Menopause

Menopause maintains its importance as a period in which women spend 1/3 of their lives in our country, where the average female life expectancy is approaching 80 years and the average age of menopause is 47. Menopause is a medical term for all the symptoms of menopause near or after the end of menstruation, which marks the end of the reproductive period.

What causes menopause?

A woman is born with a limited number of eggs in her ovaries. The ovaries also have the function of secreting estrogen and progesterone. When these functions are regular, a woman experiences monthly menstrual bleeding. Menopause occurs when the ovaries run out of egg cells (oocytes) and the brain hormones that regulate this are no longer effective in the ovaries. It is normal for menopause to occur between the ages of 45 and 55, and menopause at these ages is called natural menopause. Surgery to remove the ovaries, chemotherapy or radiotherapy that damages the ovaries can cause a woman to go through menopause. Menopause that occurs before the age of 40, regardless of the cause, is called early menopause.

How does natural menopause occur?

Natural menopause: the absence of menstruation without treatments other than hormone replacement. This process is usually gradual and has 3 phases;

Perimenopause Perimenopause begins 7-8 years before actual menopause, when the ovaries stop secreting estrogen, and lasts until the last egg is released. In the last two years of perimenopause, estrogen production declines and symptoms such as hot flushes increase.

Menopause: The absence of menstruation for 1 year in a row determines this period.

Posmenopause: In these years after menopause, symptoms such as hot flushes decrease, while the risks associated with estrogen deficiency increase.

What are the causes of early menopause?

Early ovarian failure

Before the age of 40, egg production and the subsequent production of estrogen, progesterone and testosterone ceases without cause and permanently.

Triggered Menopause

Triggered menopause occurs after removal of the ovaries for reasons such as cancer, endometriosis or after chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

What are the symptoms of menopause?

Almost all women complain of sudden hot flushes in menopause, with redness and sweating in the upper body and head. The severity and frequency of the symptom varies between individuals.

Other symptoms

– Irregular, skipping periods

– Insomnia

– Change of emotion

– Fatigue

– Depression

– Tension, irritability

– Palpitations

– Headache

– Muscle and joint pain and tenderness

– Decreased sexual desire

– Change in urinary sensation, increased frequency

– Change in urine control

– Vaginal dryness

Women experience these symptoms to varying degrees, but in only about 2% of women is the quality of daily life severely impaired.

What long-term health risks does menopause bring?

The effects of estrogen deficiency become more pronounced with aging.

After menopause

– Osteoporosis (brittle bone)

– Heart disease

– Poor brain function and memory impairment (increased risk of dementia)

– Loss of skin elasticity and wrinkles

– Salt Dependent Hypertension: One study has shown that hormonal changes during menopause initiate salt-dependent hypertension in women who previously had no such problem.

There are several types of treatment that can prevent menopause-related risks:

– In the diet, calcium-rich foods and/or tablets, adequate magnesium and protein intake

– Exercise (isometric exercises such as walking and jogging)

– Prevention of health-related metabolic diseases and their consequences; diet and weight loss for diabetes and hypertension, use of blood pressure and heart medications, treatment of tirit diseases

– Assessment of the situation related to food intolerance

– Pelvic floor exercises

– Hormone replacement therapy

Effective treatment methods are in place to prevent menopause-related risks.

Why is it necessary to be examined during menopause?

During menopause and especially perimenopause, the estrogen-progesterone balance, which is important for the health of the intrauterine tissue, shifts in favor of estrogen, so 6-monthly to yearly check-ups are important during this period. It is also recommended to continue routine mammography and smear tests, and to measure liver and kidney function and blood lipids in women who will start or are currently using hormones.