Many health issues of adolescence and of the early adult years can be traced to poor management or even to neglect at menarche. All kids do not develop at the same pace, and boys typically reach puberty a good 5 years later than girls. It is healthy, in some respects, for kids to grow up together regardless of gender, but parenting should account for the biological fact that girls will become women while male siblings are still immature. Further, some girls will achieve menarche as early as at 11 years, while others have to wait for about 2 more years to come of reproductive age.

Ignorance is a vacuum that body hair and weight changes, new emotions, and swelling breasts all abhor, so your little girl will find out about the health facts of life in potentially harmful scraps, if you do not use top parenting skills to wean her seamlessly from being a child in to living as an adult female. A 10th birthday is a good time to start providing health education, not just to girls, but to male siblings as well. It is much easier to cope with the challenges of menarche if only your kids understand the basics of anatomy, physiology, and reproduction. Try and get other parents in to the act as well, so that contradictory pressures on kids between parents and peers are pared to the bone.

Physical examination can be a sad parenting lapse as kids approach puberty. No one wants their privates checked, and doctors are notoriously busy anyhow, but there is no substitute to taking a professional and detailed look at developing genitalia and reproductive systems. Many girls may require abdominal ultrasound scans as well, to uncover unusual developments on and around the ovaries. You have to choose a patient and sensitive woman doctor for the gynecological checks required at menopause, so that the experience causes your little girl as little trauma as possible.

They say that sex begins in the mind, and a psychiatric evaluation of the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF), will help uncover any of the psychological disturbances which are common at menarche. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD,) anxiety, stress, depression, and obsessive conditions can become serious issues of adolescence in girls, especially if menarche is retarded.

Women are naturally fortunate that menarche is such a dramatic and discrete event, unlike the descent of testes, and the formation of sperm. Teaching a girl how to use a sanitary pad is not the only or the most important part of parenting, when it is a matter of her growing up in to an adult life full of good health!

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Calcium directly affects the hormones that control the condition of your arteries. Healthy arteries and low blood pressure are associated with healthy calcium levels in the body. Since your arteries and blood pressure affect the heart, calcium is highly beneficial in maintaining a healthy heart. Calcium is also connected with the health of your colon, and particularly the prevention of colon polyps and colon cancer. Calcium has an important role in maintaining a healthy weight, as well. The same hormone that influences the health of your arteries affects the way your body absorbs nutrients and fat. When this hormone is properly regulated by calcium, it is easier to maintain your weight.

Maintaining healthy levels of calcium is easy to do by monitoring your diet and, if necessary, taking a calcium supplement every day. Dairy products, dark green vegetables, and lintels are just some of the foods that are high in calcium. The body absorbs calcium best from the food we eat, so it is important to have a high-calcium diet even when you take a calcium supplement. Talking to your doctor is a good way of determining how much of a calcium supplement you need to stay healthy. Keep in mind that other vitamins and minerals such as vitamin D, magnesium, and phosphorus are crucial in the body’s absorption of calcium, so it is important to have enough of these in your diet, too.

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If you’re trying to have a baby, the first thing you’ll want to know is when you’re ovulating. By the same token, if you’re trying not to have a baby you’ll want to know when you’re ovulating! You can only get pregnant when you ovulate, so it’s important to know when it happens.

Every woman’s cycle is different, so here’s how you can find out what time of the month you’re most fertile.

What is ovulation?

Ovulation is when your body releases an egg to be fertilized. Women are born with all the eggs they’ll ever have, and they sit inside the ovaries waiting to develop.

Once a month, hormones will activate the growth of an egg. At around the middle of the menstrual cycle it will be released. Very rarely two eggs may be released, or no egg at all. Generally speaking, though, you will release one egg every month.

If the egg isn’t fertilized in about 24 hours it dissolves and leaves the body with the menstrual fluid during your period. This day of ovulation is your window of fertility.

How to track ovulation

Since ovulation is a hormonal change in the body, it can be monitored and tracked using special ovulation kits. There are several ovulation kits and fertility monitors on the market that will monitor how fertile you are during the month. They usually work by tracking hormone levels in your urine.

