Menopause

Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine by Belinda Rowland

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Definition

Menopause represents the end of menstruation. While technically it refers to the final menstrual period, it is not an abrupt event, but a gradual process. Menopause is not a disease that needs to be cured, but a natural life-stage transition. However, women have to make important decisions about "treatment," including the use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

Description

Many women have irregular periods and other problems of "pre-menopause" for years. It is not easy to predict when menopause begins, although doctors agree it is complete when a woman has not had a period for a year. Eight out of every 100 women stop menstruating before age 40. At the other end of the spectrum, five out of every 100 continue to have periods until they are almost 60. The average age of menopause is 51.

There is no method to determine when the ovaries will begin to scale back but a woman can get a general idea based on her family history, body type, and lifestyle. Women who began menstruating early will not necessarily stop having periods early. A woman will likely enter menopause at about the same age as her mother.

Causes & symptoms

Once a woman enters puberty, each month her body releases one of the more than 400,000 eggs that are stored in her ovaries, and the lining of the womb (uterus) thickens in anticipation of receiving a fertilized egg. If the egg is not fertilized, progesterone levels drop and the uterine lining sheds and bleeds.

By the time a woman reaches her late 30s or 40s, her ovaries begin to produce less estrogen and progesterone and release eggs less often. The gradual decline of estrogen causes a wide variety of changes in tissues that respond to estrogen--including the vagina, vulva, uterus, bladder, urethra, breasts, bones, heart, blood vessels, brain, skin, hair, and mucous membranes. Over the long term, the lack of estrogen can make a woman more vulnerable to osteoporosis (which can begin in the 40s) and heart disease .

As the levels of hormones fluctuate, the menstrual cycle begins to change. Some women may have longer periods with heavy flow followed by shorter cycles and hardly any bleeding. Others will begin to miss periods completely. During this time, a woman also becomes less able to get pregnant.

The most common symptom of menopause is a change in the menstrual cycle, but there are various other symptoms as well, including:

• hot flashes
• night sweats
• insomnia
• mood swings/irritability
• memory or concentration problems
• vaginal dryness
• heavy bleeding
• fatigue
• depression
• hair changes
• hadaches
• heart palpitations
• sexual disinterest
• urinary changes
• weight gain.

Diagnosis

The clearest indication of menopause is the absence of a period for one year. It is also possible to diagnose menopause by testing hormone levels. If it has been at least three months since a woman's last period, a follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) test might be helpful in determining whether menopause has occurred. FSH levels rise steadily as a woman ages. The FSH test alone cannot be used as proof that a woman has entered early menopause. A better measure of menopause is to determine the levels of FSH, estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and other hormones.

Treatment

Some women also report success in using natural remedies to treat the unpleasant symptoms of menopause. Not all women need estrogen and some women cannot take it. Many doctors do not want to give hormones to women who are still having their periods, however erratically. Only a third of menopausal women in the United States try HRT and of those who do, eventually half of them drop the therapy.

General dietary recommendations are raw foods, fruits, fresh vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and fresh vegetable juices. Some foods are recommended because they contain phytoestrogens. Intake of dairy products and meats should be reduced. Pork and lunch meats should be avoided.

Herbs

Herbs have been used to relieve menopausal symptoms for centuries. Women who choose to take herbs for menopausal symptoms should learn as much as possible about herbs and work with a qualified practitioner (an herbalist, a traditional Chinese doctor, or a naturopathic physician).

The following list of herbs include those that herbalists recommend to treat menopausal symptoms:

• black cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa): hot flashes, other menstrual complaints
• black currant: breast tenderness
• chaste tree/chasteberry (Vitex agnus-castus): hot flashes, excessive menstrual bleeding, moodiness
• chickweed (Stellaria media): hot flashes
• evening primrose oil (Oenothera biennis): mood swings, irritability, breast tenderness
• fennel (Foeniculum vulgare): hot flashes, digestive gas, bloating
• flaxseed (linseed): excessive menstrual bleeding, breast tenderness, and other symptoms, including dry skin and vaginal dryness
• ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba): memory problems
• ginseng (Panax ginseng): hot flashes, fatigue, vaginal thinning
• hawthorn (Crataegus laevigata): memory problems, fuzzy thinking
• horsetail (Equisetum arvense): osteoporosis
• lady's mantle: excessive menstrual bleeding
• Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) root: general menopausal symptoms
• Mexican wild yam (Dioscorea villosa) root: vaginal dryness, hot flashes, general menopause symptoms
• motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca): night sweats, hot flashes
• oat (Avena sativa) straw: mood swings, anxiety
• passionflower (Passiflora incarnata): insomnia, pain
• raspberry leaf: normalizes hormonal system
• red clover (Trifolium pratense): hot flashes
• sage (Salvia officinalis): mood swings, headaches, night sweats
• skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora): insomnia
• sesame oil: vaginal dryness (applied topically)
• valerian (Valeriana officinalis): insomnia
• violet (Viola odorata): hot flashes.