Hormone Therapy
Many women who reach the point of menopause experience hot flashes as a common side effect. While hot flashes are relatively normal and an anticipated side effect of the natural changes that occur during menopause, some women may have harsher symptoms than others. As a result some women seek various treatment methods to help alleviate the intensity of menopausal symptoms.
There are various methods for managing menopausal symptoms. It’s important for women to have comprehensive information about the treatment options available so they can decide which one is best for them.
Part of testosterone’s role in a woman’s body is to contribute to libido and arousal, which is why many women will consider taking it if they experience an unwanted drop in sexual desire.
Certain herbal remedies claim to reduce hot flashes, night sweats, and mood changes. There is, however, a lack of quality scientific studies and evidence that herbal remedies are effective in relieving menopause symptoms, and a lack of knowledge about their long-term safety.
This week the National Women’s Health Network was back at the FDA fighting for medically accurate information about the dangers of hormone therapy during menopause.
Hot flashes are the most common symptom of menopause, and are extremely aggravating to women. While some women never have hot flashes and others have mild or infrequent hot flashes, some women experience dozens each day.
Since the early 2000s, the use of menopausal hormone therapy has continued to decline after the initial findings of the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) showed an increased risk of breast cancer and serious cardiac events with the use of estrogen plus progestin.
No form of estrogen, or estrogen plus progestin, has been proven to prevent heart disease. Yet millions of women have taken these powerful drugs, encouraged by physicians who believed that hormone therapy prevented heart disease.
Questions about whether hormone therapy might increase women’s cancer risk – particularly breast and ovarian cancer – have been raised for some time.
Menopause hormone therapy works to relieve symptoms whether a woman is 41 and adjusting to the aftermath of surgical menopause, or she’s 71 and enjoying sexual activity with a new partner.