There is very little question on the fact that hormone replacement therapy is the most effective treatment for menopausal symptoms. The concept is very simple. Your body does not produce oestrogen anymore (or it does at a very reduced rate) and this causes symptoms. To eliminate the symptoms you need to replace the hormones that you are lacking.
HRT is the only treatment that can tackle different parts of your body and help with:
-hot flashes
-night sweats
-vaginal dryness
-sex drive issues
-bone thinning
-urinary incontinence
The problem is that there is a contrasting advice when it comes to taking HRT and may women are confused.
For this reason you need to get proper information and make your own decision in relation to your menopausal treatment.
Again the facts are simple. Breast cancer is a common cancer and affects about 12 women over a 1000 in the over 50’s age group. In the same age group of women who take HRT the incidence is estimated to be 15 over a 1000, so that means 3 extra cases are possibly due to HRT. This mathematics applies to normal women with a normal baseline risk.
Once you have this information you need to assess your current quality of life and decide what you want.
You either keep the symptoms or get treatment. It is important that when you are making the decision you look at all the consequences of estrogen depletion, in particular the vaginal problem which you are more likely to discover a few years later.
Take your time and make an informed decision. If you decide not to take HRT is absolutely fine but you need then to develop an alternative plan in relation to cardiovascular risk prevention and osteoporosis prevention.
