Dear Cynthia,
       I cannot answer your question specifically about menopause and
lactation, but I do have some thoughts to share with you from my case study
of one regarding the clinical implications of her loss of ovaries. No ovaries
means she will also not be producing estrogen which puts her at risk for
osteoporosis. Estrogen inhibits the milk supply so it is not a breastfeeding
problem now. I am a nursing mother who apparently has had little or no
estrogen for a long time although I do have my ovaries. I was diagnosed with
severe osteoporosis two years ago which I believe was caused by the estrogen
deficiency. Most mothers in her position would be offered hormone replacement
therapy. Taking this estrogen replacement could reduce her milk supply. I
have tried a low-dose combination birth control pill (Allesse) beginning when
my daughter was 1 year old and found a significant drop in milk supply. I
used it for 5 months. Her weight gain was low during that time despite very
frequent nursing day and night. She also had one incident of vaginal bleeding
which I disliked. I had a bone scan then which showed an increase in bone
mineral density. I switched to prescription natural hormones one year ago,
estrogen-derived from soy and progesterone-derived from wild yam, compounded
by the pharmacy. I found these have continued to improve my condition in
terms of reducing back pain and increasing flexibility. I will be having a
bone density test next month to determine whether they are helping me build
bone. I still have what I consider to be a lower milk supply when compared to
nursing my previous three toddlers. My 28 month old still nurses frequently
day and night. However, it is not as low as it was from the birth control
pill.
       I hope this information will be helpful.

               Judy Gutowski, IBCLC
and mother of 5 breastfed babies

             ***********************************************
The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html