There’s another way to track your ovulation, and that’s observation. For most women, their temperature will rise by about one degree during ovulation, so many women will monitor their temperature first thing every morning and chart when their temperature rises slightly.

The cervical mucous also changes during ovulation, so a woman’s vaginal discharge will get clearer and more stretchy right around ovulation. This slight change in mucus resembles egg whites and it’s a good sign that the egg is ready to be fertilized.

Because sperm can survive in a woman’s body for up to five days, it’s possible to get pregnant even if you last had sex before you ovulated. Women who are trying to conceive will often chart their ovulation for several months to look for a pattern and will time intercourse to happen in the days prior to ovulation.

For women who are not trying to get pregnant, there is good reason to practice extra safe sex and use more than one kind of contraception during the days leading up to ovulation.

Whether you’re trying to conceive or not, your fertility depends on ovulation. It makes sense to learn your own fertility cycle.

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In the collaborative study led by Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), the researchers have identified 10 genetic variants in two chromosomal regions associated with age at menarche (the first menstrual period), and 13 genetic variants in four chromosomal regions associated with age at natural menopause.

Menarche and natural menopause are two important physiological events in a woman’s life.

The researchers explained that an early onset of menarche and later menopause are well-established risk factors for the development of breast cancer and endometrial cancer.

On the other hand, early menopause increases risk of osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease.

Previous studies have suggested both menarche and menopause may be partially under genetic control.

And thus, to identify common genetic variants influencing these states, the researchers analysed more than 317,000 gene variants in a total of 17,438 women from the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) and the Women’s Genome Health Study (WGHS) based at BWH.

“At these newly identified loci, fine mapping or sequencing might lead to identification of the causal variants, and thus expand our knowledge of the underlying physiology and biological regulation of these traits. Insights into the genetic factors influencing the timing of menarche and natural menopause might shed light on normal reproductive function and the prevention of the diseases associated with these two traits,” Nature magazine quoted lead author Chunyan He, a doctoral student at HSPH, as saying.

Daniel Chasman, Director of Computational Biology in the Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, said:

“The collaboration of the WGHS and the NHS represents a great example of how large cohorts with genome-wide data can complement each other. While only one locus reached near genome-wide significance in the NHS alone, the meta-analysis of combined data had much more statistical power and revealed a total of two loci for timing of menarche and four for timing of menopause.”

Chasman, also an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, added: “Of the loci for timing of menopause, three were already strong but not proven candidates in the NHS; these loci reached genome-wide significance in the WGHS alone, supplementing the meta-analysis by a second mode of validation through replication. The remaining locus, for timing of menopause, would not have been identified, even as a candidate, without the joint power of these two cohorts working together.

“Future collaborations will hopefully continue to leverage the combined power of the two cohorts for association studies directed at other clinical characteristics.”

Titled ‘Genome-wide association studies identify loci associated with age at menarche and at natural menopause’, the study has been published online in Nature Genetics.

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Normally when a woman begins a new monthly menstrual period the tissue lining of her uterus called endometrium is washed out in her menstrual flow. This process normally takes 4 to 7 days.
For women who suffer from endometriosis this endometrial tissue lining fails to completely wash out and instead ends up in their abdomens and pelvices attached to internal organs like the bladder, ovaries or intestines. This endometrial tissue is still functional so whenever a period occurs this displaced tissue swells and bleeds leading to severe pain. Other symptoms can include back pain, pain with intercourse (dyspareunia), and pain with bowel movements (dyschezia). Women who have difficulty getting pregnant are also more likely to have endometriosis since the repeated tissue swelling can cause scar tissue around the fallopian tubes and ovaries.

The diagnosis of endometriosis is very challenging because there are no accurate blood tests, ultrasounds or x-rays available. The only way to make a definitive diagnosis is for your doctor to perform a laparoscopy. This procedure performed under anesthesia is done by making a small skin incision usually through your navel and placing a camera scope into your abdomen. Your doctor can then visually check for possible areas of endometriosis.

