Lilia Margarita Valdezsenator for the National Regeneration Movement (Brunette), and Claudia Ruiz Massieuof the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), agreed that the legislature must work in favor of women to eliminate discrimination, stigmatization and stereotypes due to the menopause.
During the forum “Menopause: a public policy challenge”, Valdez Martínez, 67, pointed out this Wednesday, May 3, that legislation must be legislated so that women who suffer from symptoms related to this stage don’t get fired unfairly. In addition, the also president of the Health Commission considered that this circumstance must be addressed so that these biological processes do not become health problems.
On his own, Ruiz Massieu Salinas recognized that in Mexico health policies and adequate financing are needed to have timely diagnoses and treatments to treat menopause and climacteric. In this regard, he pointed out that in Mexico there are 24 million women who are going through some stage of symptoms and 60% face this situation without treatment and without medical help.
For this reason, he regretted the personal and social silence on menopause, for which the work of the federal legislature is required for the creation of efficient public policies to achieve a comprehensive inclusion of various aspects that women experiencesuch as sexual and gender diversity and their right to legal termination of pregnancy.
Ruiz Massieu indicated that, as far as legislation goes, the legal scaffolding that directs social coexistence for particular issues of women has been reinforced; however, he recognized that menopause is not approached from a public perspective, since public policies in relation to women are oriented only to birth control or the menstrual cyclebut not to this natural and inevitable stage of female life.
The importance of legislating in this regard is high, because, according to the PRI, inequalities with women persist in Mexico, since the 55% of workers do not have access to health institutions by your workplace; 35% of women are underemployed and their monthly income is less than that of men.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), for most women, the menopause It is marked by the end of monthly menstruation, which in turn is due to the loss of ovarian follicular function. This means that the ovaries stop releasing eggs to be fertilized.
“The hormonal changes associated with menopause can affect physical, emotional, mental and social well-being”
The WHO adds that the symptoms experienced during and after the menopausal transition “vary remarkably from one person to another”, because while some women suffer few symptoms, or even none, others may suffer severe symptoms that affect their daily activities. and diminish your quality of life.
The symptoms, which can last for years, were numbered by the WHO: a) hot flashes and night sweats. b) changes in the regularity and flow of the menstrual cycle, culminating in the cessation of menstruation, c) vaginal dryness, pain during sexual intercourse and incontinence. d) difficulty sleeping/insomnia. e) changes in mood, depression and/or anxiety.
Likewise, it was recognized that menopause can alter body composition and cardiovascular risk. Consequently, the advantage of women over men in terms of cardiovascular disease gradually disappears after the menopause due to the significant decrease that occurs in the estrogen levels.
“Menopause can also lead to weakening of the supporting structures of the pelvis, which increases the risk of pelvic organ prolapse”
As if this were not enough, during menopause, women experience a process of bone density loss, which contributes significantly to increased rates of osteoporosis and fractures.
