Hormone Heresy: Estrogen's Deadly Truth

[Guest guest]

Hormone HeresyEstrogen's Deadly Truth, Part 1by Sherrill SellmanExtracted from

Nexus Magazine, Volume 3, #4 (June - July 1996)

Women are misinformed about their hormones, to the detriment of their health,

while drug companies reap huge profits at their expense.

For over 300 years, beginning in the 13th century and continuing well into the

16th century, the Inquisition was a reign of terror for the vast majority of

people living throughout Europe and Scandinavia. The political, economic and

religious forces of that time joined together to consolidate their power by

eliminating those whom they perceived as impeding their ultimate objectives.

 

The unfortunate target of their efforts were the keepers of the healing arts and

the ancient spiritual and cultural wisdoms. Historians debate the exact toll of

such a hellish time - whether it was several hundreds of thousands or as many as

nine million people - but what is undebatable is that the vast majority of the

victims were women. In fact, the Inquisition is now regarded as a period of

genocide against women, which successfully divested women of their power,

self-respect, wealth, healing arts, and prominence and influence in their

communities.

 

The Inquisition guaranteed that the Church fathers were the indisputable

spiritual authorities. It was also successful in enshrining medical knowledge

securely in the realm of men, since the Inquisition decreed that only trained

medical doctors could now practice the healing arts and, needless to say,

medical schools were barred to women (for that matter, so was any form of

education).

 

What a relief that such a violent and misogynous era ended long ago. Or did it?

Unfortunately, it appears that some traditions linger on. Women of today are

still prey to vast political and economic interests, with dire consequences to

their health, financial independence and personal power. Perhaps the Inquisition

didn't end at all but just took on a more subtle and devious form.

 

Women are certainly big business to the medical and pharmaceutical interests.

According to John Archer, author of Bad Medicine, about 600,000 hysterectomies

are performed every year in the USA, and about 45,000 in Australia. (1) In 1994,

it was estimated that 45,000 Australian women were taking hormone replacement

therapy (HRT). (2) Many women are presently encouraged to remain on HRT for the

rest of their post-menopausal lives.

 

According to Dr. Stanley West, noted infertility specialist, chief of

reproductive endocrinology at St. Vincent's Hospital, New York, and author of

The Hysterectomy Hoax, about 90 per cent of all hysterectomies are unnecessary.

Gynecological consultants to Ralph Nader's Public Health Research Group reached

a similar conclusion in 1991 in their book, Women's Health Alert. According to

Dr. West, the only 100 percent appropriate reason for performing an hysterectomy

is for treating cancer of the reproductive organs. (3) However, hysterectomies

are all too frequently offered as treatment for a variety of conditions

including endometriosis, fibroids, ovarian cysts, pelvic inflammatory disease

and uterine prolapse.

 

It is no accident that gynecologists happen to be the highest earners of all

specialists. Throughout their lives, women are encouraged to be subjected

continuously to various medical treatments and procedures. Natural female

functions, from menstruation through childbirth and into menopause, are taken

over by medical and pharmaceutical interventions. Barraged by misinformation,

myths, propaganda and, in some cases, downright lies, it's no wonder that so

many women are thoroughly confused about matters relating to their own bodies

and their health.

 

The History of Hormone Replacement Therapy

Perhaps there's no topic of greater confusion to women than the highly

publicized introduction of HRT for the menopausal woman. It is touted as the

best thing for liberating women since the discovery of oral contraceptives -

even though the statistics now show that the wide use of the Pill has given rise

to health hazards such as breast cancer, high blood pressure and cardiovascular

disease on a scale previously unknown in medicine. (4)

 

Investigation into the theory of hormone replacement goes all the way back to

the 1930s with the research of Dr. Serge Voronoff. His research involved

implanting fresh monkey's testicles into men's scrotums, with limited

effectiveness. Offshoots of his research led to the grafting of monkey ovaries

in women, with rather dire consequences. After several fatalities (to both

monkeys and women), the search was redirected to the use of synthetic estrogen.

