Women's Health
Menopause and Perimenopause Symptoms
As early as her 30’s or 40’s, prior to the onset of menopause, many women begin experiencing symptoms of fluctuating hormone levels. During this perimenopause, estrogen levels become erratic and there can be an imbalance between estrogen and progesterone. Symptoms may include headaches, weight gain, heavy bleeding, pelvic pain, development of fibroids or aggravation of endometriosis. Menopause is the time in every woman’s life when her ovaries decrease their output of estrogen, progesterone and testosterone, and menstruation ceases. Early symptoms include hot flashes, fatigue, sleep disturbance and depression. Growth hormone, produced by the pituitary gland, is also reduced during menopause. This process takes approximately 3-5 years and is generally completed by a women’s early to mid-50’s, when she has not had a menstrual period for a full year. Women experience the effects of suboptimal hormone levels as:
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Bioidentical Hormone Therapy
Bioidentical estrogen, progesterone and testosterone therapy for most women can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis, relieve hot flashes, promote weight loss, positively affect mood and psychological well-being and improve quality of life.
All of the reports of an increased risk of breast and endometrial cancer are from studies using synthetic estrogens, like Premarin. It has been theorized that many of the unpleasant side effects from synthetic hormone replacement are attributable to a hormonal imbalance caused by the unnaturally potent and long lasting effects of the synthetic hormones as well as a woman's inability to metabolize the foreign, equine (horse) estrogens they contain.
Many women and their physicians have been uncertain about the safety of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for women. The Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) published in 2002 discouraged or at least made many women fearful of HRT. It has been largely repudiated due to its flawed design and inaccurate negative conclusions. Multiple studies have subsequently demonstrated the safety and benefits of hormone therapy for symptomatic menopausal women.
- The North American Menopause Society (NAMS) updated its guidelines on postmenopausal hormone therapy (HT) to reflect recent data suggesting a favorable benefit-risk ratio for HT used for the relief of menopause related symptoms and prevention of osteoporosis and fractures. July 2008.
- Postmenopausal women who take hormones have a lower risk of developing advanced macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness. Reported in the Archives of Ophthalmology, 2008.
- No significant increase in risk due to hormone therapy for any cardiovascular disease outcome in women in the first 10 years of menopause. Reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association, 2007.
- Total mortality was reduced in women aged 50-59 on hormone therapy. Reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association, 2007.
- The Million Women Study (2007) confirmed that short term estrogen therapy for symptomatic treatment at menopause was unlikely to increase the risk of ovarian cancer.
- Total mortality was reduced in women under age 60 on hormone therapy. An analysis of thirty studies reported in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, 2004.
- Nurses Health Study (2000-02) found no statistically significant increased breast cancer risk when estrogen therapy was used less than 10 years.