The Sexy Years: Discover the Hormone Connection - The Secret to Fabulous Sex, Great Health, and Vitality, for Women and Men » (Large Prin)

SUZANNE SOMERS is the author of eleven books, including the New York Times bestsellers Keeping Secrets; Suzanne Somers’ Eat Great, Lose Weight; Suzanne Somers’ Get Skinny on Fabulous Food; Suzanne Somers’ Eat, Cheat, and Melt the Fat Away; and Suzanne Somers’ Fast and Easy. The former star of the hit television programs Three’s Company and Step by Step, Suzanne is one of the most respected and trusted brand names in the world, representing cosmetics and skin care products, apparel, jewelry, a computerized facial fitness system, fitness products, and an extensive food line. She received an honorary doctorate of humane letters from National University and is a highly sought-after commencement speaker.

Getting older can be brutal—women gain weight, lose their sex drive, experience hot flashes, suffer memory loss, become short-tempered, find it difficult to sleep, and on and on. It’s not so easy for men, either—they start to lose energy and stamina as they age, too (and they have to live with women going through menopause). After years of being thin and fit and full of energy, Suzanne herself encountered the “Seven Dwarfs of Menopause”—Itchy, Bitchy, Sweaty, Sleepy, Bloated, Forgetful, and All-Dried-Up. Instead of living out the rest of her life cranky, sleep-deprived, and libido-less, Suzanne set out to discover how she could get her mind, body, and life back and banish those pesky dwarfs for good.

The result is The Sexy Years: Discover the Hormone Connection—The Secret to Fabulous Sex, Great Health, and Vitality, for Women and Men. In this passionately argued and enormously practical book, Suzanne supports her own research and experiences with the expertise of leading doctors in the field of women’s and men’s health and sexuality to create an inspiring, accessible call-to-arms to women to radically rethink how they approach life after fifty, and give them the tools to turn their lives around.

Suzanne has discovered that the second half of life has been more rewarding, fun, and purposeful than her younger years. The key to her happiness? Taking natural bioidentical hormones. Natural hormones, which mimic the hormones produced in our own bodies that are almost completely lost with aging, are the answer to the symptoms of menopause that plague women. Recent findings from the medical community show that synthetic hormone replacement therapy
(HRT) may be harmful to women—thus, thousands of women are looking for what else they can do to alleviate their symptoms. In The Sexy Years, Suzanne comes to the rescue with a step-by-step plan and detailed information about how women can take control of their health, for themselves and for their men, including:

• What the differences are between synthetic and bioidentical hormones, and why bioidentical hormones help women lose weight, reinvigorate their sex lives, and fight the symptoms of aging
• How doctors do not receive adequate training about hormones and are slaves to the pharmaceutical industry, and what questions every woman must ask her physician about hormone replacement therapy and her health
• How Suzanne turned her life around, with information about how often she visits her doctor, blood work, what hormones she takes, how to get these hormones, and more
• What male menopause, or andropause, is and how men can also take bioidentical hormones and regain the energy they had in their youth
• What a variety of specialists think about natural hormones, health, and sexuality—Suzanne shares the best advice from these doctors and provides a resource list of physicians and pharmacies

With bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, Suzanne has found the fountain of youth, the elixir that has made her feel thirty years old again. In combination with her Somersize diet and fitness plan, which she also writes about here, Suzanne has never felt better. The beauty of growing older, she maintains, is that you can combine the wisdom of age with the vitality of youth. Suzanne makes it perfectly clear how women and men can regain their zest for life at any age. These really are the sexy years!

Publishers Weekly

Somers has chronicled her battle with weight and emotional issues in several books. Now she explains how she's coped with the symptoms of menopause and why she believes most women should take natural hormones during this period. Somers discusses her breast cancer surgery, along with her decision not to undergo certain follow-up treatment but instead adhere to a regimen of natural hormones. To support her case, Somers includes interviews with several physicians who specialize in natural hormones, sexual dysfunction and menopause. Her enthusiastic writing style will especially appeal to readers who have been intimidated by physicians unwilling to offer alternative treatments to menopause's often debilitating symptoms. "Finding the right doctor is difficult," she laments. "Your gynecologist may not be the right person for you at this time.... If [menopause and hormones are] not her specialty, then you have to find a doctor who `gets it.' " Somers stresses the important steps of the process, and discusses reasons why she prefers natural hormones over synthetic substances. She also tackles male menopause, common sexual problems among middle-aged couples and hormones for men. However, since her readers are likely to be women, the subject matter occasionally seems inappropriate. Nonetheless, as an introduction to the subject of alternative treatments for menopause, this book provides a sound synopsis that readers can use to open a dialogue with their physicians. (On sale Feb. 24) Forecast: Given Somers's celebrity and the success of her earlier titles, strong sales are likely. The publisher plans a 20-city TV satellite tour, ads in USA Today and a simultaneous audio edition. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.