Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Menopause For Dummies or Essential ABS

Menopause For Dummies

Author: Marcia L Jones PhD

Although menopause is a natural and inevitable stage in every woman’s life, its physical, mental, and emotional manifestations can vary greatly from one person to the next. Add to this all of the conflicting “expert” information about the benefits, risks, and side effects to which women are exposed on a daily basis, and it’s easy to see why most find it difficult to make informed choices about how to deal with their menopausal symptoms.

Authored by a team of acknowledged experts in treating menopausal symptoms, Menopause For Dummies arms you with all the information you need to stay in control every step of the way. In plain English, it explains the role menopause plays in a variety of common health problems, such as osteoporosis, stroke, and heart disease. It walks you through proven measures for minimizing your risk of developing complications through including diet and exercise, stress management, hormone replacement, and other techniques. And it arms you with authoritative, up-to-the-minute coverage of:



• Premenopause how to identify it and what it means

• The stages of menopause

• How menopause can affect your body, emotions, and libido

• The latest facts about hormone replacement therapy

• The pros and cons of various alternative treatments

• The best ways of handling hot flashes

• Easing symptoms with diet and exercise

• Preventing bone loss

• Helpful lifestyle changes



With Menopause For Dummies in your corner you’ll have a kinder, gentler “change of life.”



