I'm not surprised by a new survey showing that the majority of women over 50 who experience vaginal dryness don't feel comfortable talking to their doctors about it. The survey, sponsored by hormone therapy manufacturer Novo Nordisk, finds that 40 percent of post-menopausal women experience dryness and pain but that 7 out of 10 aren't seeking any advice from a gynecologist or family physician.

    The truth is, I've had vaginal dryness, too, after the birth of my first baby, and I didn't think of broaching the topic at my postnatal exam. I don't remember being told that this was a common side effect of plummeting estrogen levels after pregnancy. Though it makes perfect sense-nature's way of saying let's hold off on getting pregnant again, at least until your body no longer needs to produce all that milk.

    New moms weren't surveyed by Novo Nordisk, since they can't use the estrogen creams and tablets produced by the company. They also weren't surveyed by hormone maker Wyeth in its new report showing that 1 in 4 post-menopausal women has such bad vaginal dryness that she experiences burning and sharp pain during intercourse. Breast cancer patients weren't included either, even though they, too, frequently have severe vaginal dryness. They're usually told not to use estrogen products because of risks associated with recurrence.

    So what are the best ways to relieve vaginal dryness? Nursing mothers and those with a history of breast cancer can try the first five things below, while post-menopausal women with no health problems can try all six. And, yes, do talk to your doctor about these problems since they can sometimes be caused by medications like antidepressants or an autoimmune disease called Sjogren's syndrome.

    1. Stay hydrated. Drinking six to eight glasses of water a day will help keep your tissues moist, including those below the belt.

    2. Lubricate, and lubricate some more. Many women achieve instant relief simply by using a lubricant. There are at least half a dozen of these on drugstore shelves. You may need to experiment to find one that works best for you.

    3 . Avoid personal hygiene sprays. Chemicals in these products can be irritating to delicate tissues that line the vagina.

    4 . Skip the douching. This can disrupt the vagina's normal chemical balance, leading to inflammation and dryness.

    5 . Eat health ful amounts of "good" fats. Your body needs a little fat with every meal to make adequate levels of sex hormones. Flaxseed oil and soy, which have estrogenlike effects, may help somewhat with vaginal dryness.

    6 . Consider a topical estrogen cream and vaginal suppositories. They're an option if your symptoms were brought on by menopause. But you'll also need to take a progesterone tablet if you have a uterus to protect yourself from endometrial cancer. Bioidentical estrogen and progesterone are available for those who want chemically identical versions of the hormones made naturally by the body.

    一份新的調(diào)查表明大部分50歲以上有陰道干澀癥狀的婦女對(duì)與自己的醫(yī)生討論此事感到難受，對(duì)此我并不驚訝。調(diào)查由激素療法制造商諾和諾德發(fā)起，發(fā)現(xiàn)40%的絕經(jīng)婦女承受著陰道干澀的痛苦，但70%并沒(méi)有尋求婦科醫(yī)生或家庭醫(yī)生的建議。

    事實(shí)上，在我的第一個(gè)孩子出生后，同樣有過(guò)陰道干澀，并且在產(chǎn)后檢查中沒(méi)有想到提出這個(gè)問(wèn)題。我不記得有人告訴過(guò)我這是產(chǎn)后雌激素下降的副作用。雖然這非常有意義--至少在你的身體無(wú)需產(chǎn)乳之前，以自然的方式發(fā)表"讓我們?cè)俅卧杏�新生�?quot;的宣言。

    新媽媽們沒(méi)有在諾和諾德公司的調(diào)查對(duì)象中，因?yàn)樗齻儾荒苁褂霉�司生產(chǎn)雌激素軟膏或片劑。她們同樣不是激素制造商惠氏一份新報(bào)告中的調(diào)查對(duì)象，報(bào)告顯示四分之一的絕經(jīng)期婦女有嚴(yán)重的陰道干澀癥狀以至于在性交會(huì)產(chǎn)生灼痛感。調(diào)查同樣不包括乳腺癌患者，雖然她們同樣有嚴(yán)重的陰道干澀的困擾。因?yàn)榇嬖谌橄侔��?fù)發(fā)風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，她們常被告知不能使用雌激素。

    那么緩解陰道干澀的最好方法是什么呢？哺乳期的媽媽們及有乳腺癌病史的婦女可以嘗試以下內(nèi)容的前五項(xiàng)，而無(wú)其它健康問(wèn)題的絕經(jīng)后婦女可以嘗試以下所有的六項(xiàng)建議。并且，是的，無(wú)需將這些問(wèn)題告訴你的醫(yī)生，因?yàn)檫@些問(wèn)題有時(shí)是由于抗抑郁藥或自身免疫疾病引起的，稱(chēng)之為"斯耶格倫氏綜合征".

    PS:Sjogren's Syndrome簡(jiǎn)單來(lái)說(shuō)是當(dāng)身體受到外來(lái)異物統(tǒng)稱(chēng)抗原細(xì)菌病毒真菌攻擊時(shí)就會(huì)產(chǎn)生自體防衛(wèi)的體系的統(tǒng)稱(chēng)。

    1.保持身體水分。每天喝6-8杯水有助于保持組織濕潤(rùn)，包括腰部以下的組織。

    2.潤(rùn)滑劑，多一些潤(rùn)滑。許多女性通過(guò)使用潤(rùn)滑劑得到立竿見(jiàn)影的緩解。藥店貨架上至少有半打以上的潤(rùn)滑劑種類(lèi)。你可能需要嘗試不同的品牌選擇其中對(duì)最有效的一種。

    3.避免使用個(gè)人衛(wèi)生噴霧劑。這些產(chǎn)品中的化學(xué)成分可能會(huì)刺激陰道組織。

    4.跳過(guò)沖洗。這可能會(huì)擾亂陰道正常的化學(xué)平衡，導(dǎo)致炎癥及燥癥。

    5.攝取適量的"有益"脂肪。你的身體每餐需要少量脂肪保持性激素平衡。亞麻籽油和大豆，有類(lèi)似雌激素的作用，可能或多或少地有助于緩和陰道干燥。

    6. 考慮一款局部雌激素乳霜或陰道栓劑。當(dāng)你的干燥癥狀由絕經(jīng)引起時(shí)，它們可供選擇。但是同樣你需要服用黃體酮片劑防止自己患子宮內(nèi)膜癌。生物特性相同的雌激素和黃體酮（一種結(jié)晶狀的荷爾蒙）適用于那些希望荷爾蒙化學(xué)成分由自身自然產(chǎn)生的人。