Cover -- Half-title -- Title -- Copyright -- Dedication -- Contents -- Contributors -- Introduction -- REFERENCES -- Part I Health promotion -- 2 Physical activity and exercise -- Introduction -- Benefits of exercise -- Regular physical activity -- Resistance training -- Endurance training -- Alternative therapies -- Exercise prescription for healthy populations -- Resistance training -- Endurance training -- Exercise prescription for special populations -- The athletic woman -- The career woman -- Disease considerations -- Summary -- FURTHER RESOURCES -- Books -- Videos -- REFERENCES -- 3 Nutrition -- Normal healthy diet -- Balancing intake and output -- Limiting fat intake -- Adequate calcium -- Diet as therapy -- Menopausal symptom control -- Cancer risk reduction -- Dietary factors that may increase risk -- Dietary factors that may decrease risk -- Weight concerns -- Overweight and obesity -- Diet pills -- Eating disorders -- Diet and medical problems -- Diabetes -- Heart disease -- Hypertension -- Cancer -- Surgery -- Radiation -- Chemotherapy -- Chronic lung disease -- Arthritis -- FURTHER RESOURCES -- REFERENCES -- 4 Psychosocial health promotion of mid-life women -- Introduction -- Developmental issues for the mid-life woman -- Health behaviors and self-care -- Self-knowledge -- Social roles -- Generational identity -- Relational theory -- Family structure and care-giving -- Relational aging -- Aging children -- Aging parents -- Aging partner/spouse -- Conclusion -- Implications for work with mid-life women -- REFERENCES -- 5 Sexual health -- Importance -- Epidemiology -- Developmental tasks -- Lifecycle changes -- Problems with the partner -- Psychosocial issues -- The empty nest -- Family planning and family structure -- Hormonal fluctuations -- Body image -- Relationships -- Chronic illnesses -- Management of sexual concerns.

Decreased sexual desire -- Decreased arousal and/or plateau -- Difficulties with orgasm -- Long-term relationships -- Lesbian couples -- Sexual pain syndromes -- Summary -- FURTHER RESOURCES -- REFERENCES -- 6 Alcoholism, nicotine dependence, and drug abuse -- Introduction -- Comorbidity with other psychiatric disorders -- Genetic and environmental risk factors -- Genetic factors -- Environmental factors -- Age and drinking patterns in women -- Drinking patterns and ethnicity -- Definitions -- Medical consequences of long-term alcoholism -- Harmful effects -- Beneficial effects of alcohol consumption -- Treatment -- Treatment of problem drinking: the use of brief intervention in family practice -- Treatment of alcohol dependence and abuse -- Immediate treatment: detoxification - the control of alcohol withdrawal syndrome -- Sustained treatment: prevention of relapse -- Behavioral treatment approaches -- Alcoholics Anonymous, Women for Sobriety, and 12-step facilitation therapy -- Cognitive-behavioral therapy and motivational enhancement therapy -- Pharmacotherapy of alcohol addiction -- Anti-craving medications -- Aversive pharmocotherapy -- Pharmacotherapy for comorbid conditions -- Pharmacotherapy of nicotine addiction -- Treatment of alcoholic smokers -- Conclusion -- FURTHER RESOURCES -- REFERENCES -- 7 Depression and anxiety -- Introduction and epidemiology -- Etiology of gender differences -- Clinical presentation -- The spectrum of depressive illnesses -- Major depressive disorder -- History and screening -- Physical and laboratory assessment -- Management -- Psychotherapy -- Pharmacotherapy -- Alternative therapies -- Hormonally related depression in mid-life women -- Premenstrual dysphoric disorder -- Perimenopause and menopause -- Other dysphoric conditions -- Mood disorder due to a medical condition -- Bereavement -- Anxiety.

Generalized anxiety disorder -- Phobias -- Post-traumatic stress disorder -- Panic disorder -- Obsessive-compulsive disorder -- Anxiety secondary to other conditions -- Treatment of anxiety disorders -- Mixed anxiety and depression -- REFERENCES -- Part II Hormonal changes -- 8 Physical changes in menopause and perimenopause -- Perimenopause and menopause -- Symptoms -- Urogenital symptoms -- Treatment -- Vasomotor symptoms -- Pharmacological treatment -- Alternative therapies -- Menstrual changes -- Evaluation -- History and physical examination -- Laboratory testing -- Radiological studies -- Treatment of menstrual changes -- Conclusion -- REFERENCES -- 9 Spiritual and psychological aspects of menopause -- Introduction -- Spiritual aspects of menopause -- Addressing spiritual issues -- Obtaining a spiritual history -- Integrating spiritual care into practice -- Psychological aspects of menopause -- Menopause as a transition -- Associated demographic factors -- Mood and menopause -- Social changes and context of menopause -- Treatment -- Pharmacotherapy -- Exercise -- Counseling -- Summary -- REFERENCES -- 10 Hormone therapy -- Introduction -- Hormonal changes at menopause -- Symptoms -- Prevention of chronic disease -- Risks of hormone therapy -- Cardiovascular disease -- Stroke -- Thrombotic events -- Breast cancer -- Endometrial cancer -- Ovarian cancer -- Cognition and dementia -- Diabetes mellitus -- Cholelithiasis -- Other adverse events -- The choice to use hormone/estrogen therapy -- How to help women make rational and individual choices -- Chronic disease prevention -- Discontinuing hormone therapy -- Types of estrogen/progestin therapy and estrogen-alone therapy -- When to start hormone therapy -- Pretreatment assessment -- Alternatives to hormone therapy, including complementary treatments -- Hot flushes -- Behavioral therapies.