Table of Contents:
Introduction     1
About This Book     2
Foolish Assumptions     2
How This Book Is Organized     3
The Main Facts about Menopause     3
The Effects of Menopause on Your Body and Mind     4
Treating the Effects     4
Lifestyle Issues for Menopause and Beyond     4
The Part of Tens     5
The Appendixes     5
Conventions Used in This Book     5
Icons Used in This Book     6
Where to Go from Here     6
The Main Facts about Menopause     7
Mapping Out Menopause     9
Defining Menopause     9
Getting the terminology right     10
Approaching the change: Perimenopause     11
Menstruating no more: Menopause     12
Getting past menopause: Postmenopause     12
Anticipating Menopause     13
Transitioning to Menopause     13
Starting out     14
Identifying symptoms     14
Calling in the professionals     15
Seeing it through to the end     15
Treating Menopause     15
Promoting Longevity     16
Talking Biology and Psychology: YourMind and Body on Menopause     17
Setting the Stage     18
Making the Menstrual Cycle and Hormone Connection     19
Surveying the Role of Hormones     21
Linking your brain and body     22
Explaining estrogen     23
Promoting progesterone     24
Investigating androgens     25
Understanding the Stages of Menopause     26
Previewing perimenopause     26
Meeting menopause     28
Seeking Out Support     29
Fooling Mother Nature: Early Menopause     31
Understanding the Lingo     32
Induced menopause     32
Premature ovarian failure     33
Coping with Sudden Change     34
Knowing when you hit menopause     34
Getting the help you need for your body and mind     35
Prepping for Surgical Menopause     36
Taking Advantage of Assisted Living     37
Estrogen alone     37
Combination therapy     38
Alternatives to HT     39
Finding Support: Birds of a Feather     40
Getting In Sync with the Symptoms     41
Kicking Things Off with Perimenopausal Symptoms     42
Getting physical     42
Playing head games     46
Visiting the Menopausal Symptoms     48
Figuring out the physical facts     48
Discovering that it's more than skin deep     50
Understanding That It's Not Your Imagination     51
The Effects of Menopause on Your Body and Mind     53
The Business of Your Bones     55
Homing In on Bone Health     56
Growing big bones and strong bones     56
Understanding peak bone density     56
Keeping Pace with Bone Reconstruction     57
Making the calcium connection     58
Recognizing the role of sex hormones     60
Boning Up on Osteoporosis     60
Linking osteoporosis and women     61
Defining and diagnosing osteoporosis     61
Looking at causes     63
Avoiding the effects     63
Preventing Osteoporosis by Managing Your Risk Factors     66
Blaming your genes: Genetic factors and family background     67
Reviewing your personal health history     67
Looking to your lifestyle     69
Finding Out Whether You Have Osteoporosis     73
Doing the DEXA     74
Opting for another type of test     75
Treating Osteoporosis     76
Battling bone loss with medication     76
Using hormones     77
Getting a Handle on Heart Health     79
Keeping Up with All Things Cardio     80
Revealing estradiol's role in heart health     80
Linking cardiovascular disease and the menopausal woman     80
Considering Cholesterol     82
Breaking down the types of cholesterol     82
Decoding your numbers     83
Looking at the factors     84
Regulating estrogen's role     84
Connecting the dots between cholesterol and cardiovascular disease     85
Understanding Cardiovascular Diseases     87
Containing coronary artery disease     87
Avoiding angina     87
Holding off heart attacks     89
Fending off hypertension     89
Staving off stroke     90
Checking Out Your Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease     91
Being Smart about Your Heart     93
Weighing an ounce of prevention     93
Treating what ails you     94
Dealing with Vaginal and Urinary Changes     95
Understanding the Normalcy of Vaginal and Urinary Changes      95
Talking Shop with Your Doc     96
Overcoming Vaginal Changes     97
Understanding what vaginal atrophy is and what it isn't     97
Looking at what less estrogen means for your vagina     98
Doing something about vaginal atrophy     98
Talking about Urinary Problems     99
Getting a grip on types of urinary problems     100
Tracking urinary-tract infections     101
Covering interstitial cystitis     102
Encountering incontinence     104
Examining Your Skin and Hair on Menopause     107
Getting the Skinny on Skin     108
Making the skin and hormone connection     108
Shining a light on the sun's dangers     109
Preventing premature skin aging     112
Handling Hairy Issues     112
Losing it - your hair, that is     113
Taking care of your hair     113
Maintaining Your Sex Life Through Menopause     115
Looking at Menopause and Your Libido     116
Letting your feelings be your guide     116
Turning up the heat     117
Dealing with a lowered libido     118
Talking Turkey about Testosterone     121
Keeping Sex Sexy     121
Flirting with Fertility     124
Staying fertile after all these years     124
Taking one more chance on the stork     125
Taking the good with the bad     127
Mental and Emotional Issues     129
