Menopause Education: 10 Shocking Things About Menopause Every Woman Must Know Menopause Women's Health Family Health Diseases/Disorders

Shockingly, there are many diseases associated with menopause that many women are not aware of: dementia, heart disease, osteoporosis, joint and muscle aches, recurrent UTIs and vulvovaginal problems, mood changes (anxiety and depression), fatigue, as well as body composition and weight changes. 

But it doesn't have to be this way. It’s a signature approach that empowers women to thrive during the transition to menopause while taking adequate steps to prevent chronic disease.

What’s even more confusing to many women is the great debate concerning hormone therapy research. The National Library of Medicine, Menopause: The Journal of The North American Menopause Society, and the American Academy of Family Physicians Foundation, have differing opinions making it harder for women to make informed decisions. I stress that education, research and questioning the benefits and risks of hormone therapy are essential to navigating a successful and personalized path into perimenopause and menopause. 

Here are 10 shocking things every woman must know about menopause: 

1. At age 45, a woman has 1 in 5 chance of developing Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's kills more women than men across all age groups.
2. Estrogen can reduce risk of dementia by 24 to 65 percent when started within 10 years of menopause.
3. A woman is seven times more likely to die of heart disease than breast cancer.
4. Estrogen can decrease the risk of heart disease by 40 to 50 percent – more reliably than statins.
5. The number of women who die each year following an osteoporotic hip fracture is almost the same as the number who die from breast cancer.
6. Estrogen therapy in postmenopausal women reduces the risk of osteoporotic hip fracture by 30 to 50 percent.
7. A 20-year follow-up report from the Women's Health Initiative WHI study published in 2002 found that women receiving postmenopausal estrogen were: 23 percent less likely to develop breast cancer and 40 percent less likely to die from breast cancer.
8. Women's chances of developing breast cancer rise as they age, as a result of the loss of estrogen after menopause.
9. Studies show that not only does estrogen not cause breast cancer, but both high- and low-dose estrogen can be an effective treatment for breast cancer.
10. Women who don't take the time to educate themselves on the risk/benefit analysis of hormone therapy are making a medical decision that is not fully informed and can lead to many chronic diseases.

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