What is the relationship between menopause and estrogen?

As we all know, the ovaries are female gonadal organs, which have two main functions. One is the reproductive function. The ovaries ovulate once every cycle. The other function is to secrete estrogen, progesterone and androgen. These sex hormones play an important role in various organs of the female body. When women enter menopause, their ovarian function begins to slowly decline and menopause begins. After menopause, due to the influence of hormones, a series of geriatric diseases will follow, becoming a problem for perimenopausal and postmenopausal women. So, let’s take a look at the relationship between menopause and estrogen.

After women enter menopause, their ovaries begin to atrophy, and estrogen secretion decreases sharply after menopause, and they will experience symptoms of menopausal syndrome such as irritability, irritability, and hot flashes.

Prevention strategy: For some women with particularly obvious menopausal symptoms, they can supplement with small doses of estrogen and appropriate amounts of progesterone in the early stages of menopause under the guidance of a doctor. This can effectively improve the discomfort of menopause. However, during the period of taking estrogen, regular outpatient follow-up is necessary. If any discomfort occurs, see a doctor immediately. In addition, it is also very important to maintain a happy mood, a reasonable diet, and moderate exercise.

Osteoporosis

Postmenopausal osteoporosis refers to a systemic disease that occurs in women after menopause, characterized by low bone mass and destruction of bone tissue microstructure, leading to increased bone brittleness and susceptibility to fractures. It usually occurs about 10 years after menopause, at the age of 55 to 65 years old. Osteoporosis can easily lead to fractures in the spine, hip, wrist and other parts of the body. It has a high incidence, great risk, and relatively complicated treatment. Estrogen deficiency is currently considered to be the main cause of osteoporosis in women after menopause. After menopause, ovarian function declines and estrogen secretion levels decrease, accompanied by insufficient intake of vitamin D and calcium, which can easily cause secondary bone loss.

Prevention strategy: When women reach middle age, especially after menopause, it is best to have a bone density test once a year to understand the condition of the bones and detect changes in bone density in time so as to take preventive measures; they should participate in more outdoor activities and pay attention to drinking more milk and eating more dairy products, seafood, green leafy vegetables, dried fruits, etc. In addition, they should also pay attention to a low-salt diet, avoid excessive protein intake, drink less coffee and strong tea, etc. to reduce the loss of calcium in the body. Once osteoporosis is diagnosed, you should actively cooperate with the doctor for treatment. Among them, hormone replacement therapy can alleviate menopausal symptoms and maintain bone density. However, when menopausal women use estrogen to prevent osteoporosis, they must be under the guidance of a doctor. After clarifying the indications and excluding contraindications, they should choose short-acting, minimum-dose, natural estrogen according to individual conditions, and pay attention to regular follow-up.

Breast cancer

The relationship between menopause and breast cancer is mutually reinforcing: first, the incidence of breast cancer will increase after women reach menopause; second, women with breast cancer will also have a higher chance of developing menopausal syndrome.

Prevention strategy: Breast cancer cells love estrogen. After being nourished by estrogen, breast cancer cells thrive. Therefore, for breast cancer patients, it is particularly important to reduce the production of estrogen and block the effects of estrogen. In normal times, try to use less cosmetics containing estrogen, and eat less food and health products containing suspected estrogen. Menopausal symptoms are particularly obvious. If estrogen treatment is necessary, it should be treated with small doses and short courses under the guidance of a doctor.

Cardiovascular disease

Clinical studies have shown that the incidence of cardiovascular disease in women before menopause is lower than that in men of the same age. However, menopause often has negative effects on the female body in many aspects such as lipid metabolism, blood pressure, oxidative status and inflammatory environment, and will lead to an increase in the incidence of cardiovascular disease, making the incidence of cardiovascular disease in women close to that of men 10 years after menopause. The main reason for the increase in the incidence of cardiovascular disease in women is the decrease in estrogen levels in the body.

Prevention strategy: Although endogenous estrogen is an important cause of hypertension after menopause, the results of many studies have also shown that estrogen replacement therapy can effectively lower the blood pressure of postmenopausal women, but the type of estrogen, dosage, and ratio of estrogen-progesterone combination should be carefully selected.

The above is all about the relationship between menopause and estrogen. Through the above introduction, everyone has a certain understanding of this aspect. You must pay attention to it after menopause. Therefore, to prevent postmenopausal degenerative diseases, estrogen should be supplemented in time and for a long time. In order to counteract the side effects of estrogen on endometrial hyperplasia, those with a uterus need to add progesterone. Make your body healthy.