Researchers examined data from seven studies involving more than 9,000 women around the world

Perimenopausal women have a 40% higher risk of experiencing depression than premenopausal women, a global analysis of research suggests.

Experts from University College London (UCL) found women could be vulnerable to depression in the run-up to their periods stopping, with the development of new cases or existing symptoms worsening. The research underlines the need to provide support and screening to effectively address women’s mental health needs.

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Retailer says it is filling advice gap on subjects such as menstruation and hormones amid wellness-focused revamp

It used to be known mainly as a destination for dried fruit and vitamin tablets but now women can get advice on period pain, mood swings and sleep while shopping in Holland & Barrett.

The retailer has trained 600 staff to act as women’s health coaches after its research revealed demand for broader support on hormonal and menstrual issues, with menopause the “tip of the iceberg”.

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Women with symptoms are being penalised, National Education Union’s annual conference told

The UK’s biggest teaching union is to lobby for menopause training to be made mandatory for all school leaders, saying women with symptoms are being penalised for sickness absence and disciplined on competency grounds.

Older staff were at greatest risk of “capability procedures”, delegates at the National Education Union’s (NEU) annual conference in Bournemouth were told, while others are being forced out of their jobs, affecting not only their income but their pensions.

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Conversations about menopause have matured but the question of when and how to treat perimenopausal symptoms remains confusing – even to a science journalist

There’s a meme featuring a confident, suave, smiling Henry Cavill – the actor best known for playing Superman – posing for photographers on the red carpet. Sneaking up behind him is wild-looking, maniacally gleeful co-star Jason Momoa.

To me, this is the perfect metaphor for perimenopause. Cavill is at the peak of his career, he looks great, clearly feels great, exudes confidence, strength and self-possession. And he’s about to get crash-tackled by a capricious and unpredictable force.

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Patients taking certain progestogens as a contraceptive or for gynaecological conditions may be more likely to develop growths, researchers say

Millions of women around the world who use certain hormone drugs for contraception and to manage conditions such as endometriosis may have a raised risk of rare, usually benign, brain tumours, researchers say.

Scientists found that prolonged use of certain progestogen medications was linked to a greater risk of meningioma, which are tumours (usually noncancerous) that form in tissues around the brain.

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Trying to learn about menopause has been disorienting, but Angela Garbes has also experienced ‘a softening, an openness’

In my 20s and 30s, I went hard, driven by a desire to live life fully. I wanted to stay up all night having heated conversations, collect experiences and adventures, make art and meaning from everything that happened. Somewhere in the far-off distance I pictured myself making it to age 40, but never thought further than that: I would turn 40 ... and then I’d be s65?

My naivete died three years ago in the middle of the night. I woke up drenched in perspiration, shivering. It was shocking to find myself suddenly so cold and in the dark. Within a month, I was waking at least twice a week – three, four or even five times a night.

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The neurologist and author on the upsides to menopause, the truth about HRT, and what superpowers become available to women after their body and brain’s transition

Menopause marks the end of a woman’s menstruation. But, starting on average at around 47 and taking four to eight years, it doesn’t just impact the body: thanks to the accompanying decline of the hormone oestrogen, it impacts the brain too. Lisa Mosconi studies that impact. Her new book, The Menopause Brain , examines the neurological symptoms of menopause, the new mental skills it can foster and the options for brain-inclusive menopause care. Mosconi, 46, is an associate professor of neurology and radiology at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City, where she directs its Women’s Brain Initiative and Alzheimer’s Prevention Program, run jointly with NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.

Menopause is a hot topic ! What does your book bring that is new?
A neuroscience perspective. And it is a part of menopause that’s been excluded or not acknowledged clearly. While hot flashes are generally recognised as a side-effect of menopause, most doctors simply won’t make the connection with other brain symptoms. But our ovaries are in direct communication with our brain, which is hardwired to respond to the oestrogen and other hormones they produce. And while our ovaries close up shop, our brain needs to keep going. That can bring glitches as our brain adjusts. I am here to say: you’re not crazy!

The Menopause Brain by Lisa Mosconi is published by Atlantic (£14.99). To support the Guardian and Observer order your copy at guardianbookshop.com . Delivery charges may apply

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‘A surge of interest’ is helping scientists understand and normalize ‘the change’

When Lisa Mosconi started studying the impact of menopause on the brain, she realized two important facts.

First, very few brain studies looked at menopause at all. Second, the few that did looked at older women who were well past menopause.

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Advice to employers must be followed by a conversation about lack of access to HRT and deep-seated sexism

Fifty-one per cent of the population will experience menopause; around a third of women – 13 million – are estimated to either be going through or have gone through it. Yet like so many aspects of female health and wellbeing – from pregnancy to conditions such as endometriosis and childbirth – menopause is stigmatised, under-researched and its symptoms undertreated thanks to the sexism and ageism directed at middle-aged and older women.

So the new guidance for employers, published last week by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), on their legal obligations to female employees in relation to menopause is to be welcomed, although we must be alive to the risks that, without a broader campaign to change attitudes towards older women, there is a risk it could play into harmful societal stereotypes about women in the workplace.

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