With the advent of World War II, research was put on hold.

 

Menopause didn't really come into vogue as a topic of concern for the medical

profession until the 1960s. In 1966 a New York gynecologist, Dr. Robert Wilson,

wrote a best seller called Feminine Forever, extolling the virtues of estrogen

replacement to save women from the " tragedy of menopause which often destroys

her character as well as her health. " His book sold over 100,000 copies in the

first year. Wilson energetically promoted menopause as a condition of " living

decay. " According to him, estrogen replacement was a kind of long sought after

youth pill that would save poor, fading women from the horrors of age. He

popularized the erroneous belief that menopause is a deficiency disease.

 

Women's magazines eagerly seized upon his ideas and extensively promoted his

concepts. This pleased Wilson no end, since he had earlier set up The Wilson

Foundation for the sole purpose of promoting the use of estrogen drugs. The

pharmaceutical industry generously contributed over US$1.3 million to his

Foundation. Each year he received funds from such companies as Searle,

Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories and Upjohn which made hormone products that Wilson

claimed were effective in treating and preventing menopause. Pharmaceutical

companies jumped on the bandwagon with aggressive promotions and advertising

campaigns. His message hit a receptive chord: mid-life women need hormone drugs

to be rescued from the inevitable horrors and decrepitude of this terrible

deficiency disease called menopause.

 

Wilson pioneered the use of unopposed estrogen. However, there had been no

formal assessment of the safety of estrogen therapy or its long term effects.

Unopposed estrogen went out of vogue when it became obviously apparent that it

shortened the lifetime of its users. In 1975, The New England Journal of

Medicine examined the rates of endometrial cancer for estrogen consumers,

concluding that the risk was seven and a half times greater for estrogen users.

Women who had used estrogen for seven years or longer were 14 times more likely

to develop cancer. (5)

 

As the popularity of unopposed estrogen therapy waned, new approaches were

sought. The focus was also directed away from the false claims of preserving

feminine beauty and youthfulness and towards more urgent health matters. The

pharmaceutical industry resurrected estrogen replacement therapy with the new

'safe' hormone replacement therapy - a combination of synthetic progesterone and

estrogen which would supposedly protect menopausal women not only from

cardiovascular disease but also from the ravages of osteoporosis.

 

While the so-called 'experts' on women's health are reassuring women that there

are no, or at least only very minor, unpleasant side effects, Dr. Lynette J.

Dumble, Senior Research Fellow at the University of Melbourne's Department of

Surgery at the Royal Melbourne Hospital, believes that " the sole basis of HRT is

to create a commercial market that is highly profitable for the pharmaceutical

companies and doctors. The supposed benefits of HRT are totally unproven. " She

believes that HRT not only exacerbates the presenting health problems but also

contributes to the acceleration of the aging process of women. It either hastens

the onset of other medical conditions or worsens the existing ones.

 

This perspective seems to be validated by the recent findings from a landmark

study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine in 1995, involving

121,700 women, which revealed startling effects from HRT. It warned that women

who used HRT to offset the symptoms of menopause also increased their chance of

developing breast cancer by 30 to 40 per cent by taking the hormone for more

than five years. In women aged between 60 and 64, the risk of breast cancer rose

to 70 per cent after five years of HRT. Finally, the study concluded that women

using HRT were 45 per cent more likely to die from breast cancer than those who

chose not to use HRT or used it for less than five years. (6)

 

According to Leslie Kenton, author of Passage to Power, " everybody who is

anybody will tell you that menopause is an estrogen-deficiency disease and that

you will need to take more estrogen as you approach mid-life. What may surprise

you is this: not only is most of such commonly given advice on menopause wrong,

a great deal of it can be positively dangerous. "

 

Fortunately there is another side to the hormone story - a perspective that not

only can assist women of all ages to attain greater health but also to reclaim a

greater sense of power, responsibility and dignity in their lives.

