Author: The Beauty Nation

Men tend to fantasize about the size of their penis. They long to till the vagina to a stretching point, to reach deep inside their beloved and batter against the cervix. A few psychologists have lurid reasons for this. Yet it seems a reasonable enough and harmless myth because the cervix can escape penile battering. At sexual arousal, the inner two-thirds of the vagina increase in length a further two inches. They widen to stretch to a full two inches in diameter. The uterus with its cervix is pulled right up and out of harm’s way. This is known as “the ballooning effect.”

At the same time, the outer one-third of the vagina swells up. This is due to Vaso-congestion. Sexual arousal causes extra blood to enter and fill up the tissues. The result is a narrowing and tightening inside the entrance to the vagina. There is a clamping of tissue around the penis as it thrusts. This is known as “the gripping effect.”

If the average erect penis is 6¼ inches long and 1¼ to 1¾ inches wide, the average aroused vagina will sheath it to mutual satisfaction. The myth of a tiny, tight vagina during the act of love is just that, a myth. The ballooning effect helps the vagina stretch to accommodate the penis in comfort. Only an “unaroused” vagina can offer resistance to deep penetration, (or one which is sore from repeated lovemaking or infection). If the vagina does feel tiny and tight, then it is not ready for penetration. The woman lacks sufficient desire at that time.

The cervix projects into the upper part of the vagina, with a dip like a tiny trough running around it. This dip has front, back, and side parts called fornices. The back fornix is another mechanism to protect the cervix from battering. It takes the brunt of penile thrusting, and so prevents injury or jarring.

The walls of each fornix are thin, and the uterus, ovaries, and oviducts can be felt through them on a pelvic exam. They assist infertility if, after making love, the woman remains to lie on her back. The semen can then pool in the posterior fornix, and bathe the cervix. This allows more time for sperm to enter the os, the tiny opening of the cervix which leads to the uterus.

Ninety-two percent of couples can expect pregnancy to occur within 18 months of intercourse without contraception. If under age 25, some fertility experts recommend waiting between 18 months and a full two years. It is recommended that couples over age 25 visit a fertility clinic after unprotected intercourse for one full year.

Consider the following data from a study of fertile couples:

• Of those who make love 3 times a week, 51 percent conceive within 6 months of trying.
• Of those making love twice a week, 40 percent conceive within the first 6 months.
• Of those who make love once a week, 32 percent conceive within the first 6 months.
• Of those who make love less than once a week, only 16 percent conceive within the first 6 months.

Be sure that infrequent lovemaking is not the problem.

The myth of menopause: Once a woman hit menopause, sex is over

The truth is menopause may mean the end of the period, but it doesn’t the end of sex.

The fact is many women experience greater desire and pleasure than pregnancy worries are passed. Although having satisfactory sex life can be difficult because of vaginal changes and emotional swings. In most respects, women can enjoy a long and satisfying sex life as long as good health prevails. You deserve this if you want it, but may need to help your health care professionals recognize that you intend to be a sexy and sexually active aging woman and find out what they can provide that will help you achieve that. You may also need to retrain your sex life.

Erotic pleasures are extremely personal and can add some spice to your life. We’re never too old for sexual stimulation, whether that is listening to luscious, soulfully sexy music, writing and reading erotic poetry and literature, looking at sexy pictures or videos.

Fantasies of your own devising can be immensely enriching, as long as they are not hurtful of yourself, your partner, or your own sense of propriety and respect. And not all sexuality is specifically erotic.

For example, when we extend our concept of sexuality to include sensuality, we see that there are a great many activities that can pleasure us. Water and warm sun are great sources of sensuality. Massages by a lover, a friend, or a sensitive massage professional can help us feel very luxuriant and calmed. Probably the best non-human providers of sensuality are the pets who love us.

Research shows that those with pets live longer than those without them and that blood pressure goes down while people stroke or groom their pets. So keep in touch with your sexuality and sensuality. You’ll feel the better for it psychologically and those raging endorphins released when we feel sexy and loving are good for the immune system, too! For a refreshing take on health and sensuality, read to find out on how to of enjoying life to its fullest.

The most pleasurable and natural way to deal with vaginal dryness that makes intercourse painful is to set aside time for extended foreplay that you may need to stimulate your own natural lubrication.

If that’s still insufficient, you may also use one of the lubricating products specially made for sexual activity, such as K-Y Jelly. It is water-soluble, and unlike non-water-soluble creams and lotions or petroleum jelly, it will not increase susceptibility to infection or interfere with birth control or condoms.

A product called Replens, available in drugstores without a prescription, is specially formulated to plump up your vaginal cells with water, which aids in lubrication and keeps your tissues healthy whether you have sex or not. It also helps restore alkalinity to your vagina, which helps prevent some vaginal infections. Adult “sex shops” may have a greater selection of lubricants. Women have found the following specific natural therapies to be particularly helpful for minimizing vaginal thinning and dryness.

The shape of your vagina may change

After menopause, shorter, narrower, but still able to accommodate sexual activity. Your clitoris may become more sensitive and require extra lubrication to enjoy being stroked. Usually, women experience less blood flow to the geni¬tals as they age, and this may noticeably blunt the sharp edge of arousal.

Breast size

No longer increases with arousal, but this shouldn’t dampen their sensitivity. These naturally occurring changes needn’t hurt your sex life if you and your partner are open with each other about the way your body is feeling and both of you are willing to experiment until you are mutu¬ally satisfied. If you feel inhibited about doing these things because you were raised in a sexually conservative atmosphere.

