states. The study found that 3.1% of women living in India became menopausal between ages 30 and 34, 8% of women experienced menopause by age 39 and 19% of were menopausal by age 41. The average menopausal age in India is 44.3 years. The study found that premature menopause was most common in rural areas, as well as among agricultural workers, women who were illiterate and women who had a low body mass index.

A new Canadian-led trial finds a safer and equally effective alternative therapy for controlling hot flushes and night sweats. The study suggested that a old treatment derived from progesterone may be as effective as estrogen for quelling hot flushes.

Medroxyprogesterone, a synthetic version of the hormone progesterone, was first made about 40 years ago, when progesterone itself was not available in an oral form – said Dr.Jerilynn Prior, professor of endocrinology and medicine at the University of B.C. and Vancouver Hospital.

More at

The natural herb black cohosh is commonly used by women to treat menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, but the molecular mechanisms underlying its action have eluded scientists - until now.

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago and the National Institutes of Health Center for Botanical Dietary Supplements Research have discovered that black cohosh may act on human opiate receptors, which play a role in regulating a body's temperature.

Z. Jim Wang, assistant professor of pharmacology and pharmaceutics, led the study, which will be published in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry; the paper is currently available on the journal's web site.

i am new to the website, and to the menopause. my doc has prescribed me hrt which i am a bit worried about taking, i would like to hear anyones views on this matter, or any advice would be greatly appreciated.

thanx
sam

Recommended Web Link: Click to visit Menopause Matters

Recommended Web Link: Click to visit Women's Health Concern

Bionovo, Inc.'s paper describing the mechanism of action of MF101, the company's lead drug candidate for menopausal symptoms, has been published in Endocrinology, a journal published by The Endocrine Society. The paper titled "Selective activation of estrogen receptor beta transcriptional pathways by an herbal extract" details how MF101 is selective to the estrogen receptor beta (ER-b) and does not affect estrogen receptor alpha (ER-a). This is a significant milestone toward the development of safe and effective drugs for menopause since it has been shown that the increased risk of breast and uterine cancers is associated with ER-a activation and that ER-b blocks the growth promoting effects on breast cancer cells.

Do you have Premature Ovarian Failure(POF), which is often the reason for having an early menopause?
Are you unable to get long term support for your condition?
Have you been abandoned by your gynaecologist/G.P. for the treatment of your POF?
Are you aged under 45 years?
Are you based in the U.K.?

Again and again I am hearing about women who are being denied treatment from their GP, not being referred to see gynaecologists when they need to be, and even if they fight to get a referral, I am hearing that they are not being allowed to get follow up appointments without justification being made on a case-by-case basis by the gynaecologist to the Primary Care Trust (PCT). This endless bureaucracy is stifling caring professionals working in the field, who should be caring for patients.