What Are We Doing To Women?!

Family Physician Reevaluates Traditional Hormone Treatment

By Dr. Deanna Osborn, D. O.

 




Hormone imbalance is an epidemic among American women causing many ailments from severe PMS to breast cancer. Estrogen dominance is thought to be the culprit of hormone imbalance.

Here’s how we were designed:
Estrogen is the dominant hormone during the first half of a woman’s monthly cycle. It is a growth hormone and is responsible for proliferation (growth) of cells in the lining of the uterus so that a fertilized egg can implant.
Progesterone is the hormone we should find in the second half of the cycle. It is released into the body when a woman ovulates. It is responsible for sustaining the newly fertilized egg that has implanted in the uterine lining.

Symptoms of hormone imbalance include:

PMS
Difficulty with concentration
Vaginal dryness
Certain auto immune disorders
Mood swings
Osteoporosis
Hot flashes
Hair loss
Fluid retention
Heavy bleeding during menses

 Loss of sex drive
Migraine headaches
Depression Fatigue
Irregular menstrual cycles
Thinning hair
Symptoms of slow thyroid
Uterine fibroids
Dry, thin, wrinkly skin

Fluid retention
Heavy bleeding during menses
Fibrocystic breasts
Sleep disturbances
Unexplained weight gain

Hot flashes

Hair loss 
Loss of sex drive
Migraine headaches
Depression Fatigue
Irregular menstrual cycles
Thinning hair
Symptoms of slow thyroid
Uterine fibroids
Dry, thin, wrinkly skin

Progesterone also functions to:

·       Restore sex drive

·       Stimulate build new bone

·       Normalize blood sugar levels

·       Protect against fibrocystic breasts

·       Protect against endometrial and breast cancer

·       Act as a natural diuretic

·       Act as a natural anti-depressant

·       Facilitate thyroid hormone function

·       Help use fat for energy Restore normal vascular tone

A 1996 Johns Hopkins study concluded that women low in natural progesterone have an 80% higher risk of developing breast cancer and that the risk of developing other malignant cancers increases ten fold.

How do our hormones become unbalanced?
Hormones and our health become unbalanced due to stress, hormone replacement, diet, and environment.

1. Stress: Studies show that by age 34, 50% of the women in America have no progesterone. American women are always on the go, go, go. This causes increased stress which depletes our bodies of its own progesterone. When our bodies are stressed, we make cortisol, a hormone that uses progesterone as a building block. In addition, when a woman’s body is stressed she may not ovulate, and therefore not produce progesterone, furthering the downward cycle.

2. RX’s: We consume a tremendous amount of prescription hormones in birth control pills, hormone replacement therapies (HRT), etc. (Please note that Progestin – used in HRT is not the same as natural progesterone.) These prescriptions further add to the imbalance by adding more estrogen to the problem.

3. Diet: One of the most appalling contributions to the imbalance is found in what we eat. Beef, chicken and pork all contain estrogen. They are fed estrogen as a growth hormone to get them to the market more quickly. Sugar, refined starches, and petrochemical infused foods all add to the problem. (When plastics are heated in the microwave, they emit certain toxic, carcinogenic (cancer causing) chemicals.)

4. Environment: Petroleum based products like mineral oil (baby oil); most soaps, skin care and hair care; plastics, pesticides, detergents, etc. are found to be sources of xenoestrogens (or “false estrogens”) – which bind up our estrogen receptors and cause hormone imbalance in the body. (Any product placed on the skin that contains mineral oil actually dehydrates the basal cell layer of skin contributing to premature aging, not to mention that it is a gasoline byproduct and carcinogenic.)

What can we do to protect ourselves?
For starters we can balance the estrogen dominance by supplementing with natural progesterone cream. When looking for a natural progesterone cream it is important to look for USP grade progesterone, at 20 mg. per dose. Look for a product that is in an airtight, metered dose pump container such as Arbonne International’s Prolief Natural Balancing Cream. (Products in jars are oxidized when exposed to air; they are usually hand mixed which can separate, as opposed to machine mixed, and are usually formulated in a mineral oil base.)


When possible, buy organic meats and produce. Many health food stores, co-ops, and local grocery stores carry organic.
Never use plastics in the microwave.
Do not use products on your skin that contain any mineral oil or petroleum based products.

What else can be done?
Supplement your diet with quality vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. They must meet the US Pharmacopeia (USP) standard of 30 minutes disintegration time or they will pass through the digestive tract unused.
Use personal products for your body that are pure and safe.
Products that contain:

·       NO mineral oil

·       NO SD40 Alcohol

·       NO animal products or by-products

·       NO chemical fragrances or dyes

·       And are: PH correct

·       Botanically based Hypoallergenic

For testimonials and general information log on to www.arbonne.com.
For research information on natural progesterone log on to JohnLeeMD.com.

For product information and ordering contact:
Loren Brown

Arbonne Independent Consultant

(617) 943-5427

exkentuckygirl1@yahoo.com

Books:
What Your Doctor May Not Tell You about Pre-Menopause by Dr. John Lee
What Your Doctor May Not Tell You about Menopause by Dr. John Lee
Hormone Balance: A Matter of Life and Health by Kristine B. Klitzke, R.N., B. S. N.

Dr. Deanna Osborn is a family practice physician who practices in Springfield, Tennessee, in the Nashville area. The information contained in this article can be supported by medical research.
The Cancer Prevention Coalition released a statement on June 17, 2002 stating that mainstream cosmetics and personal hygiene products pose the highest cancer risk, due to exposures, to the general public – higher than smoking.