Few topics in women's medicine today are as fraught with confusion and controversy as the question of appropriate treatment for menopausal symptoms and the prevention of negative long term health outcomes common to post-menopausal women. Cardiovascular disease (CVD), osteoporosis, and cancer -- the most common causes of death, disability and impaired quality of life for women -- can potentially be prevented or forestalled by dietary, behavioral, and drug interventions. A better understanding of the natural history of the menopause is critical to providing better care. If women and their...