Understanding the Mental and Emotional Stresses of Menopause     130
Finding the link to menopause     130
Separating menopausal symptoms from psychological disorders     131
Deciding Whether You're Depressed     131
Understanding the differences     131
Knowing the signs     133
Dealing with the Head Games     133
Knowing the symptoms     133
Looking at the research     134
Beating the memory game     135
Straightening Out the Commotions with Your Emotions     136
Feeling your way through the symptoms     137
Understanding the physiology and getting relief     138
Managing life changes     139
Treating the Effects     141
The Basics of Hormone Therapy     143
Defining Hormone Therapy     143
Slaying the symptoms     145
Preventing serious health problems with hormone therapy     145
Ticking Through the Therapies     146
Unopposed estrogen therapy     147
Combination therapy     149
Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators (SERMs)     151
Prescribing Pills, Patches, and Pomades     153
Popping pills     153
Pasting on a patch     153
Applying creams     154
Slipping on a ring     155
Searching for Sources     156
Synthetic versus natural hormones     156
Estrogen     156
Progestin     158
Combinations of estrogen and progestin     158
Androgens     159
Doing the Dosing     159
Understanding Hormone Therapy and Your Heart     161
Meeting the Players: Hormones and Your Heart     162
The star: Estrogen     162
The supporting actor: Progesterone     163
The assistant: Testosterone     163
Understanding the Difference Between Hormones and Hormone Therapy     163
Using estrogen plus progestin     164
Taking unopposed estrogen     165
Identifying the Heart Disease Culprit     165
Considering the age of menopause     165
Factoring in other factors     166
Skimming the Fat: Hormone Therapy and Your Blood     167
Combating hypertension     167
Cleaning out clots and clogs     168
Oiling the Pump: HT and Your Heart     170
Slowing the pace     170
Keeping angina away     170
Avoiding the big one     171
Checking Out Hormone Therapy and Breast Cancer     173
Beginning with Breast Basics     173
Defining Breast Cancer     174
Taking Care of Your Breasts     175
Examining your breasts every month     175
Making time for mammograms     176
Determining Estrogen's Role     176
Checking the Link between HT and Breast Cancer     177
Assessing Your Risks     178
Recognizing risks you can't control     179
Recognizing risks you can control     180
Using Hormones as Therapy     181
Counting the ways     182
Reviewing the risks and benefits     182
Choosing Your HT Regimen     183
Reviewing Reproductive Cancers and Hormone Therapy     185
Colorectal Cancer     185
Recognizing the signs     187
Finding out for sure: Screenings and tests     187
Determining the role of hormone therapy     189
Assessing your risks     189
Endometrial (Uterine) Cancer     189
Recognizing the signs     191
Finding out for sure: Tests     191
Determining the role of hormone therapy     192
Assessing your risks     192
Ovarian Cancer     193
Cancers Unaffected by Hormone Therapy     195
Vaginal and vulvar cancers     195
Cervical cancer     196
Considering Hormone Therapy and Other Health Conditions     197
Dealing with Deep Vein Thrombosis     197
Recognizing the signs     198
Determining the role of hormones     198
Dissecting Diabetes     199
Recognizing the signs     200
Determining the role of hormones     200
Facing the Facts about Fibromyalgia     201
Recognizing the signs     201
Determining the role of hormones     202
Getting the Goods on Gallbladder Disease     202
Recognizing the signs     202
Determining the role of hormones     203
Thinking about Your Thyroid     203
Recognizing the signs     203
Determining the role of hormones      204
Looking at Lupus     204
Recognizing the signs     205
Determining the role of hormones     205
Monitoring Migraines     206
Recognizing the signs     206
Determining the role of hormones     206
Considering Cognition     207
Recognizing the signs     207
Determining the role of hormones     207
Making the Decision about Hormone Therapy     209
Outlining Attitudes about HT     209
Taking Everything into Consideration     210
Weighing the Benefits and Risks of HT     212
Rounding up the benefits     212
Corralling the risks     214
Getting to the Heart of Cardiac Health     214
Going along on estrogen alone     215
Assessing Your Personal Risk     217
Summing Up the Studies     218
Presenting the Options for Perimenopause     219
The lifestyle solution     219
The herbal solution     220
The HT solution     220
Quitting HT     220
Recognizing Whether HT Is for You     221
Deciding that HT may not be for you     221
Thinking you may be ready for HT      222
Taking an Alternate Route: Non-Hormone Therapies     225
Weighing the Pros and Cons of Herbs     226
Considering conventional concerns     227
Seeking safety in herbal therapy     227
Relieving Your Symptoms with Plants     228
Cataloging herbal therapies by symptom     228
Getting the scoop on individual herbs     229
Getting Touchy about Acupuncture     233
Soothing Symptoms with Mind-Body Therapies     234
Tuning in to biofeedback     234
Getting your yoga groove on     234