Hormones -- Tibolone -- Phytoestrogens -- Herbal preparations: black cohosh -- Other herbs and botanicals -- Vaginal dryness -- Libido -- Osteoporosis -- Testosterone -- The future -- FURTHER RESOURCES -- REFERENCES -- 11 Contraception and fertility -- Introduction -- Contraception -- Barrier devices -- Tubal ligation -- Vasectomy -- Condoms -- Intrauterine devices -- Diaphragms -- Sponges -- Hormonal methods -- Oral contraceptives -- Emergency contraception -- Injectable contraceptives -- Rhythm methods -- Spermicidal devices -- Less reliable methods -- Abortion -- Summary -- Choice of method -- Infertility and assisted fertilization -- Infertility -- Evaluation -- In vitro fertilization -- Summary -- FURTHER RESOURCES -- REFERENCES -- Part III Disease prevention -- 12 Prevention of coronary heart disease in women -- Introduction -- Risk factors for atherosclerosis -- The Framingham coronary heart disease prediction equation: a new tool to improve coronary heart disease risk stratification in primary prevention -- Primary prevention -- Smoking -- Hypertension -- Diabetes -- Serum lipids -- Obesity -- Physical inactivity -- Aspirin for primary prevention -- Secondary prevention -- Aspirin -- Beta-blockers -- Statins -- Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors -- Synergy of medications -- Cardiac rehabilitation -- Mediterranean diet -- Folic acid and other B vitamins -- Hormone replacement therapy: a preventive therapy that has fallen from favor -- Conclusions -- REFERENCES -- 13 Hypertension and stroke -- Introduction -- Hypertension -- Impact -- Diagnosis -- Treatment -- Lifestyle changes and non-pharmacological therapy -- Pharmacological therapy -- Difficult-to-treat hypertension -- Stroke -- Diagnosis -- Primary and secondary prevention -- Anticoagulation -- Primary prevention by use of therapeutic agents -- Secondary prevention -- Anticoagulation.

Surgical treatment of carotid artery stenosis -- Summary -- REFERENCES -- 14 Diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis -- Introduction -- Prevention -- Nutritional prevention -- Evaluation -- Symptoms and signs -- Laboratory findings -- Imaging tests -- Special tests -- Differential diagnosis and screening -- Treatment -- Estrogen -- Calcium and vitamin D -- Calcitonin -- Bisphosphonates -- Selective estrogen receptor modulators -- Complementary and alternative therapies -- Addressing glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis -- Summary -- REFERENCES -- 15 Diabetes in mid-life women -- Definitions -- Epidemiology -- Clinical course -- Signs and symptoms -- Screening of asymptomatic individuals -- Diagnostic criteria -- Blood glucose target levels -- Prevention of diabetes -- Risk factors -- Diabetes prevention program -- Menopause and diabetes -- Type 2 diabetes and menopause -- Type 1 diabetes and menopause -- Glycemic control: therapeutic interventions -- Education -- Diet -- Exercise -- Home blood glucose monitoring -- Medications -- Sulfonylureas -- Biguanides -- Thiazolidinediones -- Other oral agents -- Insulin: types and profiles -- Diabetes complications -- Summary -- Take-home points -- FURTHER RESOURCES -- REFERENCES -- Part IV Cancer prevention -- 16 Breast cancer: screening and prevention -- Introduction -- Presentation -- Screening -- Self-breast exmination -- Clinical breast examination -- Mammography -- Women aged 50-65 years -- Women aged 40-50 years -- Women over age 65 years -- Other modalities -- Prevention -- Risk factors -- Diet -- Hormone replacement therapy -- Hereditary factors -- Pharmacotherapy prevention -- Summary -- FURTHER RESOURCES -- REFERENCES -- 17 Cervical cancer: prevention, screening, and early detection -- Incidence -- Screening and early detection -- The Pap smear -- Method -- When and how often?.

Evaluation of abnormal Pap test.