Cognitive Behavioural Therapy or CBT is a safe and effective therapy for hot flashes and night sweats, the most common symptoms of the menopause and an alternative to Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT).
This is according to two new studies published this month. Both studies were led by Professor Myra Hunter of the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College London.
Almost a quarter of women going through the menopause commonly suffer from hot flushes and night sweats which leads to them experiencing sleep disturbances, embarrassment and discomfort.
The first study followed women who had hot flashes and night sweats after breast cancer treatment and the second followed healthy menopausal women and was published in Menopause: The Journal of the North American Menopause Society.
In the second study, 140 healthy menopausal women were followed in a Randomized Controlled Trial over 26 weeks and were divided into two groups. One had group cognitive behavior therapy and the other self-help CBT. It was found that both group and guided self-help forms of CBT led to significant improvements in how women coped with the menopause symptoms.
In addition, mood, quality of life and sleep improved.
What's more, these improvements following brief interventions of CBT were still effective 6 months later.
Source: King's College, London
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Early Menopause Caused By Hysterectomy
A Study by Duke University researchers published in the Obstetrics & Gynecology journal, found that having a hysterectomy increases the risk of an earlier menopause among younger women.
It confirms what many women, obstetricians and gynecologists have suspected for a long time now.
The researchers led by Patricia G. Moorman, PhD, MSPH, report that younger women who undergo hysterectomies face a nearly two-fold increase in the risk for developing menopause early.
The study is the largest analysis to track over time the actual hormonal impact of woman who had hysterectomies and compare them to women whose uteruses remained intact.
Nearly 900 women ages 30 to 47 were enrolled at two hospitals in Durham, N.C. (Duke University Hospital and Durham Regional Hospital) and followed up with blood tests and questionnaires over five years. 465 women (approx half the group), were healthy controls who had no surgery, whilst the remaining 406 women went through hysterectomies that spared at least one ovary.
The researchers found that 14.8 percent of women in the study who had hysterectomies experienced menopause over the course of the duration of the study, compared with only 8 percent in the group of women who had not had surgery.
The analysis carried out by the Duke’s researchers estimated that menopause occurred approximately two years earlier in the women who underwent hysterectomy.
Professor Moorman concluded that this could potentially change practice because women who are considering hysterectomy for fibroids or other problems may want to explore other treatment options for their condition if they know they may go through menopause earlier.
This just confirms my opinion that hysterectomies should really be the last resort when there are no other options left.
It confirms what many women, obstetricians and gynecologists have suspected for a long time now.
The researchers led by Patricia G. Moorman, PhD, MSPH, report that younger women who undergo hysterectomies face a nearly two-fold increase in the risk for developing menopause early.
The study is the largest analysis to track over time the actual hormonal impact of woman who had hysterectomies and compare them to women whose uteruses remained intact.
Nearly 900 women ages 30 to 47 were enrolled at two hospitals in Durham, N.C. (Duke University Hospital and Durham Regional Hospital) and followed up with blood tests and questionnaires over five years. 465 women (approx half the group), were healthy controls who had no surgery, whilst the remaining 406 women went through hysterectomies that spared at least one ovary.
The researchers found that 14.8 percent of women in the study who had hysterectomies experienced menopause over the course of the duration of the study, compared with only 8 percent in the group of women who had not had surgery.
The analysis carried out by the Duke’s researchers estimated that menopause occurred approximately two years earlier in the women who underwent hysterectomy.
Professor Moorman concluded that this could potentially change practice because women who are considering hysterectomy for fibroids or other problems may want to explore other treatment options for their condition if they know they may go through menopause earlier.
This just confirms my opinion that hysterectomies should really be the last resort when there are no other options left.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Does Menopause Make You More Susceptible To Diabetes?
No it does not. Menopause has little to no impact on whether women become more susceptible to diabetes, according to a unique study.
This is according to study lead author Catherine Kim, M.D., M.P.H., an associate professor of internal medicine and obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Michigan Health System, who conducted a national clinical trial of 1,237 women at high risk for diabetes, ages 40 to 65, menopause had no additional effect on risk for diabetes.
Postmenopausal women had no higher risk for diabetes whether they experienced natural menopause or had their ovaries removed.
The research is considered the only menopause study that specifically analyzed the impact of diabetes on women who had natural menopause and those who had their ovaries removed. Most other studies mixed them together or excluded one group.
Dr Kim says"Menopause is one of many small steps in aging and it doesn't mean women's health will be worse after going through this transition."
She says that menopause does not mean that menopausal women have a higher risk of diabetes and that lifestyle changes can be very effective in keeping them healthy.
This is according to study lead author Catherine Kim, M.D., M.P.H., an associate professor of internal medicine and obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Michigan Health System, who conducted a national clinical trial of 1,237 women at high risk for diabetes, ages 40 to 65, menopause had no additional effect on risk for diabetes.
