Are you thinking menopause will never happen to you? Elizabeth Tracey reports

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Women are a rarity in the biological world, since they will spend up to a third or more of their lives after the point where they cease reproductive ability, at menopause. Wen Shen, a menopause expert at Johns Hopkins, says that fact alone points to a need for greater awareness.

Shen: We need to educate younger women, starting in their late thirties, about the fact that menopause is coming. For every woman you live long enough, you’re going into menopause. Girls are normally told about having their first period, women who are pregnant get advice from everybody under the sun, but nothing about menopause. There’s plenty of clinical data to show that for women who start hormone therapy early, in their perimenopause, actually get the most benefit.  :34

Shen says all women should ask questions about menopause. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.