What are the Side Effects of Menopause? Pt II – Major

Upon the one year anniversary of a woman’s last menstrual cycle – the point that proves she has hit menopause and made it through -- most have a tendency to relax and let down their guard, thinking the worst has passed. They may stop wearing a hormone replacement therapy patch, or they might stop taking the natural remedies like black cohosh and soy isoflavones that have helped them through that frustrating period in their lives.

But this is the time when women must be most vigilant! Those simple, early symptoms that flag the start of perimenopause might become minor, but lasting side effects of the drop in hormones that causes menopause in the first place. Much more dangerous to a woman’s health, though, are the possible major long-term effects that can come afterwards.

Those side effects can be dangerous, indeed, and that’s why it’s important to be aware of the variety of treatments – especially natural one such as black cohosh and soy isoflavones – that can continue to help protect women from the following life-threatening diseases and conditions:

• Osteoporosis – This disease is characterized by bone density loss; it’s common throughout all the bones of the body, but most often severely affects the spine, hips, wrists, and ribs. It basically creates brittle, weak bones, that break easily, and not surprisingly, the common areas affected are also the most common locations for breaks. While some osteoporosis is natural due to the aging process, the drop in hormones that accompanies menopause can increase the bone density loss of osteoporosis.

Several treatments exist for osteoporosis, including medications and lifestyle changes. One of the most recent developments, however, is the increased consumption of soy products in order to obtain the benefits of the isoflavones within them. Similarly, black cohosh has been suggested as another natural remedy, along with vitamin and mineral supplements.

• Heart Disease – Heart disease can be caused by a variety of things including lifestyle, genetic predisposition, and so on. However, like osteoporosis, existing heart disease can be aggravated by the hormone loss that signals menopause within a woman’s body. Very occasionally, a woman may not even know she has heart disease, and the changes that go hand-in-hand with menopause will actually trigger a heart attack.

Also like osteoporosis, the risk of developing heart disease after menopause can be lessened by several different means, one of the most favored by women everywhere being natural supplements such as black cohosh or soy isoflavones.

• Diabetes – Studies have proved inconclusive so far as to whether hormone changes that occur during the stages of menopause might have an effect on diabetes. However, since the hormones involved – progesterone and estrogen – have an affect on the way the body handles insulin, it seems logical that menopause could likely exacerbate a pre-diabetic condition and even cause blood sugar levels to fluctuate.

Again, beginning treatment at the first signs of perimenopause with natural remedies like soy products and black cohosh appears to help reduce the effects that dropping hormone levels can have on diabetes once a woman has reached the postmenopausal stage.

Please note that, since the diseases listed above can be life-threatening, it is important to visit your primary care provider regularly during all three stages of menopause, and especially important to do so during postmenopause. All of these side-effects are more likely to happen then as a result of the natural aging process combined with the affects of decreased hormone production. But be sure to arm yourself with the right information and questions such as whether black cohosh or soy isoflavones might help you ward off these dangerous diseases.

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