Watch Oprah Today To Get the 4-1-1- on BioIdentical Hormones
If you’re curious or confused about bio-identical hormones, tune into the Oprah show today for a good explanation from Dr. Christiane Northrup, author of The Wisdom of Menopause (# 1 on Amazon’s long list of books on the topic) and more recently The Secret Pleasures of Menopause.
Once you’ve made a decision to take hormone replacement therapy (HRT), you have a choice of taking synthetic hormones such as Premarin, which is made from a mare’s urine; or, you can choose to take something like the Vivelle Dot Estrogen patch or Prometrium, which is structurally identical to the naturally occurring substance in our bodies. Most bio-identical estrogens and progesterone come from soy (estrogen) or yams (progesterone).
Some physicians (strongly) recommend one over the other and there is fierce debate over the safety of each approach. So it’s a good idea to do your own research and make your own, informed decision with the benefits and risks in mind. Dr. Northrup can be counted on for thorough, balanced information, so her appearance on Oprah offers a good opportunity to learn more about if and how bio-identicals can help you.
I’ll be interested in your comments about Oprah’s program today. If you still have questions about bio-identicals, ask here and I’ll seek answers from the experts.
I had the 8 hormone panel saliva test done two months ago and immediately went on progesterone BHRT (staying off estrogen BHRT due to breast cancer in my immediate family). My progesterone level tested at 23 (when “normal for my age (43) and health history was 200-300) and cortisol was almost non-existent. Other hormones that were tested were either out of range on the low end or nearly out of range on the low end. Pharmacist recommended following the advice found in “Adrenal Fatigue: 21st Century Stress Syndrom” by Dr. James Wilson to deal with the very, very low cortisol level. Two months later, I haven’t felt this good in years and I’m confident that the next time I have the test (July-Aug 2009) everything will be well within range. Another great book is “What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause” by Dr. John Lee. Both books helped me understand the intricate link between all of our body’s hormones – though I try to read more on it at least once a week and I learn something new every time. I have been talking to a lot of women and chiropractors about BHRT and they all seem to be willing to listen – but I’m amazed at how many people don’t know they exist. After three years of feeling terrible, with a sharp downward swing in January 2009 after going off 20-25 years of birth control pills, I hope to help other women feel better sooner…I feel that I “missed” the past three years of my life.
Hello Fiona – I’ve read that it’s used to treat menopausal symptoms in women who cannot take estrogen. I don’t know anything else about it, but it sounds like you should get some advice from your doctor about this.
I have tried Livial – is this also one of the BHRT?
thanks for a reply.
fiona
The Oprah show where Dr. Northrup was featured was very informative. Unfortunately, one issue was not addressed. Can bio-identicals help perimenopausal women [say me, for example, at age 43], become pregnant? In other words, barring other factors, such as endometriosis, can a simply hormone-imbalanced woman conceive with the help of bio-identicals?
This gets at the issue of replacing traditional pharmaceutical protocols, like clomid, with bio-identicals. Is it advisable?
Thanks,
Robin H.
Dr. Yaffa – thanks for checking in. I tuned into the BHRT summit and found the presentations to be superb – very informative. I highly recommend them as an excellent source of information & guidance for anyone who wants to explore bio-identical hormones further.
I am so pleased that BHRT is getting major publicity. Thousands of doctors over the last decades have taken their fingers out of their ears and the blinders off of their eyes and have begun considering medicine in a non-drug model. After a decade of practicing medicine the “old way” and now more than a decade practicing the “new way,” I can tell you that the new way is much healthier, much more empowering and gets long lasting results as compared to the drug model that the majority of doctors still follow. Too bad for them and too bad for their patients.
I invite everyone interested in learning more about BHRT to view the BHRT World Summit 1 & 2. Thousands of the public and medical field have subscribed. There are 2 Summits covering different topics with some of the most important leading doctors in the field speaking in terms that the non-medical public can understand. These are the same leading doctors that physicians travel long distances and at great expense to hear them speak and to expand their knowledge. Please visit http://www.bhrt1.com Even though there are a lot of us out there prescribing BHRT, I feel it’s really up to the public to awaken their physicians and the government to allow the healing art of medicine to be considered the standard of care.
Thank you Dr. Landa for your comment! I agree that having BHRT explained on Oprah will help thousands of women understand it better so they can make informed decisions about the course they should take. Also, patient success stories are important testimonials to other women who are making decisions about what to take for managing the transition. Oprah hasn’t aired yet where I live, but I’m hoping we will hear from women who have chosen BHRT.
I am a board-certified OB/GYN and am practicing in Orlando, FL. I have dedicated my practice to the use of bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT). I practiced traditional OB/GYN for some time and then changed my practice to GYN only. At that time, of course, many menopausal and peri-menopausal women crossed my path. I tried in vain to help them with the usual tools of my profession – Prempro, etc… But ultimately I found that many people did not experience relief and many more experienced side effects.
After an extensive search for other methods to help patients with hormone problems I became familiar with BHRT. I did a lot of research and found that BHRT hormones seemed not only to help patients better but also were safer than artificial or synthetic hormones. It was at that point, for the first time, that I even considered that I was prescribing hormones that were artificial.
Well it doesn’t take a doctor to figure out that hormones that are the same as what is in our bodies naturally would be better for us. The best part is that the scientific literature backs it up! There is plenty of research to show that BHRT helps symptoms and helps to prevent disease and most importantly does not seem to have the same risks of breast cancer that artificial hormones do.
It is important to me for people to realize that not all hormones are the same. Sometimes the press does not discriminate and it would be hard for them to do so as there are many doctors who still do not understand the difference. So all of this is very confusing for patients too.
BHRT has helped many of my patients live a better quality life and they are so thankful that this wonderful, more natural option exists. One final note, it is important to have BHRT prescribed by a doctor who has studied BHRT extensively. One of the reasons that BHRT is safer is that the levels are hormones are monitored regularly and the doses are customized based on levels. Kudos to Oprah for bringing information about BHRT to the public!! Good luck and best of health on your journey.
Jennifer Landa, MD BodyLogicMD Orlando, Florida
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