Our Bodies, Ourselves: Menopause

"So much has been learned about menopause in the last twenty-five years -- what a challenge it had to be to treat the subject in a comprehensive, comprehensible manner, which this book admirably does....A worthy companion to the classic pathfinder book by the same organization."  -- Isaac Schiff, M. D., chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology Service at Massachusetts General Hospital Menopause is within the totality of women's health and is a natural process, not a medical problem. This informative book details typical menopausal symptoms, mainstream and alternative treatments, and risk factors for such conditions as osteoporosis, heart disease, cancer and diabetes as women age. It explains the biology of menopause; provides perspectives on hormone replacement therapy (HRT); discusses sudden and early menopause due to surgery, medical treatments or genetic risk factors; and offers personal reflections from real women. Also included is how to evaluate research findings; make wise health-care decisions; understand the social, cultural, economic and political frameworks in which women's health care is viewed and formulated; and nurture the self-mind, body and spirit during years of change on all levels will prove most useful.