What is Perimenopause?

A woman's body goes through a lot of changes.

Perimenopause is another one that women get to look forward to.

What is perimenopause?

Perimenopause means "around menopause".

It refers to the time during which your body makes the natural transition to menopause, thus marking the end of a woman's reproductive years.

A woman may begin transitioning sometime in her 40s. However, this transitional period happens at a different age for every woman, and it could happen as early as mid-30s

What are the symptoms?

Throughout the menopausal transition, some subtle — and some not-so-subtle — changes in your body may take place. You might experience:

• Irregular periods.
• Hot flashes
• Insomnia
• Mood changes
• urinary infections
• vaginal infections
• changes in sexual arousal
• Changing cholesterol levels

How can you prevent Perimenopause?

Though every woman will have to go through perimenopause, there are ways you can prolong the experience.

The foods we eat can determine how our hormone pattern manifests, physically and mentally, in our everyday lives. So, the easiest thing you can do to delay perimenopause is to start eating and exercising on a consistent basis.

By doing this, you will regulate your hormones and keep them from fluctuating too much on daily basis.

You can also avoid foods, such as caffeine, sugar, alcohol and spicy foods to avoid triggering symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats and insomnia.

For treatment, you should always talk with a trusted physician.

However, you can ask your doctor if you would be a good candidate for hormone therapy, antidepressants, or estrogen boosts.