Precautions!

Dryness and thinning out of the vaginal walls can cause small tears in the tissue during intercourse. This makes more possible the entry of viruses and bacteria. Remember to practice safe sex with your partner if you are still having your periods.

Vaginal atrophy

Can be made worse if you’re out of shape and have sluggish circulation. Regular exercise pumps up and improves circulation all over your body, including your pelvic area. Some women report that doing pelvic exercises improves their vaginal tone; Kegel exercises strengthen the muscles surrounding your vagina and may help incontinence and make intercourse more comfortable at this time of your life. And remember, this is a case of “use it or lose it.”

Research suggests that regular sexual activity either with a partner or by self-pleasuring example masturbation helps keep the vagina toned and lubricated. This may be due to estrogen produced by the adrenal glands as well as the increased blood flow and toning effect of muscle contractions before and after arousal and orgasm.

Avoid medications such as antihistamines, which dry out the delicate mucous tissue all over your body, not just in your nose and sinuses. Correct hormone deficiencies to resemble normal premenopausal levels can make a wonderful difference in your physical and emotional sexual well-be¬ing.

Kegel Exercise

The advantages of Kegel exercises are; it can increase blood flow to the genital area, giving better support to our sexual arousal mechanisms. This exercise tone and strengthen the muscles around the pelvic area and vaginal walls. In addition, kegel exercise could prevent incontinence due to aging or childbirth.

This exercise is named after Dr. KEGEL. Kegel exercise was the in practice since 1948. Till to date, gynecologists, urologists,s and general practitioners are encouraging women to practice kegel exercise. Women can benefit in controlling urination, toning of vaginal muscles, strengthening sexual function, and enhance sexual pleasure (orgasm) thus making climax intense.

Locate your “KEGEL POINT”

Before starting the exercise, you need to find out where is the muscles are. First, sit on the toilet and stream your urine. In the middle of streaming, pause and start the streaming several times. You will notice your muscles squeezing or contracting. This experience is your kegel point. These contractions give you the opportunity to locate the muscle.

During urination, start by giving your muscles a tight squeeze, hold for a count of 10 and slowly release your contraction (urine). If no discomfort, repeat this several times. Or you may practice with a faster momentum with some music or follow the rhythm of your heartbeat. You may do kegel exercise twice a day, 5 minutes each time, or whenever you visit the toilet.

You will notice your vaginal is toner around 6 to 12 weeks and remember this exercise is also beneficial for our bladder, thus it can be continued for as long as you want.

Once you have mastered it, this simple exercise can be practice almost everywhere, even when you are driving! Furthermore, this exercise will give you magnificent help in your lovemaking.

Menopause Orgasm

How does sensual excitement originate in a woman? First, there is a mental impression leading to an emotional libido, which in turn is conveyed to the sexual apparatus. These organs become congested with blood, causing a swelling of the clitoris, which thereby become extremely sensitive to touch and friction.

The Bartholin’s glands secrete their typical lubricant fluid in order to facilitate the ingress of the male member into the vagina. At the same time, the entrance of the vagina relaxes in order not to impede the entry of the member. The erect clitoris converts every fresh contact with the member into voluptuous sensations. After the entry of the member, the entrance of the vagina may tighten owing to the contraction of the vaginal muscles.

This contraction may be rendered so complete by the bulbs cavernosal or cavernous cells, which are located to the right and left of the vagina, and are at this stage filled with blood that the penis cannot enter.

The voluptuous sensation, which is mainly concentrated in the clitoris, may spread to the entrance of the vagina, the body of the vagina, and even to the neck of the uterus if this is reached by the male sex organ. With the intensification of excitement, the activity of the glands is also speeded up.

At a certain stage consciousness of the external world gradually fades, brain activity being eliminated as a result of the intense excitement, until orgasm, the peak of this voluptuous sensation, occurs. At this moment there is a convulsive contraction of all the glands and muscles of the female genital apparatus. A viscous substance reaches out, so to speak, from the uterus, as though to suck the semen into the uterus. If the man ejaculates simultaneously with the orgasm of the woman, this coincidence represents the ultimate perfection of the sexual act.

During an intense orgasm in a woman, there are rhythmic contractions of the entrance of the vagina and certain muscles in the region of the clitoris, of the urinary meatus, the sphincter ani (or contracting muscle of the anus), and the muscles of the opening of the uterus. All these muscles contract and relax repeatedly, the rhythm of the movement being sometimes rapid and sometimes slow. The movements are the same involuntary convulsive movements of contraction and relaxation as occur in the muscles of the male ejaculation.

In a particularly intense orgasm, these four rhythmic movements take place simultaneously. They may be so strong that they can be felt with absolute distinctness. For instance, the contractions of the opening of the uterus may be accompanied by a contraction of the entire uterus, which the woman may feel in the form of a light, wavy movement that goes over to the abdomen.

Even the nipples of the breasts may be affected. Conversely, the nipples may contribute very considerably to the production of orgasm. The involuntary contractions of the vaginal muscles may be so powerful that the male member, which at the moment of the woman’s orgasm is in the vagina or in the opening of the vagina, may be firmly seized and to a certain extent drawn inwards.

During the movements of the male member, which serve to bring about ejaculation, the vaginal muscles by their contractions intensify its excitation in a manner pleasurable to both parties.

