Can you still live a wonderful life after menopause?

This is the 4277th article of Da Yi Xiao Hu

People usually think that life after menopause should be like this: old age, fading brilliance, mood swings, restlessness, and various old age diseases. But do you know that if you can manage your life after menopause scientifically, you can still bloom like a flower and live a wonderful life!

The reason why women after menopause experience menopausal symptoms and aging is that they lack the root of female charm and health - female hormones. So where do female hormones come from? They mainly come from the secretion of the ovaries.

You may not know that in the female body, the first organ to decline and dry up is the female ovary. Although life is still going on, the ovary has long been dead in name only. So what is the role of the ovary? In addition to providing mature follicles for women of childbearing age and completing reproductive functions, it also secretes female hormones - estrogen and progesterone. Estrogen can maintain a woman's appearance, making her skin delicate, her figure plump, and her curves beautiful, making her full of "femininity"! More importantly, it can also protect bones, protect the cardiovascular and nervous systems, and prevent Alzheimer's disease. Women are protected by estrogen from head to toe. Estrogen is the "faithful patron saint of beauty and health" for women. Progesterone can assist estrogen in completing its reproductive function, and can also prevent estrogen from over-proliferating the endometrium and avoiding the occurrence of endometrial cancer, so it is also called the "guardian of the uterus!"

Before and after menopause, as ovarian function fails, estrogen decreases sharply, and most women experience varying degrees of menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, sweating, irritability, depression, and insomnia. These symptoms affect women's normal life and work. In severe cases, it is difficult for people to adapt to society and even give rise to world-weary thoughts. The above menopausal symptoms can be felt by us, but there are also hidden, imperceptible greater risks, such as cardiovascular problems, osteoporosis, and Alzheimer's disease, which are quietly approaching.

At present, with the continuous improvement of living conditions and the continuous extension of life expectancy, the average life expectancy is about 80 years old. From the average menopausal age of 50 to 80 years old, women still have more than 30 years to live without the protection of estrogen, which is the guardian of women's health and beauty. When it is lacking, many diseases will follow. Precisely because women lack female hormones after menopause, leading to a series of irreversible harms, the International Menopause Society recommends that women undergo hormone therapy (supplementation of estrogen and progesterone) under appropriate circumstances after menopause. It is conceivable that this treatment principle of "what is lacking, what is supplemented" is also in line with the laws of nature. When the missing female hormones are supplemented, not only can various symptoms of menopause be improved, but more importantly, long-term supplementation can also protect the cardiovascular system and reduce the occurrence of cardiovascular diseases; protect bones and reduce the occurrence of osteoporosis and fractures; and prevent Alzheimer's disease, etc.

But everything has two sides. Although menopausal hormone therapy has many benefits, it still has risks. Because of this, doctors will do relevant examinations and develop individualized plans based on each person's different situations to maximize their benefits!

Of course, life after menopause requires not only hormone therapy, but also multi-faceted health management such as: health lifestyle guidance, nutrition guidance, exercise guidance, mental health guidance, etc. Only with such scientific management can life after menopause bloom like a flower!

Author: Department of Reproductive Endocrinology, Taiyuan Maternal and Child Health Hospital

Li Yan