Natural Hormones 101

“What are natural Hormones?” many ask, Natural hormone replacement therapy (also known as natural hormone replacement therapy) is the treatment of the symptoms of menopause, perimenopause and andropause (the stage of gradually falling and fluctuating hormone levels, which often begins in the early 40s) or post-menopause through the use of bio-identical hormones (instead of synthetic hormones).

Natural hormones have a molecular structure that is exactly the same as that of hormones produced by our bodies, which makes them biologically identical. Because bio-identical hormones are identical to those produced by the human body they offer important therapeutic advantages as well as relief from the symptoms of hormonal imbalance such as hot flashes, night sweats, depression, moodiness, weight gain, acne, fatigue, insomnia,  loss of libido, memory loss, depression, difficulty concentrating and more.

Some other advantages of natural hormone replacement therapy are;  improves the look and feel of hair and skin, weight loss, improves sex drive, improves mental health, lowers cholesterol levels, decreases the risk of osteoporosis, decreases the risk of heart attack and stroke and so much more!

Much confusion exists for both women and health professionals over the latest buzzwords “natural or synthetic” hormone therapy.  The word natural is often equated to being natural while in contrast synthetic is equated to being man-made. Synthetic hormones indicate hormones created in a laboratory that do not chemically match the hormones made by our bodies.  natural hormones match our hormones precisely. Both natural and synthetic hormones are created in pharmaceutical laboratories using chemical means. Also, both natural and synthetic hormones come from natural sources (yams, soy…), and then are manipulated in the laboratory to create either identical or synthetic hormones.

Why use Natural Hormones? Since these have identical molecular structure to our endogenous hormones their effects are more consistent with our own hormones. According to some studies women respond more quickly to natural hormones while finding relief from hot flashes, insomnia and vaginal dryness within a few days of commencing use.  Also, these are not mass produced, they are compounded in pharmacies so they can be tailored to your specific needs.  Synthetic hormones in order to be patented, were created to be different from human hormones. This causes them to interact differently with hormone receptors allowing for a greater chance of undesirable side effects.

Bioidentical hormones are available by prescription, at any compounding pharmacy. The compounding pharmacist individualizes drug therapy at the request of the physician or patient. Usually these hormones are compounded into creams to be applied on the skin (transdermal) or vaginally (transmucomal). They can also be made into oral lozenges, but these require higher doses of hormones since they must pass through the liver and be metabolized which can lead to unwanted side effects.

There are many benefits gained by the natural, natural, customized approach of

BHRT, including:

* Improved weight loss

* Improved sex drive

* Improved look and feel of hair and skin and nails

* Improved mental health

* Improved memory

* Improved mood and emotional balance

* Lower cholesterol levels

* Decreased risk of osteoporosis

* Decreased risk of heart attack

* Decreased risk of stroke

* Much more!

A Natural Hormone Specialist can provide you with detailed safety information, answer all your questions, and discuss any concerns you may have. They will listen carefully to your description of your symptoms, and will give you information about symptoms, and about hormone testing.

They will give you all the general guidance you need throughout the process, because they believe strongly that you need to be fully informed before making any decisions.

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