A change of position during the sexual act, particularly if it is being tried for the first time, may not only facilitate the attainment of orgasm as such, but it may also give the partners the sensation that their sexual experience has never been so perfect. On the other hand, in certain positions, though the man may attain ejaculation and the woman her orgasm.

Most women get an orgasm more easily through stimulation of the clitoris, breast, nipples, even the ears than from penile penetration.

Love and Affection

Hugging and kissing in turn intensify the sexual excitation of the woman, so that she actively reciprocates these manifestations of affection, until her partner proceeds to increasingly more definite and decisive sexual actions. And if there are no obstacles, such as anxiety or embarrassment, and fear of infection, this love-play culminates in the sexual act itself. In the course of the sexual act, through contact between the highly sensitive sexual organs, sexual excitement rises rapidly to its peak, and when the woman has experienced the sensation of orgasm, which lasts some little time, her excitement gradually abates, and there follows that happy feeling of relief.

Insulin resistance

There is a significant concern that high levels of testosterone can increase the risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women, although the evidence is mixed. Though high testosterone levels have been observed to occur with breast cancer, or before, there is reason to doubt that it is actually testosterone that is stimulating cancer.

One possibility is insulin resistance which can result from an imbalance between testosterone and estrogen and can contribute to the development of breast cancer.

Since estrogen is associated with an increased risk for certain types of breast cancer, and testosterone is a precursor for estrogen (because your body can use testosterone to make estrogen), it raises the question of whether testosterone or estrogen is the problem.

Insulin

A hormone that enables your cells to use molecules of sugar (glucose) from your blood. Glucose is the main source of energy for most of your body’s cells. To receive molecules of glucose, your cells must be sensitive to the influence of insulin. For various reasons, your cells can become “insulin resistant,” or less sensitive. Your body still provides the same amount of insulin, but your cells seem to need more. When this happens, your body tries to compensate by making more insulin. This leads to a condition called hyperinsulinemia which literally meaning “too much insulin in the blood.”

Hyperinsulinemia

Insulin resistance is responsible for a range of serious illnesses in postmenopausal women, including adult-onset diabetes, heart disease, and cancer of the breast and uterus. It was once thought that insulin resistance was mainly a problem of obesity, but this isn’t true. Insulin resistance is a widespread but largely unrecognized threat to women’s health. As many as 44% of healthy postmenopausal women may have insulin resistance.

Insulin resistance is caused by imbalances in estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone levels in women which is likely after menopause. A deficiency in estrogen can produce insulin resistance. Estrogen plays an important role in our body’s normal insulin sensitivity, the uptake of glucose by muscle cells, the normalization of proteins that carry hormones in the blood (which help normalize testosterone levels), and the liver’s ability to clear excess insulin from the blood.

Thus, any menopause type that includes low levels of estrogen or high levels of testosterone has an increased risk for insulin resistance especially if there is an imbalance between estrogen and progesterone, or estrogen and testosterone. Since insulin resistance can contribute to so many serious health risks, from diabetes to heart disease and cancer, this is one of the strongest reasons for identifying your menopause type and getting appropriate treatment.

Menopause May Cause Breast Cancer

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women and is probably the disease that women fear most. Breast cancer can be fatal as the cancer cells (if cancer is advance) tend to spread to the liver, lungs, bones, or brain. Though the incidence of breast cancer has been rising, the death rate remained unchanged for a few decades.

Despite the media attention, many still don’t know much about the cause of breast cancer. Most known that breast cancer is genetics.

The risk is greater if any female sibling or member has had a history of breast cancer. Older women get the higher the risk, probably because there are more chances for genetic damage to occur in the breast cells, and the rate doubles from age fifty to age sixty, and doubles again to age seventy.

Overweight or obese women have two to four times the risk of breast cancer, ovarian and uterine cancer.

Women who begin menstruating at a young age (under twelve) have a higher risk and those who stop menstruating later (after age fifty-five) have a higher risk.

Also, women who have no children or children after age thirty are at higher risk. Other risk factors are lifestyle, history of exposure to radiation, abnormal menstrual cycles (irregular, short, or long, which indicate a hormone imbalance), and one rare type of fibrocystic breast disease.

Breast tissue has estrogen and progesterone receptors in it and breast cells are sensitive to hormones. Many of the risk factors are associated with hormonal imbalance, high fat diet, toxic lifestyle that include alcohol and smoking, birth control pills, ERT, and HRT. Prescription hormones such as in hormone replacement therapy or birth control pills may also affect breast cancer risk as well as the progression of the disease.

There were reviews from studies, which point to a 50%-70% increase in breast cancer risk with the use of estrogen replacement therapy. Interestingly, European studies show an even greater increased risk (of up to 200%).

Some reviews significant increase in breast cancer was found among women who have ever used estrogen, and women on long-term hormone replacement therapy had nearly a 50% higher risk of breast cancer as compared with women who had never used the drug. Though hormone replacement therapy has some risk of contracting breast cancer, on the other hand, it could eliminate menopausal symptoms and slow down bone loss.

Menopause May Cause Diabetes

Diabetes occurs when your body has too much sugar (glucose) in the blood. In excess, glucose and its products wreak havoc on blood vessels, nerves, and other tissues. Glucose, which our body gets from food, is the fuel used by cells to create energy. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas that regulates the amount of glucose in the blood.

