Resources

Links to Internet Resources

Links to internet resources for medical or general information on menopause, perimenopause, bioidentical & natural hormone therapy, menopause symptoms and other topics related to menopause.

Please note:  These links and informational blurbs are listed in no certain order.  This list will be organized and detailed according to topic and source such as medical, governmental agency, business type at a later date.  There will also be a weekly review of a menopause themed website on a weekly basis to be scored according to usefulness, clairty, ease of use and content navigation and main focus of the website.

North American Menopause Society (NAMS)

http://www.menopause.org/
The North American Menopause Society (NAMS) is North America’s leading nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting the health and quality of life of women through an understanding of menopause. Its multidisciplinary membership of 2,000 leaders in the field – including clinical and basic science experts from medicine, nursing, sociology, psychology, nutrition, anthropology, epidemiology, pharmacy, and education – allows NAMS to be uniquely qualified to provide information that is both accurate and unbiased, not for or against any point of view.

Breast Cancer.org

http://www.breastcancer.org/
Our mission is to help women and their loved ones make sense of the complex medical and personal information about breast cancer, so they can make the best decisions for their lives.

Women’s Health Queensland Wide

http://www.womhealth.org.au/healthinformation.htm

http://www.womhealth.org.au/factsheets/aboutmenopause.htm
Women’s Health Queensland Wide (Women’s Health) is a not for profit health promotion, information and education service for women and health professionals throughout Queensland.

National Women’s Health Network

http://nwhn.org/about
The National Women’s Health Network improves the health of all women by developing and promoting a critical analysis of health issues in order to affect policy and support consumer decision-making. The Network aspires to a health care system that is guided by social justice and reflects the needs of diverse women.

Our Bodies Ourselves Health Resource Center

http://www.ourbodiesourselves.org
Our Bodies Ourselves (OBOS), also known as the Boston Women’s Health Book Collective (BWHBC), is a nonprofit, public interest women’s health education, advocacy, and consulting organization. Beginning in 1970 with the publication of the first edition of Our Bodies, Ourselves.

CeMCOR  The Centre for Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research

http://www.cemcor.ubc.ca/
The Centre for Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research is an accessible research centre with a mandate to distribute information directly to women about changes through the life cycle, from adolescence to menopause. CeMCOR’S goal is to do good science that honours the voices and experiences of women. It is the only centre in North America that focuses on ovulation and the causes for and consequences of ovulation disturbances.

Media Watch ABC

http://www.abc.net.au/mediawatch/transcripts/s1390967.htm

Canadian Women’s Health Network

http://www.cwhn.ca/node/40802
The Canadian Women’s Health Network (CWHN) was created in 1993 as a voluntary national organization to improve the health and lives of girls and women in Canada and the world by collecting, producing, distributing and sharing knowledge, ideas, education, information, resources, strategies and inspirations.

Association of Reproductive Health Professionals

http://www.arhp.org/Topics/Menopause
Our mission is education. ARHP produces accredited, evidence-based programs for health care professionals across a broad range of topics. ARHP members are passionate about science and demand rigorous standards for peer-reviewed data in educational programs and integrity in patient care.

Project AWARE  Association of Women for the Advancement of Research and Education

http://www.project-aware.org/Experience/experience.shtml
The Association of Women for the Advancement of Research & Education was an idea born out of frustration, frustration regarding lack of beneficial and comprehensive health care information available to women today. So two women—one from Kansas and one from New York—with the same idea came together in an effort to get that information to as many women as possible.

National Research Center for Women & Families

http://www.center4research.org/hrtalt.html
The National Research Center for Women & Families promotes the health and safety of women, children, and families, by using objective, research-based information to encourage new, more effective programs and policies. The Center achieves its mission by gathering and analyzing information and translating that information into clearly presented facts and policy implications that are made widely available to the public, the media, and policy makers.

WebMD

http://www.webmd.com/menopause/default.htm
The WebMD content staff blends award-winning expertise in medicine, journalism, health communication and content creation to bring you the best health information possible. Our esteemed colleagues at MedicineNet.com are frequent contributors to WebMD and comprise our Medical Editorial Board. Our Independent Medical Review Board continuously reviews the site for accuracy and timeliness.

Mayo Clinic

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/menopause/DS00119
Mayo Clinic is a not-for-profit medical practice dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of virtually every type of complex illness. Mayo Clinic staff members work together to meet your needs. You will see as many doctors, specialists and other health care professionals as needed to provide comprehensive diagnosis, understandable answers and effective treatment.

National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine

http://nccam.nih.gov/health/menopause/
The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) is the Federal Government’s lead agency for scientific research on the diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not generally considered part of conventional medicine.

FDA  Query menopause in their search engine

http://www.fda.gov
FDA is responsible for

  • protecting the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines and other biological products, medical devices, our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements, and products that give off radiation
  • regulating tobacco products.

