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Hormone therapy doesn't boost brainpower: study

2010-08-19T14:46:42Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Hormone therapy with either estrogen or testosterone might not affect women's thinking and memory skills in the years soon after menopause, hints a new study. The findings are the latest addition to a complicated picture of the possible link between hormones and mental functioning in women. Some researchers think hormone therapy may help improve brain function and prevent Alzheimer's disease aft...

Estrogen-only therapy may not up lung cancer deaths

2010-08-13T16:01:20Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women who use estrogen-only hormone replacement therapy don't appear to be at increased risk of dying from lung cancer. That's according to a new analysis of earlier data from postmenopausal women who had had their uterus removed (hysterectomy). Previous studies of women with intact uteruses had shown that taking combined estrogen and progestin -- a synthetic version of the hormone progesterone ...

Mediterranean diet tied to lower breast cancer risk

2010-08-03T15:46:29Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women who follow a traditional Mediterranean diet may have a lower risk of developing breast cancer after menopause than women with different eating habits, a new study suggests. Researchers found that among 14,800 Greek women followed for a decade, those who kept most closely to the region's traditional diet were less likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer than those whose eating habits were...

Womb environment may affect timing of menopause

2010-07-07T14:03:23Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Events surrounding a baby girl's birth may affect the age at which she later goes through menopause. In a study of more than 20,000 middle-aged Puerto Rican and American women, researchers found that exposure in the womb to the man-made estrogen, diethylstilbestrol (DES), as well as certain characteristics of the mom, had small effects on the...

Testosterone may not help memory after menopause

2010-07-02T14:45:15Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Researchers have wondered whether replacing the small amount of testosterone women stop producing after having hysterectomies could improve the memory loss many postmenopausal women experience. But testosterone treatment may not improve women's memory skills after such surgeries, according to a new study, suggesting that it may not help other women after menopause either. Women who took estrogen...

Estrogen-like lignan diet, less breast cancer linked

2010-06-04T12:30:28Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Postmenopausal women who eat foods rich in estrogen-like plant chemicals called lignans may have a modestly decreased risk of developing breast cancer, a research review suggests. In an analysis of 21 studies published in the past 13 years, researchers found that postmenopausal women who reported the highest intakes of dietary lignans were 14 percent less likely to develop breast cancer than tho...

Antidepressant cools hot flashes in study

2010-06-11T22:58:53Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The antidepressant citalopram may help lessen the severity of menopausal hot flashes, at least in the short term, a new clinical trial suggests. The findings, from a seven-week study of 254 women, add to evidence that certain antidepressants can offer relief from severe hot flashes. Studies have found that some antidepressants in the class known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)...

Soy trims postmenopausal fat, study suggests

2010-05-28T11:30:24Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A small new study has found that taking soy supplements may help postmenopausal women slim down. The effect, however, differed between African-Americans and whites: While white women lost more fat around their middles, black women showed greater overall reductions in body fat, researchers found. Researchers have been interested in soy's potential for treating problems that affect women during an...

Walking may ease some burdens of menopause

2010-04-13T12:45:39Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Walking for 45 minutes a few times a week may help women in the "battle of the bulge" that often accompanies menopause, and at the same time improve overall well being, hints new research from Canada. Pointing out that the 45 minutes can be broken up into shorter jaunts, researcher Dr. Pascale...

Raquel Welch deals with aging gracefully in new book

2010-04-08T11:17:48Z

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Iconic actress and sex symbol Raquel Welch had to face the process of aging doubly -- as a woman and as an international celebrity famous by her body. In her new book, "Raquel: Beyond the Cleavage," the American actress discusses getting older, starting a career at age 19 with two children in tow and reconciling her public persona with her private...

Herb shows no added benefits for women's bones

2010-09-01T12:18:38Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Exercise may help older women maintain their bone density, but adding the supplement black cohosh to the routine does not bring any extra benefits, a new study suggests. Researchers found that among 128 postmenopausal women they studied for one year, those who were randomly assigned to regularly exercise generally maintained their bone density. In contrast, women who were assigned to a "wellness...

Evidence that soy eases hot flashes inconclusive

2010-03-17T13:32:21Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Despite supplement makers' claims and popular perceptions, the benefits of soy in fighting hot flashes in women going through menopause remain unproven, according to a new analysis of 19 studies. Soy contains estrogen-like compounds, and researchers have proposed that the amount of soy a woman consumes may influence her risk of having hot flashes and night sweats during menopause. These symptoms...

