The impact of physical activity on the climacteric phase in middle-aged women.
The impact of physical activity on the climacteric phase in middle-aged women.
Intro
In a family, the role of a woman or a mother is inevitable. If the wife is a homemaker, her pivotal duties are cooking food, washing clothes, taking care of children and husband, teaching children, entertaining guests, and many more. If the wife is a working woman, these mentioned duties are never-ending. Additionally, she has to bear the responsibilities of her office. Most of the women from developed countries or developing countries are not concerned about their physical and mental health at all. They pass their life completing their duties in one hand, repeatedly.
But, what happens when she is close to age 40? Does she become ill very frequently? Or does she become angry with you even on a minor issue? Does she pass sleepless nights? If the answer is ‘yes’, the following article is for your concern. Please read it and find your voice.
What is the climacteric phase?
The Climacteric phase is a stage of natural transformations from the reproductive state to a non-reproductive state of a woman. General people or layman considers it menopause. They are not the same. Menopause is a bodily procedure of ending ministration that she started at the age of 12 or 13. On the other hand, the climacteric phase is the lapse of time that begins from weakening to ending the ovarian function. So, menopause is an event, whereas the climacteric phase is a continuous process.
Menopause has three stages: pre-menopause, menopause, and post-menopause. The climacteric stage incorporates all these three stages. In the pre-menopause stage ovarian functions may continue, but faintly and in the post-menopause stage the ovarian functions stop forever.
Why climacteric phase?
Each woman has oval-shaped four centimeters long two ovaries connected with her uterus or womb. Ovaries are an essential part of a woman’s reproductive system. But their ability to function deviates with ages. Ovaries lose their potentiality to function due to various reasons: some are natural reasons, and others are accidental. Menopausal reasons, health consequences, like, heart diseases, Alzheimer’s, and crumbliness of bones are natural reasons for ending ovarian functions. The case of rapture in the uterus due to some accidents also causes loss in ovarian function. The Climacteric phase works with only natural reasons for overran incapability.
What is the estrogen hormone?
The most crucial hormone of a female body is estrogen. The hormone plays a vital role in developing and balancing the reproduction system in a female body through puberty, menstruation, pregnancy, and menopause. The female body structure is different from that of man, also because of the existence of estrogen hormone. Ovaries produce a substantial part of the estrogen hormone, and adrenal glands and fat of the body supply the rest of it. The placenta is an excellent source of oxygen and nutrients for a growing baby in the womb also builds estrogen hormone during pregnancy.
Why does ovarian function decline?
A woman with a fit body and normal menstruation cycle has estrogen levels ranging between 15 to 350 picograms per milliliter (pg/mL). The level jumps up to 800 pg/mL during a periodic cycle. But after menopause, the levels come to 10 pg/mL. At the starting of the pre-menopause stage, the flow of estrogen hormone is reducing gradually which leads to irregularities in ministration periods. The ministration irregularities hamper the production of eggs in the ovaries. When these ups and downs reach the highest, that means no more ministration during the post-menopause stage ovaries lose their productivity.
How does ovarian function decline?
A girl takes birth with one million to two million eggs. Throughout her lifetime no new eggs are created, instead about 10,000 eggs die each month from this list before her puberty. During her puberty, only about 300,000 eggs remain. Every menstrual cycle the woman loses 1,000 immature eggs. In the reproductive period of a woman, only about 500 eggs can be ovulated. The more she is getting old, the number and quality of eggs are dropping. At the age of 32, the fertility of a woman becomes slow, and when she is of age 37+, this declination gets more rapid. However, there is no rule of thumb regarding the number of fertile eggs. But it is said that at the age of 40 the fertility rate reduces by 3% than the normal situation. In this way, the remaining eggs that are not used by this time gradually die through menopause.
What are the other physical activities in middle age?
The estrogen hormone is the midpoint of other physical activities, like, osteoporosis, hot flash syndrome, and mood swings experienced by a middle-aged woman undergoing a climacteric phase.
Osteoporosis: poor bone health
After the age of 40, as the level of estrogen hormone release deteriorates, the bones lose their flexibility. In medical science, the disease is called osteoporosis. According to the physicians, sometimes osteoporosis occurs without previous symptoms or pains and creates unexpected cracks in bones. The low level of estrogen during middle age creates numerous holes in the internal parts of bones that successively create fractures in bones. Because of its ‘sudden’ nature, it is also called ‘silent disease’. Activities using body muscle are prone to back pain, inability to stand correctly, spinal deformities, etc. are also the symptoms of osteoporosis.
Hot flash experience: fluctuation in body temperature
Another significant event during the climacteric phase is hot flashes syndrome. The common reason for this problem is also the rapid fluctuation of estrogen hormone levels. Women are experiencing hot flashes instant feel warmth in the upper part of the body and cause sweating on the face, neck, and chest. In extreme cases, the abnormalities in body temperature and night sweats hinder midnight sleep.
Why does hot flash occur? The Hypothalamus, a small part of the brain controls our emotions through releasing hormones. During a hot flash, the body thermostat, also called the hypothalamus, when feeling a slight change in body temperature, sends a signal to the blood circulation. Rapid blood flow through the vessels nearest the skin raises the temperature of the skin by five to seven degrees. But the body temperature stays normal, usually not more than 98.6 degrees. After a few minutes, the skin temperature down to normal, and the patient feel chilled.
During a hot flash, the woman sometimes feels burning in her hand and legs. Hard work, stressful work, uncomfortable dresses in worktime triggers hot flashes syndrome.
Mood swing: flux in emotion
Emotional flux is an impact of serotine, the essential hormone to stabilize one’s mood. The estrogen hormone controls serotine in our brain. The normal range for serotonin levels in your blood is 101–283 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL). In the climacteric phase, the reducing flow of estrogen in the female body leads to serotine deficiency and causes neurotransmitter disabilities. The self-monitoring system hampered negativity in behavior increases in this way. This uneven fluctuation increases depression, panic, anxiety, or disorder. As a result, a woman, after 40, is worried about maintaining a relationship.
A woman experiencing a climacteric phase or middle-age crisis falls into depression very often. Become emotional, feel ‘worthless’ in the family; mood swing becomes a common problem. But there is nothing to be scared of, and it is a normal process in every woman’s life. Nobody can challenge this. But, following some guidelines, the ultimate physical problems can be evaded.
As ‘estrogen hormone’ is the heart of all problems in the climacteric phase, hormone replacement can be a good option. Else, you can take medicine. After the age of 30, a woman should take food rich in calories, like, nuts-seeds and butter. Take regular exercise, keep mind and body refresh. Spending idle time is a curse in this stage. So, avoid hard work, but be busy with easy tasks, like gardening, reading, sewing, and other aerobic activities, like, walking, jogging, swimming, etc. Visiting your physician often can protect you from unforeseen dangers.
In this way, you can change the climate of your climacteric phase in middle age.
Writer: Maksuda Hossain
Dhaka, Bangladesh
Assistant Professor
Edited By: AL-Resalat