Treatment of endometriosis can also be very challenging. When multiple treatment options are available it usually suggests that none of the choices are overwhelmingly successful. Treatment focuses around pain management and stopping menstrual periods. The first goal is accomplished by using oral anti-inflammatory medications like Advil or Naprosyn. Periods are artificially stopped by using hormones such as birth control pills or injectable Provera. Without fluctuating levels of hormones menstrual periods cease and the displaced endometrial tissue lining does not swell or bleed. The result is improvement in endometriosis pains. For women who fail to respond to these treatments or wish to get pregnant there is the option of laparascopic surgery.

Endometriosis is not a permanent problem for most women. Usually when women stop menstruating at menopause endometriosis pain also stops. Until menopause occurs medicine and surgery can offer some good options at helping to alleviate the chronic pelvic pain associated with endometriosis.

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A menstrual cramp is like a heart attack in the uterus. The pain is caused by the uterine muscles constricting in order to stop the loss of blood.  This condition is called dysmenorrhea. Since many women get excruciating menstrual cramps before and during their monthly period, it is important to know. The pain can be a mild annoyance or it can be crippling, with back ache, nausea and even vomiting.

Pain medications can bring relief, of course. Which medication actually works depends on the individual.  Some women only respond to ibuprofen. Others find that acetaminophen or aspirin works just fine. A doctor may even recommend beginning daily medication a few weeks before a patient’s period begins.

Such measures may not be necessary for mild cramps, in fact, simple alternatives may be just as effective as medicine, without any adverse side effects. Ibuprofen, for example, has been known to cause stomach damage over time.

A hot water bottle or heating pad is the best ‘homemade’ method for relieving menstrual cramps, headaches and backaches. Exercise also makes a great pain reliever. The trick is to get the blood flowing. A brisk walk or some yogic stretching will get your heart pumping. However, sit-ups, crunches and other abdominal exercises are bad for cramps.

Another way to deal with mild menstrual pain is to change what you drink. Caffeine makes pain worse, causing the uterus to constrict even more. Alcohol can also aggravate uterine contractions by depleting important nutrients in the body. A switch to decaffeinated coffee and some teetotaling might eliminate mild cramps altogether. They can also lessen with vitamin supplements, as doctors say calcium helps maintain normal muscle tone.  Niacin, another important nutrient,  is also effective but, only when taken seven to ten days before the flow starts.

Menstrual cramps can also be caused by constipation, so fiber is important. Valerian, a medicinal herb is also effective when taken in doses of 300-500mg per day. It also can help with insomnia. Other herbs that work for dysmenorrhea are: cramp bark, yarrow, black and blue cohosh and ginger.

Whatever method she chooses for dealing with premenstrual symptoms, a woman should always know her own body.  In the end, this knowledge is the best defense against terrible period pain.

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More often adolescents in the first few years of menstrual cycle and women after 45 years of age become victims for abnormal or dysfunctional uterine bleeding.

The reason behind dysfunctional uterine bleeding is quite simple. It mainly occurs due to imbalance of most crucial female hormones, estrogen and progesterone.

Role of estrogen and progesterone!

Estrogen is the most crucial hormone which stimulates the growth of uterine lining. Usually, when you have dysfunctional uterine bleeding, you can have periods longer than usual. As a result, the lining of your uterus is exposed to estrogen for longer periods of time.

Once when the ovulation takes place, another important female hormone namely progesterone is produced by your ovary.

This progesterone mainly prepares uterine lining for menstruation and clears off entire surface neatly within few days. So, when there is an imbalance of these major hormones in your body, it results in abnormal uterine bleeding and there will be no monthly release of egg.

Steady exposure of your uterine lining to estrogen, without action of progesterone results in abnormal bleeding. This kind of abnormal bleeding is mainly characterized by bleeding from one area for some time, which will be followed by bleeding in some other area for next few days.

Other uterine bleeding disorders!

Dysfunctional uterine bleeding (DUB) disorder is quite similar with other types of uterine bleeding disorders. Sometimes DUB overlaps with other uterine bleeding disorders and causes great discomfort for you. Certain most common uterine bleeding disorders that usually overlap with DUB include:

1. Menorrhagia: This is the term used mainly for abnormally long and heavy periods. At times, this type of menstrual problems can also become a sign for DUB. In menorrhagia, you can get periods regularly, but usually lasts for more than seven days. Passing blood clots is quite common and almost 15-20% of women experience this specific type of uterine bleeding disorders, which interferes with your regular activities.
2. Polymenorrhea: With this type of uterine bleeding disorders, you can probably suffer with too frequent periods. Ovulation doesn’t take place during regular menstrual cycle, but get periods more often for every 21 days.
3. Metorrhagia: If you are suffering with uterine bleeding between menstrual periods, it is mainly referred as metorrhagia. With this specific condition, you can experience heavy irregular bleeding.