 

A Brief Gynecological Tour of a Woman's Body

In order to understand the HRT debate, it is important, first, to have a

rudimentary knowledge of a woman's cyclic nature. Until recently, doctors

thought that menopause began when all the eggs in the ovaries had been used up.

However, recent work has shown that menopause is probably not triggered by the

ovaries but by the brain. It seems that both puberty and menopause are

brain-driven events.

 

Menstruation depends on a complex network of hormonal communications between the

ovary, the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland in the brain. The hypothalamus

secretes gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) which triggers the production of

follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) by the pituitary gland. The FSH then

stimulates the growth of the egg follicles (a small excretory sac or gland) in

the ovaries to trigger ovulation. As the egg follicles grow, estrogen is

manufactured and released into the blood.

 

This chain reaction is not just one way. Estradiol, one of the ovarian estrogens

in the bloodstream, also acts on the hypothalamus, causing a change in GnRH.

Next, this altered hormone stimulates the pituitary to produce luteinising

hormone (LH) which causes the egg follicles to burst and the ovum to be

released. After the egg is expelled, progesterone is also manufactured by the

collapsed egg follicle which develops into the corpus luteum.

 

All the hormones released during the menstrual cycle are secreted not in a

constant, steady way but at dramatically different rates during different parts

of the 28 day cycle.

 

For the first eight to 11 days of the menstrual cycle, a woman's ovaries make

lots of estrogen. Estrogen prepares the follicles for the release of one of the

eggs. It is estrogen which proliferates the changes that take place at puberty:

the growth of breasts, the development of the reproductive system and the shape

of a woman's body.

 

The rate of estrogen secretion begins to fall off on about day 13, one day

before ovulation occurs. As estrogen falls, progesterone begins to rise,

stimulating very rapid growth of the follicle. Beginning with this secretion of

progesterone, ovulation occurs too. After the egg has been released from the

follicle (known as the luteal stage of a woman's cycle), the follicle begins to

change, enlarging and becoming a unique organ known as the corpus luteum.

Progesterone is secreted from the corpus luteum, this tiny organ with a huge

capacity for hormone production. The surge of progesterone at the time of

ovulation is the source of libido - not estrogen, as is commonly believed.

 

After 10 or 12 days, if fertilization does not occur, ovarian production of

progesterone falls dramatically. It is this sudden decline in progesterone

levels that triggers the shedding of the secretory endometrium (the menses),

leading to a renewal of the entire menstrual cycle.

 

Ovarian estrogen and progesterone stimulate the growth of the endometrium, or

lining of the uterus, in preparation for fertilization. Estrogen proliferates

the growth of endometrial tissue, and progesterone facilitates the secretory

lining of the uterus so the fertilized egg can implant successfully. Adequate

progesterone, therefore, is the hormone most essential to the survival of the

fertilized egg and the fetus.

 

At around 40 years of age, the interaction between hormones alters, eventually

leading to menopause. It is still not clear how. Menopause may start with

changes in the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland rather than in the ovaries.

Scientists have conducted experiments where young mice have had their ovaries

replaced with those from aged animals no longer capable of reproducing. The

young mice can mate and give birth. This shows that old ovaries placed in a

young environment are capable of responding. On the other hand, when young

ovaries are put into old mice, these mice cannot reproduce. (7)

 

Whatever the mechanism triggering menopause, as fewer egg follicles are

stimulated, the amount of estrogen and progesterone being produced by the

ovaries declines although other hormones continue to be produced. By no means do

the ovaries shrivel up and cease functioning, as is popularly believed. With the

reduction of these hormones, menstruation becomes scantier and erratic and

eventually ceases.

