Menopause
September 6th, 2007 at 10:10am
Under Female Menopause+ Menopause
There has been a great deal of debate, research, and discussion as to the value of soy in treating and reducing hot flashes associated with menopause. While some health practitioners prescribe soy products for women in the menopausal stage, the question which has yet to be answered is: “Can soy decrease menopause hot flashes?”
According to recent studies, soy contains one of many types of isoflavones. Isoflavones are estrogens which are produced from plants. It should be noted that isoflavones are actual estrogens; they are not alternatives to estrogen. Therefore, a woman who wants to avoid estrogen should not be taking soy, because soy is a form of estrogen. According to the research conducted on soy, there are still conflicting results as to its value in reducing hot flashes in menopausal women. Some studies show that soy can cause multiplication of breast cells, implying that it may increase breast cancer risk who use it.
The reason behind all of this conflicting evidence is that it is unclear what is being tested since studies have looked at all kinds of soy foods and supplements, and there has been no uniformity in the products being tested. This may be one of the reasons why soy research does not always produce positive results.
Another study was conducted recently in which 37 women who used a soy supplement. 75 percent reported relief from hot flashes. Tests showed they also experienced a measurable increase in bone density as well. While experts say the results are promising, one nutritionist believes the research makes too many “leaps of faith about issues that remain unproven.” It was also stated that woman should exercise caution with soy supplementation until more research is done. However, it was concluded that including soy products in your diet may still offer many more positive health benefits that far out way any negative health benefits.
There you have it; the studies, research, and results which apparently prove, and deny that soy products can decrease menopause hot flashes. The best course of action perhaps is to try soy products for yourself to see if they relieve or reduce your menopause hot flashes.
By admin
June 14th, 2007 at 09:24am
Under Menopause
Have you recently noticed that you have difficulty concentrating?
Do you walk into a room only to forget why you even came in?
Do you feel disorientation, or just mentally confusioned?
This sort of absentmindedness plagues a huge percentage of women and men going through menopause. It can be very frustrating, and so you should try to do your best to keep an alert mental state. There are many ways to do this, and if you are not taking advantage of any of them then you should start today.
Here are some of the most common and ways to maintain mental alertness:
- Do regular exercise. It is easy to get caught in a rut of going to work and then coming home and relaxing. Instead of sitting in front of the TV all night, why don’t you lift some weights or go for a brisk walk? Exercise releases just the right chemicals into your brain to make you more alert, not only during the exercise, but for the rest of the day until you go to sleep. This is why so many people like to start off their days with walk through the neighborhood. The type of exercise you choose will depend on what options are available to you.
- Stimulate your mind at least once per day. It is very healthy to always teach yourself new things. Whether you sit down and read a science fiction book with interesting scientific theories, or you read a college textbook and discover new things about biology, do a crossword or learn to use a computer, there is everything to be gained from learning new things. Not only do you get to keep the great knowledge, but you also will sustain higher levels of alertness due to the effort that it takes to learn all of those things. So go to the library today and find a book that sparks your interest.
- Sleep is crucial to being mentally alert. Your mind needs enough time to recuperate, so it needs adequate sleep to function properly. If your job requires you to get up early, then go to bed earlier. If you have too much to do, then all you need to do is plan your days out better so that you get things done more efficiently and leave more time to sleeping.
Ultimately the best thing to do is to combine these three methods to remain as mentally alert as possible. If you start to utilize all 3 of these, you should start seeing improvements in a matter of days. Hopefully you will stop losing things, stop forgetting important dates, and generally stop being so absentminded. If the problem persists, then you should talk to a doctor about ways of dealing with this symptom of menopause.
Hopefully it doesn’t come to that, but you shouldn’t ignore the possibility.
By admin
April 25th, 2007 at 11:23am
Under Menopause
Here are the 35 menopause symptoms compiled by Judy Bayliss and Dr. Brown:
1. Hot flashes, flushes, night sweats and/or cold flashes, clammy feeling
2. Bouts of rapid heartbeat
3. Irritability
4. Mood swings, sudden tears
5. Trouble sleeping through the night (with or without night sweats)
6. Irregular periods; shorter, lighter periods; heavier periods, flooding; phantom periods, shorter cycles, longer cycles
7. Partial or complete loss of libido
8. Dry vagina, resulting in painful intercourse; a general drying-out that can include eyes, mouth, joints, skin
9. Crashing fatigue
10. Anxiety, feeling ill at ease
11. Feelings of dread, apprehension, doom – thoughts of one’s own death, picturing one’s own death
12. Difficulty concentrating, disorientation, mental confusion
13. Disturbing memory lapses
14. Incontinence, especially upon sneezing, laughing; urge incontinence, where leakage occurs when one needs to urinate
15. Itchy, crawly skin – feeling of ants crawling under the skin
16. Aching, sore joints, possible carpal tunnel syndrome
17. Increased muscle tension
18. Breast tenderness
19. Headaches increase or decrease
20. Gastrointestinal distress, indigestion, flatulence, gas pain, nausea
21. Sudden bouts of bloat
22. Depression that can become overwhelming; feeling of loss of self that has been dramatically relieved with hormone therapy
23. Exacerbation of existing conditions
24. Increase in allergies
25. Weight gain, especially around waist and thighs, resulting in ‘the disappearing waistline’
26. Hair loss or thinning on head, in pubic area, or on whole body; increase in facial hair
27. Dizziness, lightheadedness, episodes of loss of balance
28. Changes in body odor
29. Electric shock sensation under the skin and in the head – “the feeling of a rubber band snapping in the layer of tissue between skin and muscle…the precursor to a hot flash.”
30. Tingling in extremities, which can also be a symptom of B-12 deficiency, diabetes, or depletion of potassium or calcium
31. Gum problems, increased gum bleeding
32. Burning tongue, burning roof of mouth, bad taste in mouth, dry mouth, change in breath odor
33. Osteoporosis (after several years)
34. Changes in fingernails: softer, crack or break more easily
35. An additional symptom some report: tinnitus, a ringing in the ears or sounds of whooshing, bells, or buzzing.
This list was compilied by Judy Bayliss and Lucy L. Brown, Ph.D. at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine
By admin
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