“The pain of regret is worse than the pain of discipline.”
Whether you are back-to-school or resuming regular routines after the summer months this all requires discipline. Think: earlier bedtimes, consistent exercise, following up on your health goals and scheduling visits and vaccines. The perimenopausal and menopausal years take discipline to put yourself first. You also need a toolkit of options to feel your best.
October Member Event.
Our member only “Lunch and Learn” program on Friday October 18th at 12 PM is fast approaching. Please RSVP to Susan by calling our office or at [email protected]. Join us at Uptown (above Hometown) in Glencoe for a lunchtime conversation about women’s sexual health with internationally esteemed gynecologist, author and menopause and sexual medicine expert Dr. Lauren Streicher. Don’t miss this interactive program!
Dr. DeSapri in the news:
Osteoporosis is not a silent symptom of menopause. Debunking that myth and bringing awareness to bone and muscle health. Click link here. Enter passcode: .p2.0N5L
More menopause talk with Dr. Kevin Ban, former CMO of Walgreens about the past, present and future of menopause care and its impact on individual women, healthcare and society.
An exciting documentary about menopause called the M Factor will air on October 17th on PBS. Many of my colleagues and researchers in the Menopause Society share that menopause and midlife is a critically important window of time that impacts everyone who was born with ovaries!
Midlife must know!
The rates of obesity and overweight are rising. 70% of women will gain on average 10-15 pounds from perimenopause to post- menopause. This generally deposits in the midsection or abdominal area (and informally known as the
“meno-pot”). A combination of hormonal changes and aging leads to less lean muscle mass compared to fat mass, decreased metabolic rate and less energy expenditure. Not to mention other factors such as genetics, medications and lifestyle that can hack sleep or metabolism.
What we know:
There are many FDA approved medications for treating women who are obese (defined as BMI > 30 or overweight BMI > 27 with medical co-morbidities such as hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, metabolic steatohepatitis (liver disease).
These are the GLP-1 medications such as liraglutide (Saxenda), semaglutide (Wegovy) or tirzepatide (Zepound.) As with our decades of experience prescribing sex hormones, the safety of efficacy of FDA approved medications are recommended over compounded formulations.
In the clinical studies, weight loss was substantial. 66% of adults lost 10% of their body weight. However along with fat loss, bone and muscle mass declines rapidly as well.
What’s good to know?
A recent small, randomized control trial of women on GLP 1 agonist evaluated the bone loss that occurred across 4 groups including those randomized to moderate- to vigorous-intensity exercise program (exercise alone), GLP-1 RA liraglutide (liraglutide alone), the combination, or placebo. The exercise protocol included 4 sessions per week of 30 mins cycling and 15 minutes weight circuit training over a 52-week period.
Not surprisingly, the individuals combining exercise and medication lost the most weight compared to medication or exercise alone. More importantly, participating in the resistance training while on GLP1 agonist medication prevented the loss in bone mineral density at the spine and hip that was seen in the medication alone.
What does this mean for me?
With the advent of weight loss medications and more therapies to come the recommendation from the medical associations is to use safe and effective FDA approved options. In combination with optimizing nutrition incorporating consistent aerobic and resistance exercise not only achieves weight loss but prevents the bone and muscle mass loss which will make you leaner and stronger. Let’s cancel the term meno-pot and strive for strength.
Enjoy the advent of the autumn season, we look forward to seeing you in the office or at our upcoming event.
See You Soon!
Dr. Kristi Tough DeSapri