In 1860, the average age of menarche, or a girl’s first menstruation, was 16.6 years old. Less than 100 years later, in 1950, this had decreased to 13.1 according to The Museum of Menstruation and Women’s Health. This has further gone down since then, although more slowly. Today, the average age of menarche is 12.6 years old for white girls, 12.1 years for African American girls and 12.2 years for Latinos. It is not known why there is a difference or whether this difference has existed for many years, as most early information only took girls who were white or had European ancestry into account during studies. Scientists and medical professionals aren’t sure why the age of menarche continues to decrease.
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a hormonal contraceptive device on Friday that gives American women another reversible contraceptive choice as effective as sterilization.
But other experts warn it's too soon to say the treatment is safe
Hormone replacement therapy for women may not be as potentially risky as previously thought, a new Mayo Clinic review contends.
The new study, which evaluated three decades of prior research, concluded that hormone therapy to treat symptoms of menopause doesn't increase overall risk of death or the risk of death from heart attack, stroke or cancer.
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A new device to aid females with fecal incontinence (FI) has been approved for marketing by the FDA. The device, known as the Eclipse System, is intended for adult women (18-75) who severely suffer from FI – experiencing four or more episodes a week. Fecal incontinence is caused by weakening of the pelvic muscle walls and/or nerve damage, and makes it hard for a person to control bowel movements.
A major European obesity investigation has called for urgent action to prevent obesity in women of child-bearing age.
The authors, including a team from Edinburgh University, say children born to overweight mothers are at greater risk of health problems in later life.
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Taking folic acid supplements during pregnancy is extremely important. But a Portuguese study indicates that there can also be too much of a good thing. Taking excessive amounts of folic acid can harm the offspring and lead to diabetes and obesity, particularly in girls. The study was published in the "Journal of Endocrinology".
The safest time to fly during pregnancy is before 37 weeks or, if carrying twins, before 32 weeks, new advice says.
The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists says flying is not harmful during a low-risk pregnancy, but there may be side-effects.
Read MoreDAMMAM — Private hospitals are carrying out pre-conception gender selection operations and reporting them as IV fertilization or artificial fertilization in response to a growing number of patients’ requests, Al-Hayat daily reported.
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Anywhere from 8 to 19 percent of women report having frequent postpartum depressive symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Many of these mothers who seek medical care are treated with conventional antidepressants, but little is known about the diagnosis itself. Now, scientists have developed an animal model to study postpartum depression and how to treat it.
Psychotherapy and mindfulness techniques could help many women who experience depression during menopause, according to a review of existing research.
Too few studies have looked at whether cognitive therapies are good alternatives for women who can’t or don’t want to use pharmaceutical treatments, the authors conclude, but the handful that did mostly showed positive results.
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