A few years ago, millions of women dropped hormone therapy faster than Kellogg's dropped Michael Phelps. This was due to news in 2002 from the landmark Women's Health Initiative study, which connected HT with increased risks of heart attacks, strokes, blood clots and breast cancer.

But now that more analysis of the study has been done and the initial panic has dissipated, substantial benefits of HT for women entering menopause have surfaced - especially for the 1-in-4 who are struggling with severe hot flashes, insomnia or lack of energy. The missing ingredient is daily low-dose aspirin, used with micronized progestin and bioidentical estrogen. The aspirin makes HT safer for most women while allowing them to reap the regimen's other benefits. So, if several times a day you ask, "Is it hot in here, or is it me?" YOU are in luck.

The fact is, HT is better at putting hot flashes on ice than swimming in the Arctic is. Studies show it stops 94 percent of them, and also significantly eases insomnia, lack of energy and vaginal dryness. Glimmers emerging from new research suggest that women who take low-dose aspirin plus custom-tailored doses of bioidentical hormones early in menopause may reap a big health bonus, substantially decreasing overall mortality risk. This combo cuts heart attacks by 12 percent, strokes by 5 percent, and colorectal cancer and deep-vein thromboses by 1 percent each ... with the low-dose aspirin offsetting HT's heightened risk of blood clots.

We also think HT could buy your brain five to six extra "good" years of remembering where you put the car keys, when you first went to Bali and what you did with your emerald earrings before you left on vacation. Again, early is the key.

If you choose to try HT, don't buy your hormones from some iffy Web site or go it alone in the health-food store. We recommend bioidentical compounds - ones just like what your body makes on its own. These are mixed by compounding pharmacies or ready-made by pharmaceutical companies (available with a prescription); we think the latter is a great choice. They come in a variety of doses and forms - pills, creams, patches or sprays - and meet rigorous quality-control standards.

Who should try them? If you're in the 50 percent of women entering menopause and having good days and bad, this new HT strategy almost always helps. And if you're in the 25 percent who are hit hard by this major life change, talk with your doctor sooner rather than later about starting this four-step strategy:

1. Start low-dose aspirin at least two days before beginning HT. That means taking half a regular aspirin, one 162-milligram aspirin or two low-dose (81 mg) aspirin every day.

2. Get the estrogen and progestin most like nature's own. Ask your doctor for bioidentical estradiol (the form of estrogen produced by your ovaries before menopause). We like estradiol in a small, 0.3 mg dose; increase as recommended by your doctor until symptoms resolve. Add a micronized, bioidentical progestin, such as Prometrium, at 100 mg (or occasionally 200 mg) for 12 days a month. "Micronized" is important: This encapsulates it in microscopic spheres to protect it from digestive acids.

3. Stick with the lowest effective dose for the shortest period of time. This approach cuts risks while maximizing benefits.

4. Skip all of this if you're a breast cancer survivor or are at high risk for breast cancer. We estimate that there's still an increased risk for breast cancer, because estrogen could fuel tumors sensitive to this hormone. One French study of more than 3,000 women found that forms of HT not studied by the Women's Health Initiative may not raise this risk, but caution is still the smartest strategy.

The You Docs - Mike Roizen and Mehmet Oz - are authors of the best-selling "You: The Owner's Manual" and "You: On a Diet." To submit questions and for more info, go to www.RealAge.com.