THE IMPACT OF MENOPAUSE ON CHOLESTEROL LEVELS

 

Dr Steven R. Goldstein is a past President of the International Menopause Society and a Certified Menopause Practitioner. In private practice in NYC, this Menopause Specialist in NYC has helped thousands of women over decades to help cope with the symptoms of menopause. Menopause can have an impact on cholesterol levels in women. Typically, during menopause, there is a shift in hormonal balance, particularly a decrease in estrogen levels. Estrogen has been shown to have a protective effect on cholesterol levels, helping to maintain higher levels of HDL (high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol, often referred to as "good" cholesterol, and lower levels of LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol, known as "bad" cholesterol.

Estrogen has also been shown to have vasodilatory effects, meaning it relaxes the blood vessels, which can help maintain healthy blood pressure and improve blood flow. This effect contributes to overall cardiovascular health.

When estrogen levels decline during menopause, this protective effect diminishes, leading to potential changes in cholesterol levels. Specifically, LDL cholesterol levels may increase, which can contribute to a higher risk of heart disease and other cardiovascular issues.

 As one of NYC’s leading Menopause doctors, Dr Goldstein points out that post-menopausal women are more vulnerable to heart disease because of the aforementioned effect of estrogen on blood cholesterol levels. Total cholelsterol levels of postmenopausal women are about 25mg/dl higher than in women who have not reached menopause.

It’s important for women to know their numbers – total cholesterol number, HDL  (good cholesterol) number and LDL (bad cholesterol) number and the triglycerides number. A total cholesterol number of more than 240 is considered high. Heart attacks are very uncommon in people with cholesterol levels below 150, but that number may be hard to achieve.

An HDL number of 35 and above is good. You do not want to have a number below 35, because too little HDL can allow plaque to accumulate in your arteries. If your HDL number is too low, then try getting more aerobic exercise, at least thirty minutes three or four times a week.

An LDL number below 130 is considered okay. More than 160 is considered too high for your health. Avoid red meat, saturated fats, cheeses and so on. Check with your primary provider and monitor cholesterol levels.

 

Dr Steven R. Goldstein is also coauthor of the book “The Estrogen Alternative”. He uses hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to help menopausal women to cope with all the symptoms of menopause including effects on the skin and hair. If you are a woman suffering through Menopause and experiencing its symptoms, particularly in the skin and hair, then a consultation with Dr Goldstein, a  Menopause Specialist in NYC may be appropriate.

 

ESTROGEN AND YOUR BONES PART 2

 

 

Dr Steven R. Goldstein is a leading Menopause Specialist in NYC who has helped his patients cope with the symptoms of menopause. This is a second part to the original article regarding “Estrogen and your Bones”. To recap – Menopause is a stage of life in women where the body stops producing estrogen (a female hormone). The tissues in a woman’s body, over 300 of them, rely on estrogen. Cholesterol levels, the brain, the heart, the bones and so on are all affected by estrogen. We also touched on bone health, that bone is living tissue, constantly having cells broken down and replaced. Calcium is vital to the body and bone, and estrogen plays a key part in the absorption of calcium and in keeping calcium levels normal. Thus, any deficiency in estrogen negatively impacts bone health.

 Which is why many women who are menopausal struggle with bone health, osteoporosis and osteopenia (wasting away of muscle). The bone disease of osteoporosis (weak or thin bones), or its precursor of low bone mass known as osteopenia, can lead to spine, wrist, and hip fracture in later years resulting from bones continually losing density and strength.

 Consider the following. The National Institutes of Health says roughly 4 in 10 white women age 50 or older in the United States will experience a hip, spine, or wrist fracture sometime during the remainder of their lives.

 More than 1.5 million bone fractures currently occur each year in US women.

 In terms of hip fractures, the rate for women is two to three times higher than that for men.

 One out of every six women will suffer a hip fracture in her lifetime, a risk equal to the combined risks of developing breast, uterine and ovarian cancer.

 Twenty percent of postmenopausal women who experience hip fractures die within one year of the injury, and fifty percent of those who survive will never walk independently again.

 Two hundred thousand women will experience a wrist fracture each year.

 Dr Steven R. Goldstein, a Menopause Specialist in NYC , is a Certified Menopause Practitioner with the North American Menopause Society and a past President of the International Menopause Society as well as a past President of the North American Menopause society. In private practice for over 25 years in New York City, Dr Goldstein has successfully helped thousands of women cope with the symptoms of menopause, osteoporosis and osteopenia.

 He also serves as the Co-Directory of Bone Densitometry and Body Composition at NYU Langone Medical Center and is an Osteoporosis Specialist in NYC where he combines his knowledge of menopause and bone density to help patients.

 If you are a woman in menopause or post-menopausal and have been told that you have osteoporosis, osteopenia or just concerned about menopause and bone health, then a consultation with Dr Goldstein may be appropriate.

 

MENOPAUSE AND YOUR MEMORY

 

The Menopause stage of life in women is brought on by the lack of estrogen produced by the ovaries. Dr Steven R. Goldstein, a top Menopause Specialist in NYC points out that there are over three hundred tissues from brain to bone to skin in a woman’s body that contain receptors for Estrogen. All of a woman’s most important body tissues contain Estrogen receptors. When the secretion of Estrogen changes, a woman’s health and well-being reflect those changes.

 

There are also sites in the brain where Estrogen receptors are found. Therefore, when a woman enters menopause and the body produces less estrogen, there is a significant impact on a woman’s overall health above and beyond the symptoms like hot flashes.

 

One of the areas affected is the brain, which is why many menopausal women complain about “foggy memory”. Studies have shown that women are three times more likely to develop memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease as they get older. From forgetfulness to Alzheimer’s where does Estrogen matter?

 

Dr Goldstein, a Menopause Specialist in NYC points out that studies have shown Estrogen has been linked to reducing mild symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease by helping to support the production of acetylcholine, a chemical that helps transmit nerve signals across synapses in the brain. Acetylcholine is abnormally low in Alzheimer’s sufferers and may explain their impaired abilities to learn and remember.

 

Estrogen creates more connections among nerve cells, and it helps information travel more easily along those connections. Less estrogen, accordingly, means a harder time remembering and learning new things.

 

Women come into Dr Goldstein’s office who are clearly menopausal, clearly making no estrogen. They are eating healthy, exercising and doing all the right things and feel great. However well they are doing, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) will benefit their overall health, and one of the areas it will benefit is the brain. 

 

Dr Steven R. Goldstein is a Certified Menopause Practitioner, North American Menopause Society and a past President of the International Menopause Society. As a Menopause Specialist in NYC, Dr Goldstein has helped thousands of women over more than two decades of private practice to improve their overall health during the menopause and cope with the symptoms of it by using Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT).