This Menopause Book? The Fundamentals and Insider Info
I’m not a book reviewer. In fact, I don’t know the first thing about the best way to go over the information that I learned after reading this Menopause book.
Yet, I had some amazing interactions with a woman (thank you Kathy) who then asked me if I would review this publication. And before I realized that I wasn’t good at that kind of thing, I said yes.
Quote of the day: “Books are a form of political action. Books are knowledge. Books are reflection. Books change your mind.” Toni Morrison
I’ve always been a reader. In fact, as a child, my mom would limit me to a book a day. Yet there have been times in my life when I didn’t have the time or gumption to read more stuff.
After retiring, I returned to my love of fiction books.
But now that I’m at the age where I can have the time to read more, I feel like I’ve learned an incredible amount from many non-fiction books.
The thing about books (as well as the news, and social media) is you have to analyze it. Just because it’s in print, does not make it fact.
I have shared other books that I’ve enjoyed over the years. I share many books I would like to read in my emails and on my Amazon shopping page.
You should definitely sign up for the emails below. Besides the free eBook, my email family gets personal tidbits of what’s going on in my life along with other happenings, sales, information, giveaways, extra photos, and interesting articles.
My History
I add my history as part of this review of Estrogen Matters only as a backdrop because our perspective always makes a difference.
Am I a doctor? Yes and no. Yes, in that I went through 4 years of Western medicine dental school and have studied and learned about the human body in many types of ways. The human body fascinates me which is why I’m so enthralled with health and nutrition.
No, in that I am not a board-certified medical doctor.
So when I talk about insider information about this menopause book, I am giving my opinions that stem from a biological background.
However, hearing “normal” people’s experiences can be the best learning practice, as opposed to just reading a book.
In fact, I was honored that many of my readers shared their personal HRT experiences with me when I asked, and I have learned so much that way.
Menopause
Gone are the days when menopause isn’t talked about. Yet with all of the talking that is going on, it can get confusing for many reasons.
First off, and something I say all the time as a retired dentist, every BODY is different. Even if something works for 80% of people, there are others it doesn’t work for.
Insider tip: Take, for instance, local numbing which makes the dental experience comfortable. Did you realize there are some people that it doesn’t work on? Yet most people have no issues with it.
So when someone (even a doctor) says that something will help your menopausal symptoms, it may or may not.
Thus menopause can be confusing, frustrating, and a black hole for many.
Insider tip: Another huge factor we should remember is that science is not hard and fast. It’s a constantly changing subject as we learn more and change our thinking.
The thing to remember is because we are talking about your health, you need to be part of the conversation. Yes, that means you need to take part and learn things. Don’t rely on one person telling you what you need for your health. Especially if you don’t feel fabulous.
Estrogen Matters
There’s so much to say about this book.
Of course, it’s written as a publication to endorse that taking Hormone Replacement Therapy (referred to as HRT from now on) can be beneficial.
But for those of you who aren’t “biology people,” the book can be hard to muddle through. Some may even call it boring.
It’s sectioned into chapters focusing on different bodily functions that estrogen can affect.
1-One of the fundamentals that are covered in detail is how ANY clinical study can be skewed.
I love how the author stated that all humans are biased, sometimes by Money and sometimes by personal convictions.
So while every clinical study has a bias, we have to critically evaluate the information.
Insider tip: For instance, I used to share how in the 1970s, Waterpik was hailed as the gold standard for keeping our mouths healthy.
However, sometime in the 80s or 90s, a study showed how waterpiks did NOT take the plaque off teeth. And scientists were convinced that plaque was the bad guy in gum disease.
Waterpiks lost their standing and no one talked about them for years.
Fast forward to about 20 years ago when it was discovered that it’s not plaque per se that causes gum disease but a whole community around the tooth called biofilm.
And a waterpik? It disrupts the biofilm.
Which circles back to the 70’s thinking of why it worked so wonderfully.
I would like us to remember that science is created by humans. Humans are imperfect. Thus science is imperfect.
This brings me back to the fundamental idea in this menopause book that all studies are skewed.
That means if you believe a study that says HRT is good or bad, there is another study to prove the other way of thinking.
2-Another fundamental found in this menopause book is the fact there are alternatives listed for each issue related to estrogen.
I will say that the author points out that the alternatives don’t really work. And I might disagree with some of those points.
But at least the alternatives are listed.
3-Nothing is risk-free.
There was a great reminder that media writes stories to sell papers, get online clicks, or have you watch their channel.
EVERYTHING has a pro and a con.
My Review
As I said, I’m not a book reviewer.
But here’s what stuck out to me when I read the book.
- If estrogen causes Cancer then the rate of breast cancer should go down as we age. However, that’s not the statistic. Breast cancer increases in older women.
- Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women twice as much as breast cancer (I think the heart disease people need better marketing because I didn’t realize this).
- There are estrogen receptors located throughout the brain which is why estrogen helps prevent brain decline.
- Birth control pills. I had no issue taking these when I was young to prevent a pregnancy. And what is the pill? The same estrogen and progesterone that is comprised for HRT.
The biggest impact of this book was how the author presented all of the facts to his daughter who was questioning her choice. She wanted him to give her the answer, but he knew there were benefits and risks for everyone and told her she had to make her own choice.
Thus everyone needs to make their own decision about what is most important for their health. Do not depend on a doctor to tell you what to do or not to do.
This quote was very powerful: “It’s easy to make perfect decisions with perfect information. Medicine asks you to make perfect decisions with imperfect information.”
How to get this menopause book
Estrogen Matters is on Amazon as a Kindle book, audiobook, or hardcover.
It was also available at my library although there were 54 holds on it when I asked for it. Which goes to show how popular it is.
It also can be found at Barnes and Noble.
FYI there is a revised and updated new release. But I think if you have read the first one, most of your questions should be answered.
Truly as older women, I think we all should read this or some other menopause book. Didn’t everyone read a pregnancy book when they were expecting?
And every woman if we are lucky to live long enough will go through menopause. So it only behooves us to learn about it and not just depend on doctors who haven’t had much training on the subject.
If you aren’t a fan of books, then Dr Barbie Taylor has a ton of YouTube videos on the subject.
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