Slip Sliding Away with Topical Treatments     235
Offering Options for Bone and Heart Health     235
Battling bone loss with medication     235
Controlling cardiovascular disease     236
Lifestyle Issues for Menopause and Beyond     239
Eating for the Change     241
Eating to Promote Good Health     242
Getting the right mix of nutrients     244
Rethinking how you eat     248
Eating to Prevent or Contain Problems     249
Strengthening your bones     251
Pumping up your cardiovascular system     253
Weighing in on the Weight Issue     254
How much weight is too much?     254
Eating to control body weight     256
Focusing on Fitness     261
Recognizing the Benefits of Exercise     261
Tweaking your attitude     262
Flashing less - sleeping more     262
Shedding pounds     263
Keeping your heart healthy     263
Shoring up your bones     264
Doing without diabetes     265
Steering clear of colon cancer     265
Sharpening your memory     265
Living long and prospering     265
Focusing on Fitness Fundamentals     266
Getting started     266
Fitting in fitness     267
Planning your program     267
Scheduling fitness fun time     268
Flexing through stretching     270
Warming up and cooling down     271
Exercises for Women with Osteoporosis     274
Strengthening bones and toning muscle     275
Adding balance to your routine     280
Exercises to Protect Your Heart     281
Working on and working up to heart health     281
Walking for fun and fitness     282
Enjoying a New Lease on Life     285
Going from Menopause to Infinity     286
Working and Playing Well with Others     287
Managing a family     287
You and your partner     288
Caring for aging parents     289
Retiring Gracefully (or Not)     290
Taking care of your body on the job     290
Looking before you leap     291
Finding Your Spirit in Whatever You Do     292
Appreciating the upside     292
Seeing things in a new light     293
Living Happily Ever After     295
The Part of Tens     297
Ten Menopause Myths Exposed     299
You're Too Young to Be Menopausal in Your 30s and 40s     299
Menopause Is a Medical Condition That Must Be Treated with Medicine     300
Menopause Isn't a Disease, So There's No Need to See a Doctor     301
You Lose the Urge to Have Sex after the Change     302
Irregular Vaginal Bleeding Always Means Cancer     303
Humps Accompany Old Age - End of Story     303
Only HRT Can Relieve the Symptoms     304
Women Don't Need to Worry about Heart Attacks     304
Most Women Get Really Depressed During Menopause     305
You'll Break a Bone If You Exercise Too Hard      305
A Blood Test Can Determine Whether You're Going Through Menopause     306
Ten Medical Tests for Menopausal Women     307
Pelvic Exam and Pap Smear     307
Rectal Exam     308
Colonoscopy     308
Bone-Density Screening     309
Mammogram     309
Cholesterol Screening     309
Fasting Blood-Glucose Test     310
Thyroid Screening     310
Ovarian Hormone Screening     310
Stress Test     311
Ten Terrific Fitness Programs for Menopausal Women     313
Core Strength Training     313
Walking     314
Elliptical Training     315
Running     315
Swimming     315
Cycling     316
Yoga     316
T'ai Chi     317
Pilates     317
Water Aerobics     317
Ten Powerhouse Foods for Menopausal Women     319
Soy Joy     319
Nuts to You     320
Catch of the Day     320
I Yam What I Yam     321
The Berry Blues     321
Flax Flying     322
Orange You Glad...     322
Tea for You     323
It's Easy Eating Greens     323
Yo! Yogurt!     323
Appendixes     325
Glossary     327
Resources     335
Fabulous Books about Menopause, Health, Fitness, and Related Issues     335
Wonderful Web Sites for Women     337
American Herbalist Guild     337
Yoga.com     338
Dietary Guidelines for Americans     338
FitDay.com     338
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine Clearinghouse     338
National Osteoporosis Foundation     339
National Women's Health Information Center     339
North American Menopause Society     339
Third Age     339
WebMD     340
Women and Cardiovascular Disease     340
Women's Cancer Network     340
The Study Sites     340
Women's Health Initiative     341
The Nurses' Health Study     341
Kronos Early Estrogen Prevention Study     341
The Framingham Heart Study     341
Index     343

See also: Service Oriented Architecture or Skype For Dummies

Essential Abs: An Intense 6-Week Program

Author: Kurt Brungardt

A six-pack of muscles or a six-pack of beer?

For the average guy, wasting money on an impossible workout book for abs just isn't worth it. But in Essential Abs, ab master Kurt Brungardt has created a simple routine that will bring maximum results-- fast. His step-by-step, 6-week program shows you how to make ab exercises more effective by integrating them into a quick total-body workout. Whether you're a couch potato or a fitness fanatic, Brungardt helps you fine-tune your techniques for rock-hard abs in no time.

YOU'LL LEARN:

* The 11 commandments of self-improvement
* How much water you really need
* How to drop those lame excuses and get motivated
* The best ab exercises for sports
* Modifications that eliminate neck strain



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