Insulin “escorts” glucose into our cells where it is taken in through an insulin receptor on the cell membrane. Glucose is then used immediately or stored and used later on; this prevents our blood sugar from going too high, as occurs in diabetes. Insulin fits into cell wall receptors like a key fits into a lock; they open the cell wall to let the sugar in.

Some people are genetically susceptible to developing diabetes. After a lifetime of eating too much simple sugar, the cell may sprout more and more receptors to handle the load. It is suspected that in time these receptors become chemically numb to the onslaught, although the mechanism of this is unknown and there are other factors involved. In any event, more and more insulin is needed to get lower blood sugar.

Although very common, diabetes is a serious disease and can be ugly in its later stages: with blindness, lingering sores, amputation of toes or feet, heart disease, and nerve pains which are very difficult to relieve. All this suffering is usually unnecessary because diabetes is, to a very large extent, preventable. In so many experience, only a minority of diabetics cannot control their disease with diet and exercise.

Nonetheless, this disease can render someone so “brittle” that a single piece of chocolate or a banana can send them into a ketoacidic coma, and a missed meal after a full dose of insulin causes hypoglycemic coma. The majority of diabetics have tremendous difficulty letting go of their freedom to indulge in sweets.

The two phytoestrogens that have been the most thoroughly studied;

Phytoestrogen and Soy

There is growing evidence that eating foods rich in phytoestrogens (plant substances that have an estrogen-like activity) can be of significant help in easing the symptoms of menopause. Soy base plants and herbs are high in phytoestrogens.

Women in cultures that traditionally eat a lot of soy products, such as the Japanese culture, have a much lower incidence of difficult menopausal symptoms. This appears to be, at least in part, because foods rich in phytoestrogens mimic estrogen activity in the body.

Phytoestrogens don’t behave exactly like estrogen, or estrogen replacement, but that can actually be an advantage when you are going through menopause.

At that time, your body is adapting to having less estrogen in the system, and there may be a protective effect when you get estrogenlike activity from eating phytoestrogen-rich food, rather than taking full-strength estrogen in hormone replacement.

Phytoestrogens bind to the estrogen receptors of cells, but they do not stimulate the cells as much or as strongly as estrogen steroid hormones. But, by binding to the receptor, they accomplish two important tasks.

First

They “satisfy” the receptor by binding to it. This allows the receptor site to respond by initiating changes within the cell. These changes could include helping to decrease osteoporosis, in the case of bone cells, or decreasing hot flash symptoms, in the case of blood vessels. The effect is not nearly as strong as that of a steroid hormone-like estradiol, but sometimes that is better.

Second

Phytoestrogens decrease cancer stimulation by steroid hormones such as estrogens by taking up the receptor space and competing with steroid hormones that would normally bind to the hormone receptors.

When phytoestrogens block steroid estrogens from binding to the receptor, they are said to be antagonists, meaning they work against the steroid hormones. This effect could prevent strong stimulation of cancer cells in the breast or uterus.

With less stimulation from steroid estrogens, cancer cells will grow much slower and may be more susceptible to control by the immune system. Additionally, research reports that some phytoestrogens, such as genistein from soybeans, actually suppress tumor growth even in tumors that are not influenced by hormonal activity.

Research is discovering that phytoestrogens are inhibitors of breast, uterine, bowel, and prostate cancers.

Phytoestrogen found in soy foods may decrease the rate of bone loss because of its estrogen-like activity. They can be protective to the cardiovascular system by decreasing high cholesterol levels. They also help allay osteoporosis and are also able to help control some symptoms of menopause.

Soy is the most well studied of foods containing phytoestrogens and is the source of several very important substances such as the isoflavones, genistein, and daidzein. As well as decreasing cancer risks, soy has the ability to help prevent osteoporosis and, possibly, autoimmune diseases.

Since phytoestrogens have an antagonist effect, the decreased risk of autoimmune disease should come as no surprise. It is well-known that women have a higher incidence of autoimmune diseases than men, and that estrogens are believed to play a role in these conditions.

The isoflavones, genistein, and daidzein could prevent postmenopausal bone loss and osteoporosis. In animal studies, genistein is as effective as steroid estrogens in preserving bone. Even synthetic isoflavones, such as ipriflavone, are able to reduce bone loss in animals with osteoporosis and show great promise for the prevention and treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis.

Animal research demonstrates that soybean phytoestrogens do not have any estrogenic activity in the uterus and vagina, and exert antagonist activity by reducing uterine cell stimulation by supplemented steroid hormones.

The implications are that women on hormone replacement would benefit from taking soy-based phytoestrogens. A healthful diet that includes regular intake of legumes may result in a decreased risk of endometrial cancer.

In addition to decreasing risks of breast cancer, uterine cancer, heart disease, and osteoporosis, soy can relief some of the more immediate discomforts of menopause.

Based on a 1991, Journal of the National Cancer Institute estimates that 1 cup of soybeans provides about 300 mg of plant estrogens called isoflavones the equivalent of about 45 mg of conjugated estrogens, as potent as a low to medium dose of the prescribed estrogen, Premarin.

Research also suggests that switching to certain drugless therapies can also contribute to managing and treating these diseases once they have occurred. Certain nutritional supplements may protect the body from harmful effects like bone loss and heart ailments.

Soy foods are a good source of protein and it’s becoming easier and more pleasant to eat some every day, preferably in place of animal foods.

There are now several types of tofu or soy burgers on the market, flavored and unflavoured soy milk (they work in shakes, on cereals, in cooking, and even in hot beverages such as tea), in addition to low-fat versions of tofu infirm, regular, and soft consistencies.

Some soy foods may have more plant estrogens than others. Many women have reported relief of menopausal symptoms when they eat these foods.

Menopause Supplement

Nutrition has a big impact on the healthy functioning of hormones throughout a woman’s life and is particularly important during menopause. As the body uses a wide variety of minerals and vitamins to create the steroid hormones, therefore a balance combination supplement is essential.

Supplements are critical

In some cases, rarely undesirable for others (for whatever reasons) but it is always up to one to decide. We certainly won’t say that vitamins or certain food will solve all your menopause problems or help you live forever.

On the other hand, there are thousands to millions of women for whom are taking nutritional supplementation has solved their menopausal and other problems.

More and more researchers and nutritionists are taking supplements themselves.

In order to have optimal health and to correct an illness or long-standing deficiency, we may need higher amounts of vitamins and minerals than even the best diet can supply. Scientific evidence is growing that certain supplements can give us added protection and stronger health.

Most of the positive studies using supplements (rather than food) involve the antioxidant nutrients which protect our cells from free radical damage.

Studies suggest that doses in excess of the RDA for the antioxidant nutrients vitamins E, C, and A and beta-carotene, and the minerals zinc and selenium are particularly useful to reduce the risk of many diseases and conditions, including premature aging and death, cardiovascular disease, many types of cancer, diabetes, cataracts, and other degenerative eye problems, arthritis, and possibly osteoporosis.

There’s even some evidence that supplements can reverse these diseases or help slow the progression once they are established.

In one large study, 50 mg supplements of beta-carotene taken every other day cut the incidence of heart attacks, strokes, and deaths related to heart disease in half. Another study showed that vitamin C supplements enhanced immunity in elderly adults, as did 800 IU of vitamin E. Still other studies show that calcium, magnesium, zinc, and vitamin D supplements help stave off osteoporosis.

In some studies, nutritional supplements actually helped reverse osteoporosis while prescription estrogen-only halts the progression. And 400-800 IU of vitamin E has been shown to reduce hot flashes; because vitamin E is found only in vegetable oils, this amount is impossible to get from a healthy low-fat diet and is difficult to get even in a high-fat diet.

Calcium For Menopause

Osteoporosis is more common and more serious than most people believe. The United States has one of the highest rates of osteoporosis in the world, followed by Western societies such as Finland, Norway, Sweden, and England.

About 7 to 8 million people in America, of which 80 percent of them are women, have this bone-weakening condition and another 17 million were at risk for this condition due to low bone density. Approximately 1.5 million women are fractured each year. Fractures due to this condition cost at least $18 billion a year in healthcare, pain, and suffering. 30 percent a raise from spinal fractures, 25 percent suffers hip fractures, and 20 percent of those women suffering such fractures die from conditions related to the fracture or the surgery.

Calcium is one supplement menopause women should not miss.

It is important for proper bone formation and preventing osteoporosis. Additionally, calcium plays a vital role in cardiovascular health, blood clotting, muscle function, and nerve function. To be most effective, calcium supplementation must include vitamin D. When calcium is taken with vitamin D, the benefit is so significant that all women should use it as their primary defense against osteoporosis.

This mineral also acts as an important messenger inside the cells of the body, particularly in making cholesterol available to enter the steroidogenic pathway. It’s important to note that the heavy metal cadmium may interfere with calcium’s ability to increase steroid production, which could result in a decreased ability to convert cholesterol to pregnenolone. This is one of many ways in which cadmium can be toxic.

Certain blood pressure and heart medications are known as calcium-channel blockers (verapamil, diltiazem, and prenylamine) may also inhibit the making of steroid hormones, by interfering with calcium at the level of the cell. The body has a mechanism to maintain healthy and stable levels of calcium in the blood, including using calcium from the bones if needed. Common dogma is that this stable calcium level will shield the cells from the effects of low calcium.

The fact that widely prescribed medications and cadmium can affect calcium metabolism enough to inhibit steroidogenesis reveals just how delicate the balance can be. Some reported data suggest that blood calcium levels (extracellular levels) can affect steroidogenesis. An ideal daily dose is at least 1g of elemental calcium and is best balanced with magnesium.

One study, in particular, showed that the movement of calcium across the cell membrane is an important and common step in the stimulation of progesterone production. Therefore, even a very mild calcium deficiency cannot be dismissed as insignificant.

Women taking calcium-channel blockers should monitor their hormone levels.

The three key elements for (menopausal women) keeping bones healthy and strong, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, are:

1. Eating a balanced diet rich in calcium, 1000 mg a day for premenopausal women and up to 1500 mg after menopause if not taking hormone replacement.
2. Engaging in weight-bearing exercise two to three times weekly, for at least 20 minutes at a time. These activities include walking, jogging, dancing, aerobics, and racquet sports.
3. Changing any adverse lifestyle habits that can affect your bone health. The habits most deleterious to your bones are smoking cigarettes (which are unhealthy for many additional reasons) and drinking alcohol. Both smoking and alcohol can actually deplete the calcium in your system, and your body will then extract calcium from your bones. Many experts also add caffeine to the list, because it, too, can increase the amount of calcium excreted in the urine (an indication it’s not being absorbed into your system).

If you don’t know how to begin assessing your bone health, start by talking with your doctor about osteoporosis.

