Menopause takes on new dimensions these days, reaching more and more women either when they have just returned to the work force or when their job careers are peaking.
As a consequence, the problem that their mothers generally faced alone at home must now be approached in a way that will minimize its impact on women at work. Every woman reaches menopause at some time in her life. Some women face it in their early 40s, others in their early 50s, with most women becoming menopausal in the mid- to late 40s.
Unfortunately, up to now menopause has been a matter too often not taken seriously. Jokes are still being made about hot flashes, and even today menopause is seldom explained and dealt with frankly and openly. Witches' tales are still told: that you dry up, you get hairy, you sweat all the time, you lose control of your functions, your, libido is lost. All of these, of course, are at best half-truths that can be dealt with intelligently with a doctor's help.
Wednesday, 11 April 2007
Tuesday, 10 April 2007
Menopause Statistics
There are a number of websites on the internet that provide statistics about the menopause however many of these sites are targeted to health professionals and so many of the statistics there can be confusing to the normal everyday person. Below are a few statistics about the menopause that are easy for anyone to understand.
For more help and support visit my menopause help and support web site.
• The average age of menopause i.e. the natural cessation of the monthly menstrual cycle that lasts for 12+ months, is 51 years however there is a wide age distribution that ranges from 40 years to 58 years.
• The menopausal transition takes around 4 years for most women.
• Up to 10% of women simply stop menstruating without any prior menstrual irregularity or symptoms that are common during menopause.
• Women who smoke typically reach menopause 1.5 years earlier than they would if they didn’t smoke. There is a firm relationship between the number of cigarettes smoked, the duration of smoking and the age at menopause i.e. the more you smoke and the longer you smoke the earlier you will reach menopause.
• There is estimated to be around 45 million women going through the menopausal transition in the US at any one time.
• Approximately 5% of women aged 40-45 will experience natural menopause, even though the average age is 51 years.
• Women who are malnourished begin the process of menopause up to 4 years earlier than women who are well nourished.
• Women who have reached menopause have a higher risk of developing heart disease and osteoporosis then those who haven’t undergone the process.
• Studies have shown that women who are in the menopausal age range i.e. 45-55, are up to three times more likely to develop heart disease than similar women in the pre-menopausal age range i.e. 35-44.
• Hormone Replacement Therapy is thought to reduce the risk of heart disease in menopausal women by up to 50% however it may increase the risk of breast cancer by the same degree.
• Osteoporosis occurs when bone mass is lost. In pre-menopausal women this occurs at a rate of around 1% each year however in menopausal women this increases to 2-3% each year.
• Hospital statistics show that over 40% of women suffer from at least one bone fracture after the age of 50 i.e. the average age of menopause.
• One of the major symptoms of menopause is hot flashes and approximately 75% of women report experiencing this symptom on a regular basis.
• The average life expectancy for US women today is 84 years which means that many women spend around 50% of their adult life as a menopausal or post-menopausal female.
• Studies have shown that only 57% of women suffer with more than one symptom of the menopause and that the remaining 43% experience nothing more than irregular periods.
• Of the 57% of women who do suffer with menopause symptoms, 22% report that they affect their lives in a major way and that they couldn’t cope without medication.
Menopause is a natural process and unfortunately it affects every woman at some point. There are a few precautions that can be taken in early life which may help with the symptoms however there is no way of preventing it – if you are female, you will reach menopause and that’s a fact.
For more help and support visit my menopause help and support web site.
• The average age of menopause i.e. the natural cessation of the monthly menstrual cycle that lasts for 12+ months, is 51 years however there is a wide age distribution that ranges from 40 years to 58 years.
• The menopausal transition takes around 4 years for most women.
• Up to 10% of women simply stop menstruating without any prior menstrual irregularity or symptoms that are common during menopause.
• Women who smoke typically reach menopause 1.5 years earlier than they would if they didn’t smoke. There is a firm relationship between the number of cigarettes smoked, the duration of smoking and the age at menopause i.e. the more you smoke and the longer you smoke the earlier you will reach menopause.
• There is estimated to be around 45 million women going through the menopausal transition in the US at any one time.
• Approximately 5% of women aged 40-45 will experience natural menopause, even though the average age is 51 years.
• Women who are malnourished begin the process of menopause up to 4 years earlier than women who are well nourished.
• Women who have reached menopause have a higher risk of developing heart disease and osteoporosis then those who haven’t undergone the process.
• Studies have shown that women who are in the menopausal age range i.e. 45-55, are up to three times more likely to develop heart disease than similar women in the pre-menopausal age range i.e. 35-44.
• Hormone Replacement Therapy is thought to reduce the risk of heart disease in menopausal women by up to 50% however it may increase the risk of breast cancer by the same degree.
• Osteoporosis occurs when bone mass is lost. In pre-menopausal women this occurs at a rate of around 1% each year however in menopausal women this increases to 2-3% each year.
• Hospital statistics show that over 40% of women suffer from at least one bone fracture after the age of 50 i.e. the average age of menopause.
• One of the major symptoms of menopause is hot flashes and approximately 75% of women report experiencing this symptom on a regular basis.
• The average life expectancy for US women today is 84 years which means that many women spend around 50% of their adult life as a menopausal or post-menopausal female.
• Studies have shown that only 57% of women suffer with more than one symptom of the menopause and that the remaining 43% experience nothing more than irregular periods.
• Of the 57% of women who do suffer with menopause symptoms, 22% report that they affect their lives in a major way and that they couldn’t cope without medication.
Menopause is a natural process and unfortunately it affects every woman at some point. There are a few precautions that can be taken in early life which may help with the symptoms however there is no way of preventing it – if you are female, you will reach menopause and that’s a fact.
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