THE ESTROGEN DILEMMA

Dr Steven R. Goldstein, a Menopause Specialist in NYC who works with menopausal women to help them understand the changes in their bodies and use strategies to best cope with the symptoms of Menopause, says that the estrogen dilemma, doesn’t end after the first few years of menopause. In fact, the estrogen dilemma is greater for women the longer they live post menopause. There is a difference between taking estrogen to relieve nuisance symptoms and taking it for health maintenance.

Health maintenance will become an even bigger issue in the coming years as life expectancy increases and the quality of life in those extra years is the goal. It is no longer enough to live to be ninety-one. One has to hope now that when you are eighty-five, you’ll be as healthy and as active as a sixty-five-year-old person is today.

Otherwise, why bother? If one wants to be strong and vital and able to do things one wants to do and not just “be alive”, preservation of your health is key. That means preventing osteoporosis, preventing heart disease, reducing cholesterol, and, it is hoped, preventingAlzheimer’s disease, while reducing the risks of breast and uterine disease.

There are over three hundred tissues in a woman’s body that require estrogen, from

the brain, to the bones, and more.Alack of estrogen due to the inactivity of the ovaries during menopause means that each of those tissues is affected. Bones become brittle leading to osteoporosis. Moreover, cholesterol (particularly bad cholesterol), rises which can lead to heart disease. Weight gain, particularly around the midsection, is also due to a lack of estrogen in post-menopausal women.

To cope with the symptoms of Menopause, and for health maintenance in post menopausal women, Dr Goldstein, a a Hormone Specialist in NYC, and co author of the book “The Estrogen Alternative” uses hormone replacement therapy (HRT), particularly Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators (SERMs). Hormone Replacement Therapy is not for everyone.Adecision to use it requires a comprehensive medical and gynecological exam and a discussion with a specialist like Dr Goldstein to understand the symptoms of menopause the patient is experiencing.

If you are a woman experiencing the symptoms of menopause or interested in the use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for health maintenance such as bone health, heart health and more, a consultation with Dr Steven R. Goldstein, a Menopause Doctor in NYC, may be in order.