An analysis of menopause in the popular press

With the increased interest in menopause, it is imperative that midlife women be given reliable information. An analysis of the lay literature on menopause over the past ten years in the United States was conducted in order to determine the content of the articles, their source, and their credibility. Most articles were found to blend opinion with fact, and many of the authors of these articles did not have any stated qualifications in midlife women's health. Physicians, particularly those espousing the medicalization of menopause, were the most often quoted experts, and few nurses or other health care workers were cited as experts. It is suggested that nurses become more involved in health education for midlife women.