Menopause Hormonal Aging

Menopause—Unveiling the Mystery
By Howard Murad, M.D.

The signs may be slow and subtle or as forceful as a thunderstorm.
But, no matter how it approaches, menopause is a fact of life for
every woman. According to the US Census, there are more than
40 million menopausal women in the United States today, with 20
million more baby boomers entering or already in peri-menopause.
Experts project that this figure will be as high as 50 million in 2020.
As of the late 20th century, the life expectancy of women has
increased to an average age of 81. This means that most women
can expect to live over one third of their lives after menopause.

It can be an uneasy time for some women; however there are many
steps that you can take to ensure this phase of your life is as vibrant
and fulfilling as decades earlier. The first is to understand that peri-menopause and menopause fall into a form of aging that I call
Hormonal Aging, and we all experience it.

Let’s take a look at the three categories of aging: Genetic,
Environmental and Hormonal.

	Genetic aging is considered the natural aging process. This is the aging process that would occur had we never been in the sun, never ingested toxins, never were exposed to pollutants, etc. Genetics play a key role in this form of aging. If your parents aged well, odds are, you will also. In relationship to the skin, genetic aging results in loss of water in the connective tissue, which are the collagen and elastin fibers, along with reduced water content in the cells.

	Environmental aging is also known as Extrinsic Aging. I started writing about Environmental Aging back in 1993. Environmental Aging results from the combination of external injury and compromised internal cellular functions. This is the type of aging that we can control. Factors such as sun exposure, smoking, stress, poor diet and intake of drugs or alcohol contribute to the aging process. Environmental aging effects can be reduced with preventative and corrective care. Signs of extrinsic aging are loss of collagen and elastin, hyper pigmentation, redness, dryness, thinner skin and loss of water in the cells and connective tissue.

	Hormonal aging occurs as levels of progesterone and estrogen decline and other hormones, such as androgens, become more dominant. The most important point about hormonal aging is that it starts younger than you think. Women in their late 20’s start to show signs of hormonally aging skin as hormonal levels fluctuate. This change in hormone levels results in a weakening of the collagen and elastin fibers. Skin becomes dry, thin and more fragile. There is a lack of radiance in the skin’s appearance. Many women experience an increase in facial hair, and breakouts along the lower parts of the face. These changes, along with reduced water content in the cells and connective tissue, are super imposed on Genetic and Environmental Aging factors.

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