Health magazines worldwide are talking about women in menopause and bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT). But the same question keeps popping up. What are bioidentical hormones?

Bioidentical hormones are made in a lab from plants, and they are comprised of molecules that are the same as the endogenous hormones made in a person's body. These are not 'exactly' the same, but the molecules are "identical" - ergo the name bio-identical hormones. And, bioidentical hormones are often referred to as natural hormones.

In 2006, the oldest of the baby boomers, those born between 1946 and 1964, began turning 60 years old. According to the US Census Bureau, there were an estimated 78.2 million baby boomers, as of July 1, 2005, and 50.8 percent of them were women. That means according to projections 7,918 people turned 60 each day in 2006, or about 330 every hour.

This is one of the reasons why there are so many women today who are so uncomfortable with menopause symptoms. If you are one of more than 40 million women experiencing discomfort from menstruation to menopause, then you need to know the facts.

If you are experiencing any of the following fifty hormone imbalance symptoms, then you may have hormone imbalances, or be entering perimenopause, which eventually turns into menopause. Perimenopause usually starts in a woman's 40s, but can start in a woman's 30s or even earlier lasts for four years on average. This is the time when you may want to begin to think about taking bioidentical hormone replacement therapy. Clinically, menopause is defined as the cessation of menstruation for 12 consecutive months. Menopause marks the end of a woman's reproductive years, and this usually occurs naturally around the age of 52 when her ovaries stop producing estrogen, and there are no more fertile eggs.