A Book Review By Brenda Hyde

When we see a diet article advertised on the front of a magazine we often pick it up. When we read about a new diet we want to know more. Weight is important to so many women, whether it's 5 pounds or 100 pounds. We want to understand how to lose it and how to look better. But what if we spent that same amount of energy, money and time on understanding our hormones?

After reading The Hormone Survival Guide for Perimenopause: Balance Your Hormones Naturally it occurred to me that everything the author, Nisha Jackson, Ph.D., was talking about to give me better control over my hormones would also help me with my weight, my mental state and my overall health. I didn't need a "diet". I needed a lifestyle change to help me become a healthy woman, who just happens to be in perimenopause.

Nisha Jackson is a friendly, down to earth writer who has lived what she writes about. Her book is a reference book for women who want to understand what they are going through and want to take an active role in becoming healthier with or without their doctors if it comes to that. This isn't a radical book slamming all medical professionals. Rather, it's a book that encourages us to work with our doctor to discover what we need, not what he or she THINKS we need. The chapters lay it all out:

Why Hormonal Chaos?

Know Your Hormones in and out of Balance

Have Your Hormones Tested

Use Hormones to Treat Hormone Problems

Fix Your Diet: The Most Powerful Way to Create Hormonal Balance

Eliminate the Stress Hormone

Get a Grip on PMS

Turn on Your Sex Drive

The Fatigue Factor: Rejuvenate Your Thyroid

Other Hazards of Perimenopause

The 12-Week Hormone-Balancing Plan

There are also appendixes dealing with vitamins and mineral supplements, other products and recommended reading.

As editor at Old Fashioned Living I communicate with women in their 20's through their 70's. I hear their frustrations and I can relate to them as well. We want someone to take our health problems seriously. We want to live fulfilling and sensual lives whether we are 25 or 75! Yes, our body is aging, but we want to know what we can do to adapt. What lifestyle changes do we need to make? Nisha Jackson has given us a book that teaches us to understand our hormones. She has given us the manual, but we need to do the work. Her suggestions aren't all easy. Some call for small changes and some call for big ones. But I believe all women need to understand their bodies to live a full and satisfying life. Reading The Hormone Survival Guide gives us a place to start and a plan that will put us on the right path.

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