Postmenopausal women had no higher risk for diabetes whether they experienced natural menopause or had their ovaries removed.
The research is considered the only menopause study that specifically analyzed the impact of diabetes on women who had natural menopause and those who had their ovaries removed. Most other studies mixed them together or excluded one group.
Dr Kim says"Menopause is one of many small steps in aging and it doesn't mean women's health will be worse after going through this transition."
She says that menopause does not mean that menopausal women have a higher risk of diabetes and that lifestyle changes can be very effective in keeping them healthy.
Tuesday, August 09, 2011
Menopause Is Not A Medical Problem
According to psychotherapist Sue Brayne, who presented her insights into the lived, felt experiences of women going through menopause in at the British Psychological Society Psychology of Women Section annual conference, menopause shouldn't be seen as a medical problem that needs fixing but as a life-affirming and normal process that women go through.
Little consideration is given to the psychological, emotional, and spiritual changes women go through in this stage of life and no matter how science attempts to 'cure' the menopause, evolution cannot be stopped. When a woman reaches her fifties, she will undergo immense changes. She has to face the death of fertility, the loss of her youth, and to accept that she is no longer able to attract the attention she once did.
I think deep down we all know this, but it is just simpler to use the menopause to explain the changes women face as ultimately the above issues cannot be solved by medication or supplements or any other quick fix, but by each individual woman on her own - not an easy process...
Little consideration is given to the psychological, emotional, and spiritual changes women go through in this stage of life and no matter how science attempts to 'cure' the menopause, evolution cannot be stopped. When a woman reaches her fifties, she will undergo immense changes. She has to face the death of fertility, the loss of her youth, and to accept that she is no longer able to attract the attention she once did.
I think deep down we all know this, but it is just simpler to use the menopause to explain the changes women face as ultimately the above issues cannot be solved by medication or supplements or any other quick fix, but by each individual woman on her own - not an easy process...
Friday, May 27, 2011
Menopausal Women Benefit From Green Tea and Tai Chi
According to Dr Chwan-Li Shen, Green Tea and Tai Chi enhance bone health and reduce inflammation in postmenopausal women.
Dr. Chwan-Li (Leslie) Shen is an associate professor and a researcher at the Laura W. Bush Institute for Women's Health at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and has conducted a study focused on postmenopausal women and investigating the potential for green tea to work synergistically with tai chi (an eastern fitness activity) in enhancing bone strength after the menopause.
She carried out a double-blind, placebo-controlled, intervention trial which involved 171 postmenopausal women with an average age of 57 years old, who had weak bones but not full-fledged osteoporosis.
The study lasted for 6 months, during which time blood and urine samples were collected and muscle strength assessed.
The results show that drinking about 4 to 6 cups of steeped green tea daily and doing tai chi, enhanced markers of bone health by the third and sixth month. A similar effect was found for muscle strength after six months. Participants taking tai chi classes also reported significant beneficial effects in quality of life in terms of improving their emotional and mental health.
What she found important was the substantial effect that both the green tea and tai chi had on biological markers of oxidative stress. Because oxidative stress is a main precursor to inflammation, this finding suggests that green tea and tai chi may help reduce the underlying etiology of not only osteoporosis, but other inflammatory diseases as well.
Dr. Shen and colleagues hope to soon complete a more long-term study utilizing more technically savvy measures of bone density.
In the meantime, I for one, will be enjoying my well earned cuppa green tea!
Dr. Chwan-Li (Leslie) Shen is an associate professor and a researcher at the Laura W. Bush Institute for Women's Health at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and has conducted a study focused on postmenopausal women and investigating the potential for green tea to work synergistically with tai chi (an eastern fitness activity) in enhancing bone strength after the menopause.
She carried out a double-blind, placebo-controlled, intervention trial which involved 171 postmenopausal women with an average age of 57 years old, who had weak bones but not full-fledged osteoporosis.
The study lasted for 6 months, during which time blood and urine samples were collected and muscle strength assessed.
The results show that drinking about 4 to 6 cups of steeped green tea daily and doing tai chi, enhanced markers of bone health by the third and sixth month. A similar effect was found for muscle strength after six months. Participants taking tai chi classes also reported significant beneficial effects in quality of life in terms of improving their emotional and mental health.
What she found important was the substantial effect that both the green tea and tai chi had on biological markers of oxidative stress. Because oxidative stress is a main precursor to inflammation, this finding suggests that green tea and tai chi may help reduce the underlying etiology of not only osteoporosis, but other inflammatory diseases as well.
Dr. Shen and colleagues hope to soon complete a more long-term study utilizing more technically savvy measures of bone density.
In the meantime, I for one, will be enjoying my well earned cuppa green tea!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)