Common to most women as they reach middle life are changes in vision. Far-sightedness or presbyopia (old vision) creeps up on us and while playing trombone with the newspaper may be sufficient for a few years, eventually we give in and buy some reading glasses or worse, bifocals (even the word makes me shudder).

No wonder then that a company that advertised a method guaranteed to improve vision and free customers of the need for contact lenses and glasses was a huge hit. The “See Clearly Method”, a kit of manuals, charts, videos and auto-tapes for which the company charged $350, promised that by using their eye exercises and methods, customers could attain normal vision. The only problem is, it didn’t work.

An Iowa court has ordered Vision Improvement Technologies, Inc., to immediately stop selling its so-called natural vision improvement kit and to pay $200,000 in restitution to customers who bought the “See Clearly Method”. The court ruled that the company could not substantiate claims of effectiveness for the product.

On the other hand, LASIK surgery is becoming more commonplace and so far has been shown to be an effective method of correcting vision long-term. Read about LASIK surgery at the FDA website.

Suzanne Somers, who looks great at age 60, says she knows the secret to endless youth for women. In her book Ageless: The Naked Truth About Bioidentical Hormones, Somers claims that using hormones that are identical to those made naturally in the ovaries will banish hot flashes, mood swings and other menopausal symptoms without the health risks carried by synthetic hormones.

Bioidentical hormones are derived from plants and other natural sources and, on a molecular level, are identical to what is produced in the ovaries. Bioidentical HRTs include estrogens such as Estrace, Vivelle-Dot, Climara, Estring, and Vagifem.

Somers argues that synthetic hormones are the ones that cause the dangerous side-effects associated with hormone replacement therapy. A popular synthetic estrogen Premarin, for instance, is made from horse urine(I know - I had that look on my face too when I read that).

A panel of seven doctors have taken issue with Somers’ book, calling it misleading and downright dangerous to women.

Read more about Somers’ book, bioidentical hormones and the controversy at WebMD.

When it comes to menopause there exist plenty of misinformation and misunderstandings but the chasm between truth and myth may be widest when it comes to how men view menopause.

Men may believe that all women experience the same symptoms of menopause and their ideas of those symptoms are often way off course according to an article at Menopause Online.

In 10 Myths Men Believe About Menopause each misconception is answered with facts. Common myths of what happens to women with menopause include loss of libido, loss of brain tissue causing memory loss and insanity, unavoidable weight gain and the belief that the only way to treat menopause symptoms is with Hormone Replacement Therapy.

10 Myths Men Believe About Menopause

A double-blind study done at the Mayo clinic seems to dispel the myths surrounding DHEA supplements, finding that DHEA has no anti-aging effects.

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is sold widely as an anti-aging supplement. Proponents blame age-related conditions to lower levels of DHEA as we age.

The Mayo Clinic study followed subjects for two years and was headed by K. Sreekumaran Nair, M.D, an specialist in endocrinology.

“For almost two years we restored DHEA in older men and women to the high normal levels that are usually observed in young people, but found no beneficial effects on age-related changes in body composition and function,” Dr. Nair said.

“No beneficial effects on quality of life were observed. There’s no evidence based on this study that DHEA has an antiaging effect,” he said.

Anti-Aging Supplement DHEA Doesn’t Work, Study Finds