Health Tips

Menopause, including early menopause, can affect the quality of a woman’s life for several years, and possibly for the rest of her life. Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) is designed to greatly improve the quality of a woman’s life, by eliminating, or reducing the symptoms of menopause and early menopause.

The unpleasant symptoms associated with early menopause are due to the lack or reduction of estrogen that’s being produced. All types of Hormone Replacement Therapy contain estrogen, which replaces the estrogen that your ovaries are no longer producing. HRT relieves hot flashes, vaginal dryness, and other symptoms related to early menopause.

Hormone Replacement Therapy is especially recommended for women who experience early menopause. Studies have shown that women who have early menopause are at greater risk for heart disease and osteoporosis than women who experience menopause later in life.

Since HRT contains the estrogen that your ovaries are no longer producing, it helps to lower the long term risk of osteoporosis, heart disease, and other health related problems, such as Alzheimer Disease and colon cancer. HRT can also relieve mood swings, improve sleep patterns and reduce facial hair. Even women who do not find the symptoms of early menopause unbearable should consider HRT, for the long term benefits.

Women who have early menopause, and still have a uterus, should only use Hormone Replacement Therapy that contains both estrogen and progesterone. This is because estrogen alone increases the risk of cancer in the lining of the uterus. If the uterus has been removed, estrogen alone will work fine. You should also work with your doctor to find the lowest dosage of HRT you need.

For women who experience early menopause, possible side effects associated with HRT are bloating, nausea, breast tenderness, vaginal bleeding, fluid retention, weight gain, depression, and a possible increase in migraine headaches. Possible health risks associated with Hormone Replacement Therapy are endometrial cancer (if you still have a uterus, and only if progesterone is not used as well), gallstones, venous tromboembolism, heart attack, and stroke.

The link between Hormone Replacement Therapy and breast cancer is controversial. Scientific studies show that estrogen stimulates breast cells to proliferate, and the proliferating cells are most likely to develop the genetic damage that leads to breast cancer. It’s believed that estrogen stimulates the growth of many breast cancers. Breast cancer is one of the greatest concerns for women who are considering HRT. Yet, studies show that the younger a woman is when she begins menopause, the less chance she has of developing breast cancer.

In most cases, Hormone Replacement Therapy is not taken for the rest of a woman’s life. Each individual woman should work closely with her doctor to determine how long HRT may be needed, and when it should be stopped. Should you choose not to use Hormone Replacement Therapy to treat the symptoms of early menopause, you can try alternative treatments, such as herbs, vitamins, acupuncture, and homeopathic remedies. It’s important that you discuss the treatments that you’re considering with your doctor. You can both discuss what benefits the treatment will give you now, as well as in the future – especially in the case of early menopause.