Estrogen bottoms out.Wrong again. Early research suggested that estrogen (plus progestin progestin /pro·ges·tin/ (-jes´tin) progestational agent. pro·ges·tin n. 1. A natural or synthetic progestational substance that mimics some or all of the actions of progesterone. ) would prevent heart disease, osteoporosis osteoporosis (ŏs'tēō'pərō`sĭs), disorder in which the normal replenishment of old bone tissue is severely disrupted, resulting in weakened bones and increased risk of fracture; osteopenia , and Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (ăls`hī'mərz, ôls–), degenerative disease of nerve cells in the cerebral cortex that leads to atrophy of the brain and senile dementia. . Last year, we learned that the hormone promotes heart disease, stroke, and breast cancer. Now it appears that estrogen may also raise the risk of dementia. In a study of more than 4,500 postmenopausal post·men·o·paus·al adj. Of or occurring in the time following menopause. postmenopausal Change of life Gynecology adjective Referring to the time in ♀ when menstrual periods stop for ≥ 1 yr women aged 65 or older, those who took a popular estrogen progestin mixture for an average of four years had a slightly greater decline in mental function than those who took a placebo. What to do: Don't take estrogen progestin to reduce your risk of disease. |
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