As a lot of my readers know, I am always searching and/or researching the latest and greatest products that can help us women in Midlife go through this period of our lives as best and as stress-free as we possibly can. What with worrying about our (grown) children, our relationships, our jobs and the caretaking of our homes - we still also want to look our best as Father Time is never far from our doorstep. We women have so much to be concerned with regarding our health and we are always trying to counteract the ravages of time and what it brings to us. After going out to work, buying the bacon and frying it up in the pan - we still have to keep our feminine mystique alive by taking good care of our skin, hair, nails, and our bodies in general.

That brings me to one of the items I wanted to mention in this article. There are several things that I think are crucial for a woman to investigate in Midlife to help revitalize her and get her back on the road to feeling like her old self again. I'd like to throw in a word or two about Suzanne Somers' new book, 'Breakthrough'. This book is a must-have book. Suzanne explores issues like no one has ever tackled them before; she is a survivor both literally and figuratively. I think most of you readers know Suzanne battled cancer over five years ago and has lived to not only tell about her triumph over it but has also dug in with her heels and researched so much about our health issues in order to help us women make some really good decisions about our health and well-being. Bravo Suzanne! I could tell Suzanne put a lot of tender-loving care into your book. Kudos to her.

One of the glaring health issues as far as I'm concerned for us women going through Midlife/Menopause is our thyroid. My research has shown that about 50% of women in midlife have a thyroid condition - and a lot of them don't even know it!

Hypothyroid is when the thyroid gland is actually not working up to par and most often women with this condition start putting a lot of weight on and find they cannot get it off easily. It is quite common in women over 50. Usually a person who is hypothyroid will feel sluggish, lacking the 'get up and go' they used to have. Although I had my thyroid checked several years ago by an Endocrinologist and the doctor said I was within 'normal' range - that does not always mean you are home free with no problem. I have read many articles on this that say even though the tests show 'normal' - is that the 'norm' FOR YOU? It might be normal for someone else - or, to put it another way - it might be someone else's normal range - but maybe not yours. Your doctor needs to give you a TSH test. This stands for 'Thyroid Stimulating Hormone'. He needs to check your T3 and T4 conversion. Then, if needed, he would put you on one of the thyroid medications such as Thyroxine or the natural dessicated thyroid, Armour Thyroid.

Hyperthyroid is when the thyroid is overactive; one of the hallmark signals of this is when you see people whose eyes seem to bulge a little. That is a sure sign they need to see their doctor to have their thyroid checked.

Another serious health topic/issue I would like to briefly mention is our Adrenals. These are walnut-shaped glands that sit on top of our kidneys. It is surprising how many things they regulate, yet you rarely hear anyone mention them. Suzanne gives you invaluable information in her new book on this that really breaks things down for you. She interviews many different specialists in their particular field and it is really fascinating to be able to get so much insight on a myriad of issues a lot of us women are experiencing.

Suzanne mentions in her book that she 'blew out' her adrenals four times in her life due to stress. She now has to have Cortisol injections because her adrenals do not function properly. When a hormone called Aldosterone, produced by the Adrenals, is low, it can cause hearing loss. When replaced by bioidentical (hormone) Aldosterone, the hearing can be corrected or repaired. (p. 27 of Suzanne's book).

The key point to mention is that our hormones control and regulate our entire body. When you have a hormonal imbalance it can wreak havoc on your health - it's like a domino effect; if the thyroid is out of whack it ultimately affects the liver and causes a multitude of problems - for example, insulin resistance; and, insulin resistance can lead to diabetes.

Another issue she addresses is: Hydrochloric acid, or the lack thereof ; 50% of people over 60, according to Mayo Clinic researchers, have less stomach acid being produced in their stomachs than is necessary to completely digest their food - they are lacking in 'hydrochloric acid'. This leads to lack of proper nutrition out of the food we consume. Dr. Jonathan Wright talks about this in Suzanne's book - also cluing us in on the fact that lack of this digestive acid can lead to 'macular degeneration'.

Do you see how each issue ties into another issue which causes another issue within our systems. I could go on and on, but my column is limited. I hope this article boosts awareness to where women realize just one imbalance in our systems can lead to a plethora of problems if we don't catch it before it leads to a serious disease down the road.

Have a great week - 'see' you next week!