By Womaness Editors 1-Minute Read
Welcome to ASK AN EXPERT, a series where we pose your real questions to our menopause experts for the intel you need. Need an answer? Post your question on The After Party, our private Facebook Group.
Your Question:
“Is it too late to start taking hormone therapy at age 60?”
The Answer:
From Dr. Lyndsey Harper, Board-Certified OB/GYN & founder/CEO of Rosy: "That's a really good question. In the much-discussed Women's Health Initiative (WHI) study, the patient population they researched was that age.
The average age of menopause is 51, and the definition of menopause is "no period for a year," if you have a uterus and were having periods prior.
When we talk about the difference between 51—say that's the time you went through menopause—and 60, there's a pretty significant delta there. What's happened during that time is that your body has gotten used to that lower level of hormones.
In the WHI study, where the study population started hormones at around 60, they noticed side effects. [Read about them here.]
The answer to the question is yes, it's a different risk profile if you start 10 years or so after menopause than if you were to start around the time menopause."
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