Understanding and managing the mid-life transition

Jonny Bowden, a board-certified nutritionist and author of several books on nutrition and health, has nicknamed the four dangerous processes that age our bodies “the four horsemen of aging.”  He explains in his newest book, The Most Effective Ways to Live Longer: The Surprising, Unbiased Truth About What You Should Do to Prevent Disease, Feel Great, and Have Optimum Health and Longevity that together, they are probably responsible for the bulk of what happens to our bodies when they break down.  He writes: “Anything that’s happening in your body that you wish were not happening, from the beginnings of disease to the breakdown of systems to the loss of functionality, is being driven by the engine of these four processes.” So here they are with a brief explanation and advice from Bowden for mitigating their harm: [click to continue...]

Research has shown that Vitamin D plays many roles in the body from strengthening the immune system, reducing the risk of certain diseases and helping our gut absorb calcium.  Until now, the main dietary source for Vitamin D has been fortified milk  and fatty fish such as sardines and salmon. But did you know that certain brands of mushrooms can also provide the daily required amount of D as well? [click to continue...]

The ancient Indian practice of Yoga offers many well known benefits: it promotes relaxation, eases anxiety, and improves joint function and flexibility.  But there’s another potential benefit that researchers have been exploring:  Yoga may also enhance sexual function, particularly in mid-life women. As reported in the April issue of the Harvard Women’s Health Watch newsletter, medical researchers focused on 40 healthy, married women, ages 22 to 55, who were enrolled in a Yoga program in India: [click to continue...]

An article about Saliva Tests appeared in this week’s  “Aches & Claims” column (6/1) in the Wall Street Journal. It’s one of many tests that can be used to determine which hormones are out of balance and what supplements could be prescribed to alleviate menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes and insomnia.  Typically, a doctor who specializes in naturopathic or integrative medicine, rather than your gynecologist, will be inclined to use this and other specialized lab tests since they require additional time and expertise to review and interpret them.

However, there is debate over their reliability due to a lack of industry standardization, according to the WSJ article.  One physician, for example, who is a noted proponent of Hormone Replacement Therapy, called the Saliva Test “a pure waste of dollars,” and further dismissed it by explaining that a saliva test is “not needed since doctors treat the symptoms of hormone deficiency by starting with a low dose of hormone replacement and increasing it if symptoms don’t resolve.”  That may be his preferred approach to hormone imbalances, but clearly not every woman can and wants to take hormones. [click to continue...]

It wasn’t that long ago that Menopause was a hush-hush topic, or obliquely referred to as “the change of life,” if mentioned at all, which it wasn’t.  So, women suffered in silence and gladly took the hormone pills offered to them by their physicians. Now, Menopause is openly discussed by mid-life women and, some, like me, write about it or have created information-rich websites to share knowledge and experiences.  If you haven’t discovered all the great resources available to you online, check out this great list of “50 Great Sites for Menopause Support.”  It was compiled by the good folks at Nursing Schools.Net. (They always have nifty lists).   I’m pleased that this blog was included, but there are lots of other good resources out there too. A few that I follow regularly are Project Aware (#10) Women to Women (#8), and Power Surge .

Are any of these websites favorites of yours? Perhaps you know others that aren’t on this list.

Uterine fibroids are solid muscle tissue growths in the uterus that often cause distressing problems such as prolonged periods, abdominal swelling, bloating and pelvic pain. They are the number one reason that American women have hysterectomies. While not normal, they occur so frequently in women over forty that they’re considered a “normal irregularity.”  But they disappear after menopause. So does that suggest that estrogens promote their growth? And, if that’s the case, are menopausal women on hormone therapy at greater risk for developing fibroids?

That’s one question I hope is addressed in a Webinar this Saturday, May 15th at 10 am PDT.  It’s sponsored and led by the Los Angeles-based Fibroid Treatment Collective, which is described on their website as “a medical group of fibroid experts dedicated to curing fibroids with minimally invasive therapy.”   That means that you’ll hear a lot about embolization.

Even if you’re unable to listen-in, you’ll find helpful information about fibroids on the FTC website including types, symptoms, and treatment options.

Sometimes the most helpful information about health and wellness shows up in the most unexpected places.  Jeanne P. sent me a link to her blog at the website for Physical Therapy Assistant Schools where she has compiled a list of “50 Nutritionists You Should Follow on Twitter.” I was curious to see what one could possibly learn from 140 words or less, and was pleasantly surprised.  Here are some examples of what you’ll find:

@Vicky Laney tweets on whole nutrition for improved immune function and natural healing of chronic disease.

@FitMenu promotes healthy eating at restaurants.

@womenshealth is from the Federal government’s resource for women’s health information.

@thpeppermntleaf is written by someone with a degree in biochemistry. She tweets about vegan, pilates and bagpipes!

@dancinginlife has lots of information about Gluten-free nutrition

If you scroll down the page, you’ll also see some other nifty articles such as “”Top 50 Yoga Blogs for a Healthy Mind and Body,” “Fifty Simple Fitness Tests to See Where You Stack Up,” and “10 Healthy and Delicious Foods that are Illegal in the U.S.”

It’s great when someone else does all the research for you!  Thanks Jeanne.

If you’ve arrived at this Blog, chances are you’ve experienced a hot flash or two. Or you know (or have seen) a woman who has. For some, they’re quite debilitating and sometimes embarrassing if it occurs during an important meeting, or worse, a date!   All we know about them is that we get very hot, very suddenly. But did you ever wonder what’s happening physiologically to make your internal thermostat go haywire?  More Magazine offers a good explanation of what happens with our internal wiring in an online article, “The Anatomy of a Hot Flash,” by  Sharon Kay.

Woman who suffer from menopausal symptoms – like hot flashes, insomnia and weight gain — know that it can take months of trial and error before you find the right supplements or HRT regimen to put you back on an even keel.   Well, what if you these symptoms clobbered you suddenly just months before your wedding day?  That’s what happened to Staness Jonekos. At 47, she felt miserable and moody when she should have been joyful at having found the love her of life after years of dating in Los Angeles.  So using her wedding planner book as a template, she created a twelve-week plan of her own to “regain control of her health and beauty” before her wedding day.   She used it to track her symptoms, diet and exercise regimen and keep her focused on her goals (including fitting into her wedding gown) and imminent deadline. You know how the story ends, of course: she feels like new, fits into her dress, marries her prince charming and…. turns her 12 week plan into a makeover book for the rest of us.
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