Menopause, Estrogen & Your Health
Menopause Overview
A commonality of the worlds' industrialized societies is the
prevalence of uterine fibroids, fibrocystic breast disease, breast and/or uterine
cancer, PMS, pre-menopausal bone loss as well as a high incidence of post-menopausal
osteoporosis.
Significantly, the common thread weaving its way through all of these conditions
is estrogen dominance, secondary to an insufficiency of progesterone. However,
after menopause or a hysterectomy,
estrogen production decreases by about 40% to
60%. In other words the female body still produces estrogen at about 40% to 60% of
pre-menopause levels.
Because natural progesterone is the biological precursor for the production of
natural estrogen, it is the natural choice for menopausal women as well as for
pre-menopausal women to enjoy optimal health, free of the risks and side effects
associated with synthetic hormones. Additionally, natural progesterone will
benefit virtually every cell and
organ of the body.
By establishing a balance of these hormones through proper Diet, Stress Management
and Natural Progesterone supplementation, fluctuations of estrogen and progesterone,
the resultant hot flashes, night sweats
and other symptoms of menopause are normally alleviated.
Persistent Symptoms
For those women for whom hot flashes, night sweats and/or vaginal
dryness still persist they have found that 400 i.u. of natural vitamin E three times
per day (1200 i.u./day), essential oil supplementation (primrose oil, omega III) and
four to six tablespoons of whole psyllium seed husks in juice daily has been effective
in ameliorating these persistent symptoms.
In cases where Estrogen Replacement Therapy is elected to control hot flashes, vaginal
dryness or night sweats, natural phyto-estrogen cream is recommended usually for several
months or, in some cases a year.
In most cases, however, phyto-estrogen is not needed when a sufficient amount of
Natural Progesterone is
available, as it is the precursor (raw material) for other adrenal
hormones, including all three forms of natural estrogen and
cortisone.
Safety of Natural Hormones
Natural Progesterone has been found to be the choice for informed women when
applied topically, in a cream formula free from petrochemicals and animal
by-products.
Risks of HRT
This is in contrast to the standard medical protocol
of HRT.
Studies have shown that women taking replacement estrogen have a 2 to 8 times
higher risk of developing breast cancer, ovarian cancer and endometrial cancer
than women who do not take estrogen. The risk increases after 2 to 4 years of
estrogen use and seems to be greatest when large doses (>1 mg./day) are taken
or when the estrogens are used for long periods of time (>4 years). This risk
factor increases sharply in women who smoke cigarettes.
Sleuthing a Thyroid Mystery
by Dr. Stephen Langer
|
|