 

However, other body sites such as the adrenal glands, skin, muscle, brain,

pineal gland, hair follicles and body fat are capable of making these same

hormones, enabling the female body to make healthy adjustments in hormonal

balance after menopause - provided a woman has taken good care of herself during

the pre-menopausal years with proper lifestyle, diet and attention to mental and

emotional health.

 

Menopausal women have the opportunity to enter this phase of life empowered in

their wisdom and creativity as never before. They have access to profound inner

knowing. The renowned sociologist Margaret Mead said, " There is nothing more

powerful than a menopausal woman with zest! " In many cultures around the world,

menopause is a transition and an initiation into the fulfillment of a woman's

power, totally symptom-free. She is held in the highest regard in her community

as a wise, respected elder.

 

The Myth of Estrogen and Synthetic Progestins

The earlier research that led to the synthesis of estrogen made possible the

development of the oral contraceptive by 1960. With consent of the US Food and

Drug Administration (FDA), the Pill was widely marketed as an effective,

convenient method of birth control. True sexual liberation for women was at hand

at last.

 

However, the entire basis for the FDA's consent was the result of clinical

studies conducted on 132 Puerto Rican women who had taken the Pill for one year

or longer. (8) (Never mind the fact that there were five women who died during

the study without any investigation into the cause of their deaths.)

 

By the mid-1970s the death toll of women from heart attacks and strokes began to

attract public notice. A newer, supposedly safer Pill was then created with a

lower dose of estrogen. But, in fact, there has never been any valid scientific

proof that the Pill is safe - nor, for that matter, that any of the other forms

of contraception presently available are safe. Women are only now discovering

the price they have been paying for their sexual freedom: by altering their

hormonal balance, many varied and devastating emotional and physiological

dysfunctions have been created.

 

It is now 35 years on from the introduction of oral contraception and there are

presently about 60 million women worldwide who are, in effect, 'trial-ing' the

Pill. Its safety and long term effects have still not been established

conclusively. It is interesting to note, however, that it has produced a wide

assortment of adverse effects and side effects and has a significant link to

breast cancer, high blood pressure and, in particular, cardiovascular disease -

the major cause of female deaths in Australia. In 1992, 27,833 women died from

heart disease and strokes, compared to 2,438 from breast cancer. (9) Is this

merely a coincidence, or do these statistics indicate, perhaps, the harmful side

effects of tampering with hormones?

 

While proclaimed also as the primary missing ingredient for the menopausal

woman, estrogen is strongly recommended by the medical and pharmaceutical

industries for the prevention of cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis. Just

about any doctor's surgery you walk into these days will warn women of the

inherent risks of going through menopause and, for that matter, the

post-menopausal years without the protection of estrogen. Women are further

reminded, once again, that menopause is a deficiency disease, which supposedly

means that they are lacking estrogen and therefore must have supplemental doses

to maintain their health.

 

As Dr. Lynette Dumble has noted, " Broadly speaking, cardiovascular prevention in

women has overwhelmingly focused on hormone replacement. Yet, as Elizabeth

Barrett-Connor emphasizes, the Big Trial, the Coronary Drug Project of 1973 that

included two estrogen regimens, was conducted in men. As part of the Big Trial

design, estrogen doses extravagantly in excess of physiological levels were

deliberately administered to men in order to induce gynaecomastia [enlargement

of male breasts] as an indicator of successful feminisation. This resulted in

thrombosis and impotence and ultimately led to research failure because of

treatment discontinuations amongst the study's participants. " (10)

 

According to medical practitioner, independent researcher and author Dr. John

Lee, the one notable study (known as the Boston Health Study, conducted with a

large sampling of nurses) which formed the entire basis of the positive

estrogen-cardiovascular link, was radically flawed. Although there is ample

evidence from numerous other studies showing that, indeed, the opposite is true

- i.e., estrogen is a significant factor in creating heart disease - these

findings have been virtually ignored in the frenzy for profits. He goes on to

say that the pharmaceutical advertisements also neglected to mention the fact

that stroke death incidence from that study was 50 per cent higher among the

estrogen users.

