{"id":2256,"date":"2018-12-21T14:06:52","date_gmt":"2018-12-21T14:06:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/?p=2256"},"modified":"2018-12-21T19:53:26","modified_gmt":"2018-12-21T19:53:26","slug":"not-the-whole-truth-about-menopause","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/?p=2256","title":{"rendered":"Not the Whole Truth about Menopause .."},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>The BBC has responded\nto my letter which had criticised their documentary \u201cThe Truth About Menopause\u201d\nwhich was broadcast on BBC One in November.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Whilst I think we\nshould be pleased<\/strong> that a one-hour documentary on the subject\nof menopause was shown, I was unhappy with many things about it and their\nresponse does not change my view. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>It could have been a\ngreat deal better than it was.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The programme failed\nto address the concerns of the majority of women who tell us they can\u2019t get the\nright &nbsp;kind of help and support from\ntheir GP.<\/strong>\nAnd also:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Mariella Frostrup featuring her own Harley Street Gynaecologist <\/strong>felt very much like a plug and was not representative, as this sort of private care is out of reach of the majority of women. <\/li><li><strong>It  discussed whether there was a \u201cmale menopause\u201d<\/strong> \u2013 a totally      different subject.<\/li><li><strong>It  may have misled a lot of people<\/strong> to think that  yearly scans are a necessity \u2013 they are not.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>We are already familiar with the views of the BBC presenter Jeni Murray \u00a0on Hormone Replacement Therapy (she\u2019s against it)<\/strong> and I think she did not need another opportunity to air views that have already been expressed a number of times on radio and television. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>My letter and their\nresponse are printed below<\/strong>, so you can make you own minds up whether\nprogramme really did the subject justice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>And I stand by the conclusion\nof my letter.<\/strong> &nbsp;I hope that the\npoints that I have raised will be enough to persuade the BBC a one hour programme\nis simply not the right vehicle to explore such an important topic which will\ndirectly affect every woman and indirectly affect every man. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>I suggest that the BBC look at a series of programmes which explore this subject more thoroughly. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Charlotte Moore <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Director, BBC Content<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>BBC Broadcasting House<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Portland Place<br>\nLondon <br>\nW1A 1AA<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>27<sup>th<\/sup> November 2018<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dear Charlotte<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I am writing in response to the broadcast of The\nTruth About Menopause on BBC One last night. I should begin by saying that I\nwas delighted to hear from the production team earlier in the year that this\nproject was underway and was very happy to offer information and signposting to\nthe team. As you can imagine I was very much looking forward to seeing the\nresult last night but having watched it I felt it was a missed opportunity, let\nme explain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I spend much of my working life supporting and\neducating women, men and organizations about menopause and the key is to offer\nfactual, evidence based information and to dispel the many myths and stories\nthat have grown up around the subject. Whilst the programme started well looking\nat up to date facts about HRT with Janice Rymer from the RCOG all the good work\nwas immediately undone by interviewing Jenni Murray sharing her well known very\npersonal views which has left many women even more confused. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It is unfortunate that time that could have been\nused to explore the challenges women face when seeking advice and support from NHS\nGP\u2019s focused instead on whether or not there is a male menopause. The reality\nfor the majority of women is that they do not have access to private care or\nHarley Street physicians but instead face a lottery of care depending upon\nwhether their GP has shown an interest in the subject and attended additional\ntraining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There was no mention of those who undergo\nhysterectomy surgery resulting in a surgical menopause or the 110,000 women who\nhave experienced premature menopause or those who are diagnosed with\ngynaecological or breast cancers and offered little in the way of management\nfor their symptoms with many being flatly refused the option of HRT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The inclusion of the medical research in to\ntissue preservation and Neurokinin B was certainly interesting but would have been\nmore suitable for the last in a series of programmes investigating what the\nfuture holds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The reality for many women is that they have no\nidea what is happening to them when their symptoms start, as for many the\nsymptoms are psychological and typically those women are told they are\ndepressed and prescribed anti depressants. The physical symptoms, once they\ncome along, can be equally debilitating, including very heavy periods, crashing\nfatigue and destroyed sleep patterns. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Menopause is a very individual experience and\nwhilst it was interesting to see the group using CBT, which can be helpful for\nsome, many women felt that the 100% success rate of the study group in the\nprogramme gave an unrealistic view. As some have pointed out no amount of\nbreathing or changed thinking would have addressed their severe symptoms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The interview about diet told us nothing new and\nprovided little in the way of information or advice and was an ideal example of\ntime that could have been spent focusing on some of the more pressing issues\nfor women around the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Women are losing jobs due to debilitating\nsymptoms and a lack of organizational support, relationships due to a lack of\nunderstanding between partners and in the very worst case scenario their lives\nwhen symptoms become completely overwhelming. The current statistics show that\nthe highest rate of suicide amongst women is between the ages of 50 and 54, the\naverage age of menopause is 51. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Whilst I appreciate that the programme was only\nan hour in duration so many of the key points were missed, there was very\nlittle time dedicated to &nbsp;brain function or\nheart health and the research regarding long term health and HRT. Libido,\nurinary symptoms and vaginal symptoms which affect so many women were not\naddressed at all and considering the amount of elderly women who continue to\nsuffer with these symptoms this would have been an ideal opportunity to share\nvital information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I hope that the points that I have raised will be\nenough to persuade you that a one hour programme is simply not the right\nvehicle to explore such an important topic which will directly affect every\nwoman and indirectly affect every man. I would like to suggest that the BBC\nlook at a series of programmes which explore this subject more thoroughly. I\nwould, of course, be delighted to speak with you about this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I look forward to your reply<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yours Sincerely<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"380\" height=\"250\" src=\"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/380250.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2257\" srcset=\"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/380250.png 380w, https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/380250-300x197.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 380px) 100vw, 380px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Psychotherapist and Menopause Expert<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dear Diane,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thank you for your\nletter.&nbsp; It has been passed to us as producers of the programme.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>HRT is an emotive and\ndivisive subject and we wanted to investigate where the fears surrounding HRT\noriginated and why many women are still afraid to take it.&nbsp; However, we\nalso wanted to make sure that we went on to put the real risk in perspective in\nas clear a way as possible, so that women feel equipped to make their own\ninformed decision.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jenni Murray is someone\nwho has been vocal in the media about her personal experience and fears about\nHRT.&nbsp; Her story helps to communicate why there has been concern around the\nissue.&nbsp; There is a link between breast cancer and HRT \u2013 but Jenni herself\nacknowledges that she also qualified for other lifestyle risk factors in terms\nof alcohol intake and weight.&nbsp; And as Mariella states in the film although\nthis is a powerful individual story she wants to investigate how big the risk\nreally is overall by speaking to an expert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When Mariella meets\nProfessor Janice Rymer, title, we discover that the risk of HRT is much smaller\nthan other lifestyle factors.&nbsp; Janice very clearly talks us through the\nrelative risks and states that the risk with HRT has been \u2018over egged\u2019 in her\nwords.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At the end of the film\nMariella decides to keep taking HRT, even though she has already been on it for\n5 years.&nbsp;Her gynaecologist advises Mariella to keep taking it and states\nthat she will personally take HRT \u2018until the day I die\u2019.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We believe the film\noverall is pro-HRT.&nbsp; But we felt it necessary to tell the full story of\nwhy there has been so much fear and concern surrounding the issue.&nbsp; We\ntook advice from many experts when researching and editing the film as a whole,\nbut especially this story.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We appreciate your\nconcerns but feel strongly that we have been very careful to cover the subject\nresponsibly. In the response we\u2019ve had to the programme many people have said\nit has really helped them understand how small the risk actually is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The question of whether\nmen do have a menopause is valid one to ask, and we felt it worthy of\ninvestigation in a programme that tried to cover as many aspects of the\nmenopause as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The CBT story featured a\nsmall group of women but the positive results we reported for them were\naccurate.&nbsp; This was clearly a very small group, but our results do reflect\nthose found by Professor Myra Hunter in much larger studies.&nbsp; We were very\nkeen to feature the options available to women who do not take HRT for whatever\nreason and the research in CBT is very promising and supported by scientific\nevidence.&nbsp; The diet story also aimed to communicate effective information\nabout nutrition and the menopause and we feel that we achieved this.&nbsp;\n&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As you mention in your\nletter, the documentary was only an hour long.&nbsp; The menopause is clearly a\nhuge subject, affecting women in many different ways and there were always\ngoing to be areas that we couldn\u2019t include.&nbsp; We set out to produce a\nprogramme that would give clear, effective and new information to as many women\nas possible in an engaging way.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Best wishes,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>kate<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Kate Pringle, BBC Science<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The BBC has responded to my letter which had criticised their documentary \u201cThe Truth About Menopause\u201d which was broadcast on BBC One in November. Whilst I think we should be pleased that a one-hour documentary on the subject of menopause was shown, I was unhappy with many things about it and their response does not <a href=\"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/?p=2256\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"sr-only\">Read more about Not the Whole Truth about Menopause ..<\/span>[&hellip;]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2261,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2256","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2256","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2256"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2256\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2266,"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2256\/revisions\/2266"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2261"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2256"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2256"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/menopausesupport.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2256"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}