The menopause is a natural event in a woman's life when the ovaries stop producing eggs, periods stop and the body stops producing the female hormones oestrogen and progesterone.

This changing hormone level affects women in different ways with a variety of symptoms such as hot flushes, irritability, irregular cycles, night sweats, depression, forgetfulness, loss of libido, vaginal dryness and insomnia.

Menopause describes the last menstrual period a woman ever has. It can occur naturally or artificially such as following removal of the ovaries. The average age of the menopause is around 51 years but it can occur very much earlier than this.