These are few uterine bleeding disorders that can possibly overlap with your dysfunctional uterine bleeding. So, be aware with all these conditions and whenever you experience any of these conditions, immediately consult your personal doctor to avoid further complications in your reproductive health.

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How do you know when bleeding during your period is abnormally heavy? The easiest way to know if you are experiencing menorrhagia is to take note of how often you need to change your pad or tampon. If your period is heavy enough to require changing more often than every one or two hours, or if you have a period that lasts more than a full week, you may be experiencing menorrhagia.
Let’s take a look at the most common causes of menorrhagia or heavy menstrual bleeding.

1. A hormonal imbalance during adolescence or menopause is the most common cause of heavy menstrual bleeding. During adolescence after girls have their first periods, and for several years before the onset of menopause when menstruation ceases, our hormones levels are fluctuating which often leads to excessive uterine bleeding during our periods. It’s often possible to treat menorrhagia caused by hormonal imbalances with birth control pills or other hormones.

2. Uterine fibroid tumors are another very common cause of excessive menstruation. It’s important to understand that fibroid tumors are usually benign (non-cancerous) tumors that often occur in the uterus of women during their thirties or forties. While the cause of uterine fibroid tumors is unclear, it is clear that they are estrogen-dependent. Several surgical treatments are available for treating fibroid tumors of the uterus including myomectomy, endometrial ablation, uterine artery embalization, and uterine balloon therapy, as well as hysterectomy. Non-surgical pharmacological treatments for fibroid tumors include GnRH agonists, oral contraceptives, androgens, RU486 (the abortion pill), and gestrinone. Some women find natural progesterone to be an effective treatment for uterine fibroid tumors. Often, when symptoms are not severe or troublesome, a “wait and see” approach is taken. Once menopause occurs, uterine fibroid tumors typically shrink and disappear without treatment.

3. Cervical polyps are small, fragile growths that begin in either the mucosal surface of the cervix, or the endocervical canal and protrude through the opening of the cervix. The cause of cervical polyps is not clear; however, they are often the result of an infection and many times associated with an abnormal response to increased estrogen levels or congestion of the blood vessels located in the cervix. Women most commonly affected by cervical polyps are those over the age of twenty who have had children. A simple out patient office procedure that removes the growth, along with antibiotics, is the usual treatment for cervical polyps.

4. Endometrial polyps are typically non-cancerous, growths that protrude from the lining of the uterus. The cause of endometrial polyps is unclear, although they are often associated with an excess of estrogen following hormone treatment or some types of ovarian tumors. Treatments for endometrial polyps include hysteroscopy and D&C. A pathology lab will evaluate endometrial polyps for cancer following removal.

5. Lupus is a chronic inflammatory, and autoimmune disease that affects several parts of the body, particularly the skin, joints, blood, and kidneys. The cause of lupus is unclear; however, it’s believed that patients have a genetic predisposition to Lupus and scientists know that environmental factors such as infections, certain types of antibiotics — particularly sulpha and penicillin drugs, UV light, severe stress, hormones and certain other drugs play a key role in triggering disease symptoms. The symptoms of Lupus vary widely among patients, as do the treatments which range from avoiding stress to drugs such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications or NSAIDS, acetaminophen, steroids, antimalarials, cytoxic or immunosuppressive drugs, and anticoagulants.

6. Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is an infection of one or more organs that affects the uterus, fallopian tubes, and cervix. PID is, most often, a sexually transmitted disease; however, it sometimes occurs following childbirth, abortion, or other gynecological procedures. The recommended treatment for pelvic inflammatory disease is antibiotic therapy.

7. Cervical cancer is a type of cancer that occurs when cells in the cervix become abnormal, multiply out of control, and damage healthy parts of the body. The human papillomavirus, or HPV, is the cause of over ninety percent of all cervical cancers. Treatments for cervical cancer include surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy.

