Hormone Replacement

The Latest on Benefits and Risks

We've all heard about the dangers of hormone replacement therapy.

Rumors abound about the benefits and pitfalls of this treatment, which is designed to boost hormone levels. It is used to treat menopausal, perimenopausal, and postmenopausal women and to minimize mood swings and physical discomforts associated with the body's natural changes.

During these changes, hormones such as estrogen and progesterone decline, sometimes rapidly, and hormone replacement seeks to restore them to their previous levels.

Hormone replacement is something you should discuss with your doctor. Treatments are administered through patches, pills, creams, vaginal inserts or rings, gels, and sometimes by injection.

Recently, constant dosage has been used and involves administration of both estrogen and progesterone on a daily basis. The term for this method is "continuous combined hormone replacement therapy (HRT)." Problems with the libido are sometimes treated with testosterone, which is also known to help increase energy levels.

Women experiencing severe menopause related problems, such as hot flashes, irregular periods, and significant changes in fat distribution benefit from short term hormone replacement therapy, which helps to manage these symptoms over the course of two to five years.

Recently, hormone replacement therapy has also been shown to have positive effects in preventing dementia. However, this effect is specific to women who were treated shortly after menopause.

The risk of mental decline was actually increased in women who started hormone replacement treatments when they were older.

A recent study found that hormone replacement therapy also helps to prevent heart disease, reducing the risk of a heart attack for women in their fifties. This may be related to the effects of increased clotting versus improvement to cholesterol concentration in the blood.

Additional studies are underway, and are expected to confirm and elaborate on the early findings.

Long term use of equine estrogens are known to increase the risk of breast cancer.

You should speak to your doctor about hormone replacement therapy to determine if it's the right option for you.

In general, it is viewed with mixed attitudes from both the public and the medical community, so you should consider carefully before embarking on this course of treatment.

However, the benefits can be great, so it is definitely a viable option for women who are experiencing severe health problems as a consequence of menopause.

This article is for informational purposes only. It does not purport to render medical advice.