Menopause Natural Remedy

Herbs are sold in different forms: unprocessed (the raw herb), in capsules or tablets, standardized (meaning that the herb has been processed to some degree to ensure that each capsule has exactly the same strength), in freeze-dried granular form, in liquid alcohol (called a tincture), or in glycerin extracts.

Raw herbs may be hard to digest, so if you have digestive problems such as an ulcer, you should avoid taking them. Some people prefer herbs in tincture form (in alcohol), while others want to avoid alcohol or find that it irritates the stomach. Herbs in glycerin are very easy on the system but are usually much weaker than alcohol extracts.

Chinese herbs are traditionally cooked for specific periods of time and in specific ways. You should consult a Chinese medical herbal specialist to learn how to prepare Chinese herbal formulas. Chinese herbs are also available in tablet form and in freeze-dried granular form.

There are specific combinations of Chinese herbs designed for women with different menopausal symptoms that have been tried and tested over centuries. In Europe, many herbs are traditionally taken as teas. The herbs are steeped in water that has just boiled, for ten to twenty minutes, then strained for drinking. This is a good method for taking some of the more aromatic herbs recommended for menopause, such as sage, vervain, and damiana.

You can buy loose herbs for making teas from your local health food store, a web-based shop, or from mail-order catalogs specializing in herbs for women. Health-food and other stores now sell herbal teas containing combinations of herbs specifically for menopause.

Herbs for menopausal

Can be used individually or in various combinations. There are traditional ways of combining herbs that have been used for centuries, such as the Chinese tradition of using licorice with other herbs because licorice helps the other herbs in the combination be absorbed by the body. If you buy a combination of herbs designed for menopause, make sure it does not contain any herbs that are not good for your menopause type, for example of vitex if you have low testosterone.

As you can see, herbal remedies have a wide range of applications for women of menopausal age. They can be used for the treatment of common menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes and mood swings. Their greatest benefit is their ability to enhance the function of tissues that are fatigued, weakened, or debilitated from the effects of time, stress, and diminished hormone levels.

Herbs can be used to revitalize the adrenal glands and ovaries. Additionally, they can be used to enhance the function of the nervous system to relieve stress and preserve or improve memory and learning.

Herbal remedies can be used alone or in combination with other herbs. Sometimes they also can be used in conjunction with hormone replacement therapy. As herbs work by restoring normal function, balance, and vitality to tissues, all you need to take them for a period of time to allow them to be effective. It’s best to take herbs with a specific purpose or goal in mind. Once the goal is obtained, it is often possible to lower the amount of herb and still maintain the benefit.

Thousands of herbs are used by various cultures throughout the world. And as herbal research continues, new herbs and new benefits are sure to be discovered. These healing and nurturing plants are great gifts to all people, and of great benefit to most women.

Herbal Remedies

Herbal lore isn’t generally part of our culture, so before using any herb to treat a specific complaint, you need to learn the basics about herbal therapy. Although “herbs” technically refers to the above-ground parts of plants, we use the term to include all plant parts as well as mushroom remedies which might be more accurately referred to as “botanical substances.”

Herbs have been called part of “nature’s pharmacy.”

Although their action can be similar to modern drugs, herbal remedies are generally gentler and safer.

Many of the drugs used in conventional medicine are derived from herbs. For example, digitalis is made from foxglove, and aspirin was originally made from white willow. Some drugs are synthetic meaning they are synthesized from separate elements. Other drugs are semi-synthetic; the original ingredients may come from plants. For example, they are in some way altered so they can be patented.

Such patented drugs undergo rigorous testing before they can be approved by the Food and Drug Administration, a process that costs millions of dollars. The pharmaceutical manufacturer must prove a drug is safe and effective according to established scientific criteria. The benefit of such costly, arduous testing is the hope of finding a “magic bullet” to fill a specific medical niche: a drug that targets a specific problem fixes it, and then leaves the body without wreaking too much havoc.

Many people don’t realize much knowledge of herbs comes from folk medicine.

Herbs have also been studied scientifically.

In many cases, we know the mechanisms of action. Some herbal agents were tested long ago and these fascinating studies exist in old medical texts. And more and more herbs are being tested by manufacturers and naturopathic doctors, especially in other countries like U.K, America, Japan, and Thailand.

In 1932, the herb Airy Shaw et Suvatabandhu or known as Pueraria Mirifica and White Kwao Krua brought attention to the world with studies proven in both animal and clinical trial at Chelsea Hospital for Women in London. This Thai traditional herb with a long history to promote women’s health, shows it could:

Help women recover from menopausal symptoms like hot flashes, insomnia, and vaginal dryness, and could be administered as estrogen therapy.

More studies were carried out to show its effectiveness as anticancer therapy. Another study conducted in 1993 by a naturopathic doctor, looked at the effects of several herbs on perimenopausal women. The herbs studied were Glycyrrhiza glabra root, Arctium lappa root, Dioscorea villosa, Angelica Sinensis, and Leonurus cardiaca that help reduction in the severity of their menopausal symptoms.

It was concluded that selected botanicals appear to have a positive effect on some menopausal symptoms and that more research is needed on herbs, particularly regarding their effects on cholesterol due to the publicized effects of estrogen replacement therapy on cardiovascular health.

Menopause Treatment

Synthetic Drug

There are many other natural health advocates who offer many alternative hormone combinations including the naturally occurring estrogens and progesterone, tailored to the needs and comfort of the individual woman.