8. Endometrial cancer occurs when abnormal cells in the uterus or the endometrium (the lining of the uterus) multiply out of control and damage to the uterus and other organs. While the cause of endometrial cancer is unknown, it is known that women diagnosed with this type of cancer tend are usually over fifty, often have endometrial hyperplasia, or many times use hormone replacement therapy (HRT). The first treatment for endometrial cancer is usually a hysterectomy, possibly followed by chemotherapy and/or radiation treatments.

9. IUDs or intrauterine devices used for contraception are a potential cause of heavy menstrual bleeding or menorrhagia. Women who experience prolonged or heavy periods while using the IUD should have the device removed and choose an alternate method of birth control.

10. Bleeding disorders occur when it is hard for a person to stop bleeding. While there are several types of bleeding disorders, the most common type in women is von Willebrand Disease or VWD. Treatments for von Willebrand Disease involve the release of stored clotting factors in the blood, or in extreme cases the replacement of the clotting factor with IV treatment or with prescribed nasal spray.

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1. Cervical dysplasia: Cervical dysplasia is precancerous changes of the epithelial cells that line the cervix. Risk increases with multiple sexual partners, sex before age 18, childbirth before age 16, or a past history of STDs. Treatment is usually cryosurgery or conisation.

2. Chlamydia: A bacterial infection that is usually transmitted through sexual activity or contact with semen, vaginal fluid, or blood.

3. Gonorrhea: A usually sexually transmitted disease caused by a bacteria. Several pharmaceutical treatments are available.

4. Vaginitis or Cervicitis: Inflammation or swelling and infection of the vagina or cervix. Treatment depends on the cause.

5. Cervical polyps: Cervical polyps are smooth, red or purple, finger-like growths that grow out of the mucus layer of the cervix or the cervical canal. Cervical polyps are extremely fragile, extending out of the cervix, and easily and painlessly removed.

6. Trichomoniasis: A usually sexually transmitted disease caused by protozoan. Can also be passed to newborns during vaginal birth by infected mothers. Although rare, transmission is also possible in tap water, hot tubs, urine, on toilet seats, and in swimming pools. May cause vaginitis.

7. Vaginal Yeast Infection: An overgrowth of the normal fungi that inhabits the vaginal area. Common symptoms include itching, burning, and an odorless, white, cheese-like discharge.

8. Endometritis or adenomyosis: Endometritis is defined by Dorland’s Medical Dictionary, 27th Edition as an inflammation of the endometrium (the innermost layer of the uterus). Both conditions are associated with endometriosis. Adenomysis is when endometrial tissue attaches itself to the uterus, or another organ such as the ovaries, and grows outside of the uterus.

9. Uterine polyps: Uterine polyps occur when the endometrium overgrows causing these protrusions into the uterus. It is extremely rare for these growths to grow in a way that is either benign or malignant. Women with uterine polyps frequently experience bleeding between periods (metrorrhagia), other symptoms includes vaginal bleeding after sex, spotting, menorrhagia, bleeding after menopause, and breakthrough bleeding during hormone therapy. Hysteroscopic-guided curettage is the preferred treatment, since the normal D&C is basically an unguided procedure that may miss many of the uterine polyps.

10. Fibroid tumors: Uterine fibroid tumors are usually benign tumors. They are solid masses made of fibrous tissue. Fibroid tumors are rarely malignant. Symptoms of fibroid tumors vary among women, with some women never experiencing any symptoms at all. Women who can wait until menopause will see their fibroids shrink and disappear once their bodies stop producing estrogen. It’s important that women with fibroids make sure they never take estrogen, in any form including birth control pills, since estrogen increases fibroid growth. Several treatments are currently available for uterine fibroid tumors from myomectomy and uterine artery embolization to the traditional hysterectomy.

Diagnosing vaginal bleeding after sex is usually a matter of exclusion. Anytime you experience post-coital bleeding or vaginal bleeding after sex see your physician.

Related posts:

1. Ten Causes of Heavy Menstrual Bleeding
2. How Dysfunctional Uterine Bleeding Occurs?
3. Types of Bleeding During Pregnancy