Blog — menopause
Of Seahorses & Menopause
Posted by Ben White on
Many women going through menopause start to see changes in their ability to remember things. Women can find this very worrying; such symptoms are not unlike early signs of dementia, or even Alzheimer’s Disease. However, age-related memory impairment is quite common and can be explained in part by hormonal changes, in particular loss of estrogen, and it involves a small part of the brain that resembles a seahorse. The Hippocampus The name “hippocampus” is actually the Latin word for seahorse. Image: László Seres The hippocampus is located in the temporal lobe of the brain and is a component of the limbic system. Although...
Menopause – Is It All In Your Head?
Posted by Ben White on
By Dr. Kate Placzek, ZRT Laboratory Estrogen. We've heard Dr. Zava call it the "angel of life, and the angel of death." Too much can be hazardous. Too little can be problematic also. Not many people realize this, but estrogen plays a role in more bodily functions than just reproduction. In fact, estrogen has many important functions in the brain. Studies show that decreasing levels of estrogen can cause two of the most common perimenopause symptoms – hot flashes and mood fluctuations. Curious how this happens? Read on to learn the details of this biochemistry. SUMMARY The main focus of this blog is the time in a woman’s life...
Menopause Awareness - A Case Study
Posted by Ben White on
We invite you to discover Dr. Kate's Clinical Cases, a library of presentations, created by Dr. Kate Placzek, to assess patient issues with the aid of neurotransmitter testing. You’ll find case reviews on conditions including anxiety and depression, ADHD, PTSD, insomnia and many others – highlighting real patients and their results, ranging in age from children to post-menopause, as well as a veteran with PTSD. For Menopause Awareness Month, let’s take a closer look at a recent case study of a postmenopausal woman. Guest speaker Dr. Allison Smith joins Dr. Kate Placzek to present a common scenario of mood and vasomotor...
Going Through "The Change" - Mood and Menopause
Posted by Ben White on
Original of this artickle was Posted by Dr Kate Placzek, on ZRT Laboratory. Keeping awake, throwing blankets off at night. Fatigue and irritation punctuated throughout the day by heat dissipating from every pore, clouding thoughts, reinforcing forgetfulness. Hair falling out so stubbornly fast. Clothes choosing when to fit. Flooding periods coming sporadically, unexpectedly. They call it “the change of life” – but I feel like a different person altogether. What is happening? In perimenopause, the physiological landscape is subject to tremendous change with estradiol and progesterone at the heart of the transition. Progesterone levels fall quickly – no ovulation...
Trials of HRT Started in Early Menopause - Research Updates
Posted by Ben White on
One of the primary objectives of the Women's Health Initiative was to see if postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy (HRT) improved long-term risk of coronary heart disease, among other chronic diseases. However, the combined estrogen/progestin (Prempro) arm was halted in 2002, citing that the participants’ risk of cardiovascular disease outweighed any potential benefit of HRT in the prevention of colorectal cancer and bone fracture [1]. The conjugated equine estrogen (CEE)-only arm was also halted in 2004 citing no improvement in heart disease risk but an increased incidence of stroke, and no benefit in terms of fractures, although there was a reduced breast...