For as long as there has been estrogen and the female reproductive system, there has been menopause. For as long as there has been menopause, women have been encouraged to view it, and their bodies’ subsequent drops in estrogen levels, as a natural part of growing older and as a positive rite of passage. However, no matter how one tries to sugar coat it, menopause is hardly like learning to drive, getting to vote or turning 21.

In the 1960s, due to advances in synthetic hormones, women began to discover that they didn’t have to accept the effects of menopause as just “part of getting older”. For the next 40 years women enjoyed the benefits of retaining the sense of health and self far past menopause through estrogen replacement therapy. Then, in 2002, the Women’s Health Initiative conducted a study that linked estrogen use to breast cancer, strokes, heart attacks and dementia in women. The panic that arose from this study was substantial. Within just a few years an estimated 50% of women who were being treated with estrogen stopped treatment.

Sadly, most of the uproar cause by the WHI study stemmed from misinterpretation of the study by doctors and from the misinformation that swept like wildfire through popular publications, talk shows and by word of mouth. For almost a decade now, many women have been left to suffer through menopause and the negative effects of diminished estrogen supplies because of these ongoing misconceptions about estrogen replacement therapy. After all, as others, like regarded hormone specialist Dr. Neal Rouzier, have pointed out: if estrogen was bad, all women would have their ovaries removed at the earliest possible age.

The WHI study focused on the use of two synthetic hormones, Premarin® (estrogen) and Provera® (progestin, not to be confused with progesterone). The study revealed an increased risk for developing breast cancer, when using these two synthetics together, of less than 0.1%. Using estrogen alone did not increase the risk at all. On the other hand, more recent studies of Provera® have indicated that its use may increase the risk of cancer even more than was indicated by the WHI study.

The only danger specifically ascribed to estrogen in the study was an increased risk of stroke. Again, this was in association with Premarin® and only in women who began hormone replacement after the age of 65. Recent studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association indicate that natural estrogen does not carry the same risk.

The truth is, the findings of the Women’s Health Initiative study apply only to the use of synthetic hormones. Unfortunately, many have chosen to “throw the baby out with the bath water” by ignoring the numerous subsequent studies demonstrating the safety and benefit of bioidentical hormones. Natural estrogen, far from creating risks, helps to protect your body from illness and can help to increase the quality and duration of your life. If you are one of the many women who has dismissed hormone therapy because you are concerned about the risks, talk to your doctor about bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT) and see if natural estrogen and progesterone are right for you.

Material provided is for educational purposes only. It is not intended to treat, diagnose, cure or prevent disease and has not been evaluated by the FDA.

REVITA Anti-Aging recommends you consult a specially trained Age Management or Anti-Aging Physician before starting bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT). Bioidentical hormones should only be taken when clinical deficiencies are found by a trained physician via lab testing. REVITA Medical, PC physicians perform evaluations and specialized testing to qualify patients
for treatment.