Natural hormones, as opposed to the semi-synthetic or synthetic which are foreign to the body, have fewer side effects than the standard HRT offered.

Women with a lot of body fat continue to be exposed to plenty of endogenous estrogens and not enough progesterone and these women may reach hormonal balance by taking natural progesterone only, or improving their eating patterns.

Because concerned that the narrow focus on estrogen replacement as the solution to osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease encourages people to overlook other obvious and important approaches to building health.

No matter what you decide about any prescription medication, we strongly suggest that you embrace an ever healthier lifestyle.

That having been said, we all realize it may be too difficult to undertake a healthier lifestyle at this particular time in your life. Or you may not have access to a health care professional prepared to help you develop and monitor a program of natural alternatives to HRT.

For that and other reasons, HRT may be the most attractive option for personal reasons and may feel “right” to you and your doctor. Most patients have felt strongly both ways and this is a personal and ethical as well as medical decision.

Some women refuse to take Premarin, a synthetic estrogen made from the urine of pregnant mares, because of allegations that the horses are kept penned up and transported under less than humane conditions.

Today, you can choose among several types and forms of estrogen. The most popular type of estrogen used after menopause is estradiol; two other bio-identical estrogens known as estrone and estriol. If you have an intact uterus, whenever you take any type of estrogen you should also take progesterone or progestin.

However, it is important to remember that balancing estrogen with progesterone is also required for the ideal health of the brain, bones, heart, and other tissues.

Natural Food For Menopause

Experts, you, and I all would agree that the food you eat is your primary source of these nutrients. But many nutrition experts believe food can and should be our only source. Supplements aren’t necessary if we just eat a “balanced diet”. However, it is difficult to eat a “balanced diet” adequate in all the essential vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids.

A large survey showed that less than 10 percent of the population eats the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables. We convince ourselves that our lives are too busy and unpredictable, and that good food isn’t always available.

Since this is still a hotly debated subject, firm scientific support on plants and herbs shows how beneficial is a supplement. Food that is plentiful of minerals, vitamins, soy, and phytoestrogens, which are beneficial to women’s health and menopause:

Fruits and Vegetables – Apples, cherries, figs, dates, apricots, olives, plums, broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, cabbage, eggplant, tomatoes, garlic, onions, potatoes, alfalfa sprouts, peppers, chilies, carrots, yams.

Herbs – Alfalfa (sprouts, powder, and plants), garlic, sprouted green peas, celery, anise seed, coconut, fennel, licorice, licorice root, Pueraria roots, parsley, red raspberry, sage, oregano, red clover, thyme, turmeric, hops, verbena, brewer’s yeast, flaxseed

Beans, Grains, Nuts and Seeds – Peanuts, cashews, almonds, peas, garbanzo beans, barley, brown rice, bulgur, oats, corn, wheat, wheat germ, rye.

Soy products – Soybeans and soy-based foods such as tofu, miso, soy milk, and soy supplements.

Ease Menopause Naturally

Many cultures traditionally use specific plant foods and products to gently support women through menopause. We now are discovering that one reason for their effectiveness is that certain foods contain chemicals or nutrients that have an estrogen-enhancing or estrogen-like effect. Although this is a large and varied group of chemicals;

They are NOT true estrogens such as are produced by our bodies, for simplicity’s we will call them “plant estrogens.”

These chemicals are just beginning to be understood, but it seems that they act in many different ways to normalize or balance hormones. In this sense, plant estrogens (or phytoestrogens) are “adaptogens” like the herb ginseng and Pueraria Mirifica,

Helps your body adapt and find a healthy balance.

Sometimes phytoestrogens act like weak estrogens; they lock onto the estrogen receptors of your cells and stimulate them only partially. Thus, if you have too much estrogen, plant estrogens block its stronger effects.

If you have too little estrogen, high doses of some plant estrogens can themselves act as estrogens and counteract that imbalance as well.

Another mechanism of effect seems to be to change the way our bodies react to the estrogen we have. Some change how the estrogen is broken down or excreted. And still, other plant estrogens affect our body’s ability to convert other hormones to estrogen.

Because these chemicals work in many different ways, they fall under many different chemical classes. A molecule can look totally different from estrogen except for two uniquely positioned chemical appendages, and still fit the lock as an estrogen-like key.

Some of the most powerful of these look-alikes you may hear about include coumestrol, genistein, and daidzein; the latter two are lignans, a component of fiber that our intestinal bacteria convert into compounds that have weak estrogenic and anti-estrogenic effects. There are unanswered questions about phytoestrogen dosage and safety.

Theoretically, one might wonder if they could stimulate hormone-sensitive cancers such as breast cancer. On the other hand, these substances could help explain why Japanese, Chinese and Asian women who eat a traditional diet high in soybean foods have a lower rate of breast cancer and nearly none of our common menopausal symptoms.

The weak phytoestrogens could be blocking the cancer-promoting effects of strong estrogens while being powerful enough to minimize menopausal symptoms.

Low-fat and high-fiber diets may be important, but they are not the only factors influencing hormone production and metabolism. A renowned Finnish researcher in this field suggests that the risk for many Western diseases, including breast and prostate cancers, might be reduced by changing our diets to increase plant estrogens.

Studies suggest that the genistein blocks the enzyme that makes normal cells cancerous, and thus may affect non-hormone-related cancers as well.

