What is menopause, and what can I expect in the way of symptoms?
Menopause is the time in a woman’s life (average age in America is 51) when her menstrual periods lessen in frequency or totally stop, and the ovaries begin to produce smaller amounts (or inadequate amounts) of three hormones estrogen progesterone, and androgen. A woman can expect her menopause to begin at about the same time that her mother’s began. Aside from her periods becoming irregular or stopping completely, a menopausal woman may experience hot flashes, which do go away in time. In addition, estrogen loss may lead to night sweats, vaginal dryness, and even osteoporosis. For more information on osteoporosis, a good source would be the National Osteoporosis Foundation. An excellent online source of information on menopause is the Web site of the North American Menopause Society. Q: I’ve heard that hormone replacement therapy can help reduce the effects of menopause. Could you explain this type of therapy? What are the side effects? A: Briefly, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is