In a message dated 8/8/01 5:08:11 PM, ardeith l carter <[log in to unmask]>
writes:

<< we have "enjoyed" menopause for thousands of years
without "benefit" of hormonal replacement therapies
of any sort.....tho' there are good herbs that can help
a lot to lessen the uncomfortable sensations............
Menopause is not a disease.....it does not "require"
treatment....it is a natural process of the female body.
IMO, nourishing your body in the way it evolved to
be nourished is the best thing you can do for yourself
while passing through menopause...... >>

Certainly we have "enjoyed" menopause for thousands, actually hundreds of
thousands of years or more, and never had any horse estrogens to see us
through. But, we also enjoyed a natural Paleo lifestyle during those
thousands of years so we probably reached the menopausal years in much better
health than many of us are in today. True, menopause is not a disease and
should not require treatment. But many of us (and I'm not going to argue
about HOW many) have many other conditions which can make the symptoms of
menopause much worse, if not downright unbearable. A lifetime of eating the
SAD coupled with the other stresses of modern life can lead to massive bodily
disruptions such as diabetes, heart disease, chronic fatigue syndrome,
autoimmune diseases, thyroid conditions just to name a few. Switching to a
Paleo lifestyle may go a long way towards controlling these conditions, but
it cannot magically turn our bodies into pristine perfectly functioning
machines, capable of sailing through this transition without a hitch.

As I've said before, I am one who has been eating a very Paleo lifestyle for
several years, and, perhaps due to my pre-existing chronic fatigue syndrome
and adrenal weakness, I am suffering through severely devastating menopausal
symptoms. I will bet dollars to doughnuts (and what the heck would I do with
doughnuts? <G>) that anyone who states such things as "menopause is not a
disease and does not require treatment" is either:

1- a woman who has not gone through menopause yet, or
2- a woman who sailed through menopause with no problems.

I do not wish to resort to horse estrogens or other allopathic drugs. I am
working on this with several alternative physicians, trying various herbal
and other natural treatments. It is not easy. It is a very difficult and
trying time in my life both physically and emotionally. I find it an insult
to my dignity and intelligence to keep reading about how this is a natural
transition and as such should not require any treatment. Walk a mile in my
shoes.

Maddy Mason
Hudson Valley, NY