How long should you take hormone therapy?

Most women stop taking it once their menopausal symptoms pass, which is usually after a few years. Women who take HRT for more than 1 year have a higher risk of breast cancer than women who never use HRT.

How long should you be on hormone therapy?

Most women are able to stop taking HRT after their menopausal symptoms finish, which is usually two to five years after they start (but in some cases this can be longer). Gradually decreasing your HRT dose is usually recommended, rather than stopping suddenly.

How long can a woman take hormone therapy?

Most women continue treatment for 2-3 years to decrease symptoms of menopause or other hormonal changes. However, there is no limit on how long you can continue treatment if you are happy with the results. For women between 40-55, hormone therapy is ideal for navigating the season of menopause and managing symptoms.

Does hormone therapy ever stop?

Menopausal hormone replacement therapy is an effective way to improve those symptoms. But it isn't for long-term use. At some point, you and your healthcare provider will start to plan for lowering your dose and stopping it completely.

How often should you do hormone therapy?

Hormone treatment can be daily, monthly, yearly, or as needed. For example, with certain types of breast cancer, people can take daily hormone therapy for 5 to 10 years. People with prostate cancer may have intermittent hormone therapy.

How Long Can You Take Hormone Therapy?

What are the disadvantages of hormone therapy?

Hormone therapy side effects can include vaginal dryness, discharge, itching, or irritation. It can also cause changes to the menstrual cycle and cause vaginal bleeding that is not related to a period. Hot flashes and night sweats. Hot flashes are very common for people receiving hormone therapy.

Does hormone therapy have long term effects?

Hormone therapy can help ease symptoms of menopause. But it is associated with a lot of serious risks if used over the long term. Although the treatment lowers the risk of bone fractures, it increases the risk of cardiovascular disease (heart and blood vessel problems) and breast cancer.

Why is hormone therapy not recommended?

Stroke, blood clots, and heart attack.

Women who took either combined hormone therapy or estrogen alone had an increased risk of stroke, blood clots, and heart attack (1, 2).

Is hormone therapy worth the risk?

The benefits of HRT usually outweigh the risks for most women. The risks are usually very small, and depend on the type of HRT you take, how long you take it and your own health risks. Speak to a GP if you're thinking about starting HRT or you're already taking it, and you're worried about any risks.

Does HRT make you look younger?

By supplementing your body's natural hormone levels, HRT can help you maintain a more youthful body composition. While this effect is particularly evident in men, research suggests that women can also benefit. HRT is also known to help women maintain softer, smoother skin, resulting in a younger look.

At what age should a woman stop taking hormone pills?

If you are healthy, most experts agree that HRT is safe to use at the lowest dose that helps for the shortest time needed. If you're 59 or older, or have been on hormones for 5 years, you should talk to your doctor about quitting.

What does hormone therapy do to a woman's body?

Hormone replacement therapy is medication that contains female hormones. You take the medication to replace the estrogen that your body stops making during menopause. Hormone therapy is most often used to treat common menopausal symptoms, including hot flashes and vaginal discomfort.

Can you go back from hormone therapy?

Many of the effects of hormone therapy are reversible, if you stop taking them. The degree to which they can be reversed depends on how long you have been taking them. Some breast growth, and possibly reduced or absent fertility are not reversible.

How do you know if hormone therapy is working?

How to tell if hormone therapy is working. If you are taking hormone therapy for prostate cancer, you will have regular PSA tests. If hormone therapy is working, your PSA levels will stay the same or may even go down. But, if your PSA levels go up, this may be a sign that the treatment is no longer working.

How long does it take to wean off hormone replacement therapy?

We advise everyone to allow 2–4 months for the weaning process overall, if possible (some require a little less, some more). If you do it with care, you can feel better than you ever have in your life.

Does hormone therapy make you gain weight?

Many women believe that taking HRT will make them put on weight, but there's no evidence to support this claim. You may gain some weight during the menopause, but this often happens regardless of whether you take HRT. Exercising regularly and eating a healthy diet should help you to lose any unwanted weight.

Who is not a good candidate for hormone therapy?

Not-so-good candidates for hormone replacement therapy

Smokers and those with a family history of blood clots aren't good candidates for HRT. If you've ever had a form of reproductive cancer, you're likewise not a good candidate for HRT. Breast, uterine, and ovarian cancers often respond to estrogen.

Does vitamin D increase estrogen?

A Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center study involving postmenopausal, overweight, and obese women who took 2,000 IUs of vitamin D daily for a year found that those whose vitamin D blood levels increased the most had the greatest reductions in blood estrogens, which are a known risk factor for breast cancer.

What can I take instead of HRT?

Clonidine. Clonidine is a prescription medicine that can help reduce hot flushes and night sweats in some menopausal women. It's taken as tablets 2 or 3 times a day. It does not affect hormone levels, so unlike HRT it does not carry an increased risk of problems such as breast cancer.

When does hormone therapy start working?

It will begin 1 to 3 months after you start treatment. You'll see the full effect within 1 to 2 years.

Can you replace hormones naturally?

The most widely cited natural remedy is soy, which is very high in phytoestrogens, or plant estrogens. Other sources are red clover and flaxseed, both of which are available as supplements.

How can I get estrogen naturally?

What happens when a woman stops taking hormones?

What are some of the withdrawal symptoms that women experience? The primary symptoms are the ones that we called menopausal symptoms. So hot flashes, night sweats and disturbed sleeping, probably because of the hot flashes and night sweats, and vaginal dryness.

Is it better to not take hormones during menopause?

Post-Menopausal Women Should Not Take Hormone Therapy to Prevent Chronic Conditions. The USPSTF reviewed current evidence and reaffirmed an earlier recommendation.

What age is too late to take estrogen?

The International Menopause Society guidelines recommend that if menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) is prescribed, it be commenced before the age of 60, or within 10 years of menopause.