Soy unlikely to trim body fat after menopause

2010-04-16T06:58:13Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Estrogen-like compounds found in soy won't help limit body fat in post-menopausal women, new research shows. Animal studies and small studies in humans have offered some evidence that these compounds, known as isoflavones, could help build muscle mass and reduce fat mass, Dr. Oksana A. Matvienko of the Reuters Health) - Women seeking relief of hot flashes and other bothersome symptoms of menopause might want to take a pass on laser acupuncture, based on a new study showing that it is largely ineffective in relieving menopausal symptoms. Laser acupuncture uses a laser beam instead of the traditional acupuncture needles. The low-power laser beam is directed at the same points used in traditional acupuncture. Stud...

Acupuncture eases tamoxifen-related hot flashes

2010-06-11T22:58:08Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A new study provides more evidence that acupuncture can help ease hot flashes in women with breast cancer who are being treated with the "anti-estrogen" drug tamoxifen. Acupuncture, researchers found, is free of side effects and has a side benefit for some women: an increased sex drive. "Acupuncture appears to be at least as effective as drug the...

Soy compounds may not prevent bone loss

2010-09-01T12:16:53Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Supplements containing soy isoflavones may do little to preserve women's bone mass after menopause. In a study of more than 200 women ages 46 to 65, researchers found that the soy supplement did not appear to ward off bone-density loss over 3 years. In general, women on the supplement showed the same degree of bone loss as those given a placebo -- though there was some evidence that a higher dos...

Hormone replacement therapy tied to mental benefits

2010-04-16T08:39:57Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Older women who use certain forms of hormone replacement therapy seem to perform better on tests of memory and mental speed than other women do, a new study finds. In a four-year study of 3,130 French women age 65 and older, researchers found that those currently on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) performed better on certain cognitive tests. Those who had used HRT in the past but were no longe...

Soy foods may curb hip fracture risk in older women

2010-09-01T12:16:58Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Postmenopausal women may lessen their chances of fracturing a hip by adding soy-based foods to their diet, a study from Singapore hints. Women in the study were 21 to 36 percent less likely to fracture a hip when they reported eating a moderate amount of soy, Dr. Woon-Puay Koh, at the

Hot flashes may mean increased heart disease risk

2010-04-16T09:58:48Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Hot flashes can range from irritating to debilitating, but they may also be a sign of something worse: As women go through menopause, hot flashes may signal a higher risk of heart disease and heart attacks, according to new data presented Friday at the annual meeting of the North American Menopause Societ...

Watch for depression during and after menopause

2010-04-16T10:00:56Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - The risk for major depression more than doubles while women are going through menopause and afterward, according to research presented this week at the annual meeting of the North American Menopause Society in San Diego. Recent studies have suggested t...

Does estrogen help women survive colon cancer?

2010-04-16T10:04:58Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Estrogen could help women diagnosed with advanced colon cancer to survive longer, a new study out in the journal Clinical Cancer Research suggests. While younger, presumably premenopausal women lived longer after being diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer than men of the same age, women 55 and older had worse survival than their male peers, Reuters Health) - Women who add more fat to their frames as they approach menopause will have a harder time with hot flashes, a new study in the American Journal of Epidemiology shows. People used to think that fat helped protect against hot flashes because it contains hormones that can be converted into estrogen,

Seizure drug helps women with hot flashes sleep

2010-04-16T10:20:12Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Gabapentin, a drug used to treat seizures, improves the quality of sleep in menopausal women bothered by hot flashes, University of Rochester Medical Center researchers report in the Journal of Women's Health. Approximately 40 percent of menopausal women have trouble sleeping. They often h...

Nearly any lifetime smoking ups breast cancer risk

2010-04-16T10:24:05Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women taking the next puff of a cigarette might consider this: smoking 100 or more cigarettes may substantially increase their odds of developing breast cancer, researchers report. Previous studies linked regular exercise, limiting alcohol intake, and avoiding postmenopausal obesity as lifestyle changes that can reduce women's odds of developing breast cancer, notes

Weight gain during menopause tied to brain changes

2010-04-16T11:18:40Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Healthy women who put on weight between the premenopausal and postmenopausal years risk losing nerve cells in the brain, research suggests. Gaining weight is a "highly modifiable" risk factor that may be targeted to prevent or slow the progression of potentially harmful age-related changes in the brain, the University of...

Hormones may tie caffeine to cancer risk

2010-04-16T11:27:31Z

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Coffee and general caffeine intake may affect a woman's levels of estrogen and other sex hormones, a new study suggests -- offering a potential explanation for findings that link caffeine to certain cancers. Several studies have found connections between caffeine and breast and ovarian cancers, though the findings have not always been consistent. For instance, different analyses of the Nurses' H...