In the long confusing history of hormone use during and after menopause, millions of women stopped taking estrogen after earlier research finding declared it unsafe. This time, the latest findings assure that estrogen does not increase the risk of heart disease for women in their fifties (may even be protective) and it is safe to use the hormone for short-term relief of hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause.

"These findings are reassuring for women who want to use these hormones around the age of menop