 

Dr. Lee has compiled a list of side effects and physiological impairments which

result from taking estrogen. They include increased risk of endometrial cancer,

increased body fat, salt and fluid retention, depression and headaches, impaired

blood sugar control (hypoglycemia), loss of zinc and retention of copper,

reduced oxygen levels in all cells, thickened bile and promoted gall bladder

disease, increased likelihood of breast fibrocysts and uterine fibroids,

interference with thyroid activity, decreased sex drive, excessive

blood-clotting, reduced vascular tone, endometriosis, uterine cramping,

infertility, and restraint of osteoclast function.

 

With so many side effects and dangerous complications, a woman must think very

carefully about the HRT decision. Unfortunately, most doctors will tell her that

there is no other alternative. While certainly most doctors are well-meaning and

sincerely concerned about their patients, their primary source of education and

product information comes directly from the pharmaceutical companies. Since most

women also lack essential education and understanding about their options,

menopause can be perceived as a rather frightening and perilous time.

 

Enter Natural Progesterone

For the past 15 years, Dr. Lee has conducted independent research into a

natural, plant derived form of progesterone. His non-pharmaceutically-funded

research presents a much broader understanding of a woman's hormonal options and

offers a totally safe, effective alternative that is free of all side effects.

He has found that this natural hormone - used in conjunction with a good diet

and lifestyle changes - is capable of eliminating much of the suffering

associated both with premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and menopause. Thousands of

women in the Western world now use natural progesterone - generally in the form

of a non-prescription cream which is rubbed into the body. They claim that they

not only have relief from female symptoms but experience increased vitality,

better skin and renewed emotional balance.

 

Natural progesterone seems to have been totally overlooked by medical science

while the erroneous focus has been on estrogen. Considering that it is

non-patentable and inexpensive, it not surprising that this is so. It is

important, however, to have a much greater understanding and appreciation for

this remarkable hormone.

 

As was previously mentioned, it is progesterone that is responsible for

maintaining the secretory endometrium which is necessary for the survival of the

embryo as well as the developing fetus throughout gestation. It is little

realized, however, that progesterone is the mother of all hormones. Progesterone

is the important precursor in the biosynthesis of adrenal corticosteroids

(hormones that protect against stress) and of all sex hormones (testosterone and

estrogen). This means that progesterone has the capacity to be turned into other

hormones further down the pathways as and when the body needs them. The point

needs to be emphasized that estrogen and testosterone are end metabolic products

made from progesterone. Without adequate progesterone, estrogen and testosterone

will not be sufficiently available to the body. Besides being a precursor to sex

hormones, progesterone also facilitates many other important, intrinsic

physiological functions (which will be discussed later).

 

The Estrogen Dominance Effect

Female problems seem to be on the rise. Between 40 and 60 per cent of all women

in the West suffer from PMS. In addition, women also suffer from a plethora of

symptoms, some menopausal and others not. Something quite alarming certainly

seems to be happening to women. There is indication that proper hormonal balance

necessary for a woman's body to function healthily is being interfered with by a

number of factors. Research has revealed that a good portion of women in their

30s (and some even younger), long before the onset of menopause, on occasion

will not ovulate during their menstrual month. (11) Without ovulation, no corpus

luteum results and no progesterone is made. A progesterone deficiency ensues.

 

Several problems can result from this deficiency. One is the month long presence

of unopposed estrogen with all its attendant side effects, as already mentioned.

Another is the generally unrecognized problem of progesterone's role in

osteoporosis. Contemporary medicine is still unaware that progesterone

stimulates osteoblast-mediated new bone formation. Actually, it is progesterone

that stimulates new bone tissue and is capable of reversing osteoporosis at any

age. Lack of progesterone means that new osteoblasts are not created and

osteoporosis can arise. (12) A third major problem results from the

interrelationship between progesterone loss and stress. Stress combined with a

bad diet can induce anovulatory cycles. The consequent lack of progesterone

interferes with the production of the stress-combating hormones, exacerbating

stress conditions that give rise to further anovulatory cycles. And so the

vicious cycle continues.