How do estrogen, ERT, and HRT work

Estrogens work by crossing the cell membrane into the cell and attaching to estrogen receptors on the nucleus of the cell. Each type of estrogen has a different ability to attach itself (receptor affinity) and to stay attached to the receptor on the nucleus (nuclear retention).

The stronger the receptor affinity, and the longer the nuclear retention time, the more potent the physiological action of the estrogen.

Estradiol not only has a strong receptor affinity but also increases the affinity of the receptor for estradiol. In contrast, estrone and estriol may decrease estradiol binding by lowering the cell’s affinity for estradiol. Estrone and estriol have only slightly lower receptor affinity than estradiol. Estradiol varies significantly in its nuclear retention time. While estradiol has a nuclear retention time of 6 to 24 hours, estriol is only 1 to 4 hours, with estrone higher than estriol, but still lower than estradiol. This means that once estradiol attaches itself to a cell, it sticks to it longer and has a stronger influence than estriol does.

The longer an estrogen occupies a receptor, the stronger its influence will be.

Thus, the estrogenic potency of a substance is determined by the duration of its occupation of receptors. Levels of a specific estrogen also can affect the duration of its influence on a cell. In fact, if estriol levels are in excess of normal non-pregnant levels for long periods of time, they can have the same effect on cells as estradiol does.

Research has demonstrated that continuously high estriol is as active as estradiol and less likely to exert any significant protective action. At normal physiological dosages, estradiol remains the most potent of the naturally occurring estrogens in the human body. However, conjugated estrogens (such as Premarin) and synthetic estrogens are more potent than estradiol.

Estrogen Replacement Therapy, ERT

Estrogens were first introduced as drugs in 1933, DES (diethylstilbestrol) being one of the first estrogen drugs. Subsequently, a combination estrogen-progestin birth control pill was developed, and by the mid-1960s the first wave of postmenopausal estrogen replacement use was gaining momentum.

In 1966, gynecologist Robert Wilson passionately declared that the pharmaceutical industry now offered Woman’s precious gift, the elimination of menopause, women’s physical, mental, and final emancipation. By the 1970s estrogen became one of the top five prescription drugs.

Women taking estrogen found that they had fewer hot flashes and no vaginal atrophy.

Their moods were better, their breasts firmer, and they had more energy.

However, studies soon showed that taking estrogen for longer than one year increased the risk of endometrial cancer. Estrogens’ popularity plummeted when the Food and Drug Administration issued a warning that the dose should be one-quarter of the amount used at that time, but admitted that this still might not be protective enough to negate the increased risk of cancer. The type of estrogen is another factor to consider.

The three types of active human estrogens

Estradiol, estrone, and estriol, can be prescribed alone or in combination. Estriol, although little-studied to date, maybe as effective as and safer than standard ERT; however, it is less potent and must be given in higher doses than the other two estrogens.

Some investigators have found that unopposed estriol (that is, without progesterone) does not cause endometrial hyperplasia (increase in the number of cells), However, it is believed that estriol, as with other forms of estrogen, should be given along with progesterone in postmenopausal women with or without a uterus.

The balancing effect of progesterone with estrogen likely affects other tissues besides the uterus. Because of the experience we have with estradiol and estrone, doctors often prescribe an estrogen formula developed by an expert in nutritional medicine. It consists of all three naturally occurring forms of estrogen: estradiol, estrone, and estriol. This “tri-estrogen” preparation includes these hormones in what he calculated to be the same proportion as they are found in premenopausal women and appears to minimize the risks of estrogen and maximize their benefits. It may be used along with natural progesterone and other hormones.

In getting the most out of our healthcare dollar, many of us have begun to voice concerns about the remedy most recommended by Western medicine for menopause and the years after hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

Many women view HRT, given most commonly in pill form, as drug treatment. They favour looking to alternative solutions, for the following reasons:

• They’re uncomfortable about taking medication for the rest of their lives.
• They’re worried about the possible link between HRT and cancer.
• They’re unwilling to continue with a medication that’s adding side effects and discomfort when it should be relieving their symptoms.

Even mainstream Western medicine, which has scoffed at alternative healing methods, has begun to reconsider its stance. Some physicians now work in affiliation with acupuncturists; some herbalists have clients who also take hormone therapy.

Perhaps most important, growing numbers of physicians recognize that a sound health plan requires participation and cooperation between patient and physician. These are the physicians who trust in their patients’ intelligence, good sense, and ability to make the right choices when given full information. This shift in attitude has much to do with pressure from consumers.

Hormone Replacement Therapy, HRT

Most doctors in the country now prescribe hormone replacement therapy (HRT), calcium supplementation, and vitamin D for osteoporosis. Occasionally the hormone calcitonin is prescribed. Etidronate, a substance that treats osteoporosis, showed promise for a few years but has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for osteoporosis.

The new non-hormonal bisphosphonate drug Fosamax was approved for osteoporosis treatment by the FDA in late 1995.

It appears to halt spinal bone loss but it is not clear if it will be effective for the hip. Also, Fosamax works by interfering with the bone remodeling process and it is not clear if it leads to “worn-out” or unrepaired bone over the long haul.

There are reports of possible side effects that HRT brings like an increase in ovarian and breast cancer, weight gain, anxiety, fluid retention and etc. There is much research ongoing but we don’t yet know all the long-term effects of HRT, yet many doctors prescribe estrogen and progestogens for the duration of our life.

So is it possible to do this the “natural” way?