Causes

Menopause is a very long term process that affects a woman's body by diminishing the amount of progesterone and estrogen. Those two hormones have the role of regulating a woman's cycles of ovulation and menstruation. When this process is finished, the menstrual periods stop and a woman can no longer get pregnant. Because of the long time required for this process, it can be divided in two major stages: perimenopause and postmenopause.

Perimenopause manifests itself by variations of hormone levels the apparition of the menopausal symptoms, yet, the ovaries still produce eggs. At this time, a woman may have hot flashes and variations in her periods like irregular flow. This is one of the signs of the menopause.

Postmenopause is the name of the period after a woman reaches menopause. One your after a woman's last period mean that she has reached menopause. Her ovaries produce less hormones and stop releasing eggs.

Factors of risk

Although menopause is a natural process that comes in every woman's body at some point, it can also be brought, sometimes earlier, by certain surgical or medical treatments like the following:

• - Hysterectomy. It is the procedure of uterus removal. The ovaries remain and still release eggs, so, normally it shouldn't cause menopause, although, the periods stop. In case of a total hysterectomy, which is the removal of the ovaries too, not only of the uterus, menopause is reached immediately, passing by the perimenopausal stage, and a woman will begin feeling the menopausal symptoms.
• - Another factor of risk is represented by cancer therapies. Chemotherapy and radiation therapy may trigger menopause and its symptoms.
• - Around one percent of women will reach menopause before the age of forty. This premature ovarian failure is believed to be caused by genetic factors although it was not proved yet.