 

Another major factor contributing to this imbalance between estrogen and

progesterone is environmental in nature. We in the industrialized world now live

immersed in a rising sea of petrochemical derivatives. They are in our air, food

and water. These chemicals include pesticides and herbicides (such as DDT,

dieldrin, heptachlor, etc.) as well as various plastics (polycarbonated plastics

found in babies bottles and water jugs) and PCBs. These estrogen-mimics are

highly fat-soluble, not biodegradable or well excreted, and accumulate in fat

tissue of animals and humans. These chemicals have an uncanny ability to mimic

natural estrogen. They are given the name " xeno-estrogens " since, although they

are foreign chemicals, they are taken up by the estrogen receptor sites in the

body, seriously interfering with natural biochemical changes.

 

Mounting research is now revealing an alarming situation worldwide created by

the inundation of these hormone-mimics. In a recently released book, Our Stolen

Future, authors Theo Colburn of the World Wildlife Fund, Dianne Dumanoski of The

Boston Globe and John Peterson Meyers, a zoologist, have identified 51 hormone

mimics, each able to unleash a torrent of effects such as reduced sperm

production, cell division and sculpting of the developing brain. These mimics

are not only linked to the recent discovery that human sperm counts worldwide

have plunged by 50 per cent between 1938 and 1990 but also to genital

deformities, breast, prostate and testicular cancer, and neurological disorders.

(10)

 

Dr. Lee has discovered a consistent theme running through women's complaints of

the distressing and often debilitating symptoms of PMS, peri-menopause and

menopause: too much estrogen, or, as he has termed it, " estrogen dominance " .

 

Now, instead of estrogen playing its essential role within the well balanced

symphony of steroid hormones in a woman's body, it has begun to overshadow the

other players, creating biochemical dissonance. The last thing in the world a

woman's body needs is more estrogen - either in the form of contraceptives or

HRT. Then, when the estrogen-dominant symptoms appear, guess what is prescribed?

More estrogen! The delicate natural estrogen/progesterone balance is radically

altered due to too much estrogen. Progesterone deficiency is then exacerbated

even more.

 

Dr. Lee has been able to balance the estrogen-dominance effect through the use

of transdermal natural progesterone cream. Natural progesterone, a cholesterol

derivative, is made from wild Mexican yams or soybeans whose active ingredients

are an exact molecular match of the body's own progesterone. It is interesting

to note that in countries in Asia and South America where women eat either the

wild yams or soybeans, the term " hot flush " doesn't even exist in their

languages. They also rarely suffer from the host of female problems presently

plaguing Western women.

 

Supplementation with natural progesterone corrects the real problem:

progesterone deficiency. Natural progesterone is not known to have any side

effects; nor have any toxic levels been found to date. Natural progesterone

increases libido, prevents cancer of the womb, protects against fibrocystic

breast disease, helps protect against breast cancer, maintains the uterus

lining, hydrates and oxygenates the skin, reverses facial hair growth and hair

thinning, acts as a natural diuretic, helps eliminate depression and increase a

sense of well being, encourages fat burning and the use of stored energy,

normalizes blood clotting, and is a precursor to other important stress and sex

hormones. Even the two most prevalent menopausal symptoms - hot flushes and

vaginal dryness - quickly disappear with applications of natural progesterone.

 

There is one other very significant benefit of natural progesterone that

deserves a bit more attention. While most people are under the assumption that

estrogen protects against osteoporosis - one of the biggest selling points for

which a woman is encouraged to take HRT - this is definitely not the case.

