Menopause Over 60

Menopause, a natural phenomenon that will happen to all women as they get older, is when the woman stops ovulating, a with reduction in the amount of hormones produced. The age at which a woman goes through menopause can be as early as her 30s or later into to her 60s and even 70s. It is all a matter of when the body decides that it is time to stop having children.

• Women can develop menopause from as early as their 30s to as late as their 60s and 70s.

What is Menopause?

• The clinical determination of menopause is the final day of a woman's last period, when her body stops ovulating and shedding the eggs, but doctors generally wait a year to fully declare a woman has gone through menopause. For as long as two years prior, the woman can begin having symptoms such as hot flashes and mood swings during a period called perimenopause. It is because the symptoms most associated with menopause actually happen prior to the menopause event; the perimenopause and menopause are often combined into the single term of menopause.

Hormones During Menopause

• The most significant changes in the body of a menopausal woman, especially in those over the age of 60, are caused by the erratic fluctuations of hormones, such as estrogen and progesterone. These hormones help to start and regulate the female period. Once production of these hormones become erratic, a woman's period can become erratic as well and may include spotting or long periods of heavy bleeding.

Age and Menopause

• A woman's age when she begins menopause is determined by her body's own biological clock. Also, perimenopausal symptoms can start most commonly between three to five years prior to her last period, but for some can begin 10 to 15 years prior to her final period. So while a woman may begin having menopause symptoms at age 45, she may not actually have her final period until her 60s.

Menopause Factors

• While menopause is a natural phenomenon, there are certain factors that can cause the process to quicken. Certain surgeries such as a hysterectomy as well as chemotherapy and radiation therapy can cause a woman's biological clock to hasten and change her hormone levels. In fact, a hysterectomy can cause an immediate menopause. Breast cancer and other forms of cancer are more prevalent in older adults and can be the cause of menopause in women who have not had their final period by the time they reach 60.

Post-Menopausal Problems

• As a woman ages and goes through menopause, her body becomes more susceptible to heart disease and osteoporosis. The hormones produced by the woman are a natural protection against the buildup of plaque in the blood stream, but once the hormone levels drop they are more like to suffer from heart disease. Calcium is also important in maintaining bone density and post-menopausal women need to increase their intake of calcium or else face brittle bones. Both of these factors are especially dangerous to women who have not had their final period before 60, as their bodies are older and require more maintenance.