Post menopausal women are typically in their fifties or older, so it would seem natural that with this age comes the risk of other health problems. But first of all, if you have completed menopause, then congratulations, you have got through what may have been a very challenging time for you, and you are now moving towards your golden years.
A recent Women’s Health Initiative Study, published in Archives of Internal Medicine, was based on some 130,000 US women of post menopausal age, and these women were followed for about six years. It was discovered that those women who were taking anti-depressants were at a much higher risk of death from all causes during this study, than the non-users, a 32% higher risk which is significant, and the risk was greatest for having strokes. The researchers did stress that this is actually just a small percentage of women, perhaps 1 in 200 of those post menopausal women who take anti-depressants. If you are taking antidepressants, you may want to consult your doctor and talk about these risks and what they mean for you and your health.
all women go through changes to reach post menopause
Now as part of your healthy life style, post menopausal women should already be eating a healthy balanced diet, as well as exercising regularly a few times a week, and if you are not currently doing that, then you need to get started. By eating well and exercising you can reduce the risks of certain diseases like diabetes and heart attacks or strokes, not to mention osteoporosis, all of which can affect post menopausal women if they are not careful.
Let’s take a look at osteoporosis, which is linked to the decrease in the levels of estrogen in the post menopausal woman. As women age, their bones lose some of their calcium and they become more brittle and easier to break. Now while this might not sound life threatening, breaking bones can cause great hardship, and a broken hip can be devastating, one that is not easy to recover from. If you have never broken a bone in your life so far, then you are very lucky. As you get older the challenge of dealing with a broken arm, say, becomes more challenging as the body cannot adapt as easily as a younger body. In our youth we tend to be more flexible and the challenges of using the other hand and arm for everything may not be as challenging. However by post menopause the body is more rigid, and less able to stand the strain of the extra work it has to do to compensate for the injured arm.
With a broken arm it becomes incredibly difficult to eat, shower, wash your hair, peel vegetables, write, use the phone, open doors, open jars, and the list goes on. This means that as a post menopausal woman, any bone fracture can bring a great loss of independence, and a reliance on others that can be hard to accept.
So, what can you do about the risk of osteoporosis? Eat good, healthy foods, and exercise regularly, particularly bone strengthening, weight bearing exercises such as walking, climbing stairs, jogging, dancing or weight lifting. Make sure that your diet includes plenty of calcium and vitamin D, but check with your doctor for the levels needed for your particular case. Reduce the amount of caffeine you consume as caffeine increases the calcium loss from your body.
Another thing for post menopausal women to watch is their cholesterol levels, and the amount of fat they consume from animals versus plants.
Animal fat when eaten regularly, things like butter and meats, can cause your cholesterol levels to rise, putting you at increased risk of a heart attack or strokes. A simple blood test can tell you your cholesterol levels, which you can then discuss with your doctor.
When all is taken into consideration, the best thing you can do for yourself as a post menopausal woman is to eat well, and exercise regularly several times each week. Since you could spend as much as a third of your life as post menopausal, you need it to be a healthy stage for you, and much of that depends on your eating and exercise habits.
By taking care of your body, it will be more able to fight off diseases and cause you fewer health problems. But whether you do this or not is entirely up to you, as it is your life to live as you see fit. So, enjoy your life as more post menopausal women are living much longer lives than their predecessors, and hopefully you will not be at increased risk of other health conditions as a post menopausal woman.
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