GPs must wake up to the truth about HRT

THE number of prescriptions for Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) has, as the Mail reported this week, halved in the past seven years.

This suggests that millions of women have been left to cope with the symptoms of the menopause without medication that could help them.

HRT has fallen out of favour after a 2002 study linked it to an increased risk of breast cancer and stroke.

What was less widely reported, though, was the fact that this study exaggerated the risks. Subsequent research has emphasised the benefits of HRT, but many doctors remain wary.

This is a tragedy for those women whose quality of life could be dramatically improved by taking HRT.

The impact of the menopause on mental health cannot be overestimated, with disrupted sleep, hot flushes and so on triggering depression and anxiety.

But I’m also convinced that the hormonal fluctuations can be responsible for low mood in the same way that post-natal women can develop depression.

I’ve seen many women who are struggling to cope with the menopause, for whom HRT has been a godsend. But too many are being palmed off with antidepressants instead. It’s time all GPs availed themselves of the real facts about HRT.