FDA Women’s Health Research

http://www.fda.gov/ScienceResearch/SpecialTopics/WomensHealthResearch/default.htm
The Office of Women’s Health established its Science Program in 1994 with three specific goals in mind:

  1. To address gaps in current scientific knowledge
  2. To encourage new directions in research
  3. To set new standards of excellence in women’s health

http://www.fda.gov/ForConsumers/byAudience/ForWomen/default.htm

In their daily lives, women use many products that are regulated by the FDA including medicines, cosmetics, pregnancy kits, microwaves, pet foods, and vaccines. Throughout its 100-year history, FDA has been committed to providing women with up-to-date information on all of the products that it regulates. Check the links in this section for information on women’s health topics as well as news about product recalls, safety warnings, and  other FDA activities.

Harvard Medicine

http://hms.harvard.edu/public/disease/womens_health/womenshealth.html

Women’s Health focuses on a wide range of issues of care and maintenance regarding women’s fitness. There are primary care areas such as obstetrics, general medical conditions, psychosocial concerns, and gynecology. More specific areas include: young women’s developmental health, heart disease, aging, reproduction, appearance, relationships, sexual health, lactation and breast health, avoiding sexual victimization, pregnancy, care giving and physical and mental health, women’s life cycle, health disparities, weight management, health screening, nutrition, sexuality, gender differences in health care, Women of Color health, therapies significant to women and women’s health care policy.

The Hormone Foundation

http://www.hormone.org/menopause/
The Hormone Foundation, the public education affiliate of The Endocrine Society, is a leading source of hormone-related health information for the public, physicians, allied health professionals and the media. Our mission is to serve as a resource for the public by promoting the prevention, treatment and cure of hormone-related conditions through outreach and education.

The Hormone Foundation works directly with the Society, and its experts in the field of endocrinology, to translate science for the benefit of patients with endocrine disorders and raise the general public’s awareness about emerging endocrine system diseases. Through its website, free educational materials, public forums, physician referral service, presence at medical meetings, and media education campaigns, the Foundation has reached more than 300 million people with important health information.

International Menopause Society

http://www.imsociety.org/
The IMS was established in 1978 and was the first menopause society. At the time, it signalled to the medical community that there is a need to address specific gender-based and menopause-based issues, which until then had not been regarded as important. In the following years, many national and regional menopause societies have been formed, but the IMS remains the only society with a global responsibility and, as such, is a leading resource to which the media as well as the medical professionals look for opinion and guidance. This has been particularly important in recent years when the merits of hormone therapy have come under intense debate. With most of the key opinion leaders as members, a strong Executive Board representing all areas of the world, and over 40 national and regional menopause societies affiliated to the IMS, we are in a unique position to provide education, comment and support.

MedlinePlus

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/menopause.html

MedlinePlus will direct you to information to help answer health questions. MedlinePlus brings together authoritative information from NLM, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other government agencies and health-related organizations. Preformulated MEDLINE searches are included in MedlinePlus and give easy access to medical journal articles. MedlinePlus also has extensive information about drugs, an illustrated medical encyclopedia, interactive patient tutorials, and latest health news.

National Institutes of Health

http://www.nih.gov/PHTindex.htm
NIH is the nation’s medical research agency – making important medical discoveries that improve health and save lives.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH), a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the primary Federal agency for conducting and supporting medical research.

Helping to lead the way toward important medical discoveries that improve people’s health and save lives, NIH scientists investigate ways to prevent disease as well as the causes, treatments, and even cures for common and rare diseases.

Menopause Matters

http://menopausematters.co.uk/
Menopausematters.co.uk is an independent, clinician-led website. Our aim is to provide easily accessible, up-to-date, accurate information about the menopause, menopausal symptoms and treatment options, including Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) and alternative therapies, so that women and health professionals can make informed choices about menopause management.

Office of Dietary Supplements

http://ods.od.nih.gov/
The mission of ODS is to strengthen knowledge and understanding of dietary supplements by evaluating scientific information, stimulating and supporting research, disseminating research results, and educating the public to foster an enhanced quality of life and health for the U.S. population.

Query menopause in site search engine

National Institute on Aging

http://www.nia.nih.gov/
NIA, one of the 27 Institutes and Centers of NIH, leads a broad scientific effort to understand the nature of aging and to extend the healthy, active years of life. In 1974, Congress granted authority to form NIA to provide leadership in aging research, training, health information dissemination, and other programs relevant to aging and older people.

Marketing Menopause  National Radio Project

http://radioproject.org/archive/1999/9908.html
Over 40 million women in the US will go through menopause in the next 20 years. Their experience of this life transition will be profoundly affected by society’s attitudes about women, aging, sexuality, healthcare and drugs. Pharmaceutical companies are spending millions of dollars to persuade women to boost their naturally declining levels of estrogen, and claiming that Hormone Replacement Therapy, or HRT, has more benefits than risks.

On this program, the Women’s Desk examines what’s behind the marketing of menopause.