 

The early studies on which the estrogen protection assumption was based had

gross scientific defects. Canadian researcher Jerilyn Prior, chief

endocrinologist at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, and her

colleagues, reporting in The New England Journal of Medicine, confirmed that

estrogen's role in osteoporosis is only a minor one. In their studies of female

athletes, they found that osteoporosis occurs to the degree that they become

progesterone-deficient, even though their estrogen levels seem to remain normal.

Prior continued her research with non-athletic women. They showed the same

results. While both these groups of women were menstruating, they had

anovulatory cycles and, therefore, were progesterone-deficient.

 

Prior then went on to discover that anovulation and a short phase cycle now

occur in up to 50 per cent of North American women's menstrual cycles during the

final reproductive years. (14) Unfortunately, these major findings went

relatively unnoticed in the medical community.

 

As a result of her extensive review of published scientific evidence in this

area, Prior confirmed that it is not estrogen but progesterone which is the

bone-trophic hormone; that is, the bone builder. She was even able to identify

progesterone receptor sites on osteoblast cells (bone tissue building cells).

Nobody has ever found osteoblast receptors for estrogen. The bottom line is that

it is in women with progesterone deficiency that bone loss occurs. (15)

 

These results were verified by a three year study of 63 post-menopausal women

with osteoporosis. Women using transdermal progesterone cream experienced an

average 7 to 8 per cent bone mass density increase in the first year, 4 to 5 per

cent the second year, and 3 to 4 per cent in the third year! Untreated women in

this age category typically lose 1.5 per cent bone mass density per year! These

results have not been found with any other form of hormone replacement therapy

or dietary supplementation. (16)

 

Dr. Lee believes that the use of natural progesterone in conjunction with

dietary and lifestyle change can not only stop osteoporosis but can actually

reverse it - even in women aged 70 or more.

 

At this point, it is important to make the distinction between the natural

progesterone that is produced by the body and the synthetic progesterone

analogues classified as progestins, such as Provera, Duphaston and Primulut. As

you will learn, there is a big difference between the two in their effect in the

body, although doctors most often use their names interchangeably. Since natural

progesterone is not a patentable product, the pharmaceutical companies have

molecularly altered it to produce synthetic progestins commonly used in

contraceptives and HRT.

 

Synthetic progestins, because they are not exact replicas of the body's natural

progesterone, unfortunately create a long list of side effects, some of which

are quite severe. A partial list includes headaches, depression, fluid

retention, increased risk of birth defects and early abortion, liver

dysfunction, breast tenderness, breakthrough bleeding, acne, hirsutism (hair

growth), insomnia, edema, weight changes, pulmonary embolism and

premenstrual-like syndrome. (17)

 

Most importantly, progestins lack the intrinsic physiological benefits of

progesterone, thus they cannot function in the major biosynthetic pathways as

progesterone does and they disrupt many fundamental processes in the body.

Progesterone is an essential hormone that also plays a part in the development

of healthy nerve cells and brain and thyroid function. Progestins tend to block

the body's ability to produce and utilize natural progesterone to maintain these

life promoting functions.

 

The hormone story is certainly a very complicated one. Up until now, only one

version of the story has been available to the majority of Western women,

especially Australian women. Serious doubt has been cast on the efficacy and

appropriateness of estrogen and progestins in all the forms they take. Women are

certainly suffering from a wide variety of female complaints.

 

What complicates the hormone story is that the prescribed treatments for these

complaints are actually making the problem worse. Without understanding the far

reaching side effects of estrogen dominance and progestin, doctors are

misdiagnosing the cause of these aggravated conditions. Often, other drugs are

then prescribed with disastrous side effects, as the spiral of unnecessary

medication increases. What is the ultimate toll, not only on a woman's

deteriorating health and emotional well being but also on her financial

situation, her relationships and her career?

 

Without adequate knowledge, education and access to natural products, women have

been easy prey to the powerful campaigns of the multinational drug companies

that have convinced doctors as well as governments of their claims. It is

becoming more evident that women's interests are not always best met through

such a biased approach. It is also not unusual for profits to take precedence

over health and well being. The last thing a woman needs is to have her natural

bodily functions denigrated to deficiency diseases - thus necessitating ongoing

medical attention.

 

It is indeed time for women to take even greater responsibility for their

health, their choices and their lifestyles. The greatest weapon against

compliance and ignorance is knowledge. It's time to ask poignant questions of

your health provider, to demand answers and to be willing to investigate safe,

alternative approaches. It is apparent that women will need to participate in

educating their doctors about the other choices that exist as well as the ones

that they prefer.

 

Certainly, women have it well within their own power not only to find safe,

natural and effective ways to heal themselves but to live long, full lives,

preserving their vitality, youthfulness and health. Women deserve the right to

appreciate themselves and their bodies through all the stages of life. As women

find the way to return to a greater balance within themselves, they will know

profoundly the truth of what Dr. Deepak Chopra has said about women: " Feminine

wisdom is the intelligence at the heart of creation. "

Effects of Estrogen Dominance

 

When estrogen is not balanced by progesterone, it can produce weight gain,

headaches, bad temper, chronic fatigue and loss of interest in sex - all of

which are part of the clinically recognized premenstrual syndrome.

 

Not only has it been well established that estrogen dominance encourages the

development of breast cancer thanks to estrogen's proliferative actions, it also

stimulates breast tissue and can, in time, trigger fibrocystic breast disease -

a condition which wanes when natural progesterone is introduced to balance the

estrogen.

 

By definition, excess estrogen implies a progesterone deficiency. This, in

turn, leads to a decrease in the rate of new bone formation in a woman's body by

the osteoblasts - the cells responsible for doing this job. Although most

doctors are not yet aware of it, this is the prime cause of osteoporosis.

 

Estrogen dominance increases the risk of fibroids. One of the interesting

facts about fibroids - often remarked on by doctors - is that, regardless of the

size, fibroids commonly atrophy once menopause arrives and a woman's ovaries are

no longer making estrogen. Doctors who commonly use progesterone with their

patients have discovered that giving a woman natural progesterone will also

cause fibroids to atrophy.

 

In estrogen dominant menstruating women where progesterone is not peaking and

falling in a normal way each month, the ordered shedding of the womb lining

doesn't take place. Menstruation becomes irregular. This condition can usually

be corrected by making lifestyle changes and using a natural progesterone

product. It is easy to diagnose by having a doctor measure the level of

progesterone in the blood at certain times of the month.

 

Endometrial cancer (cancer of the womb) develops only where there is estrogen

dominance or unopposed estrogen. This, too, can be prevented by the use of

natural progesterone. The use of the synthetic progestins may also help prevent

it, which is why a growing number of doctors no longer give estrogen without

combining it with a progesterone drug during HRT. However, all synthetic

progestins have side effects.

 

Water logging of the cells and an increase in intercellular sodium, which

predispose a woman to high blood pressure or hypertension, frequently occur with

estrogen dominance. These can also be side effects of taking synthetic

progestogen [progestins]. A natural progesterone cream usually clears it up.

 

The risk of stroke and heart disease is increased dramatically when a woman

is estrogen-dominant.

 

 

 

(Source: Leslie Kenton, Passage to Power, Random House, UK, 1995)

 

 

Anti-aging Benefits of Natural Progesterone

 

Progesterone is a primary precursor in the biosynthesis of the adrenal

corticosteroids. Without adequate progesterone, synthesis of the cortisones is

impaired and the body turns to alternate pathways. These alternate pathways have

masculine-producing side effects such as long facial hairs and thinning of scalp

hair. Further impaired corticosteroid production results in a decrease in the

ability to handle stress, e.g., surgery, trauma or emotional stress.

 

Many peri- or post-menopausal women with clinical signs of hypothyroidism,

such as fatigue, lack of energy, intolerance to cold, are actually suffering

from unrecognized estrogen dominance and will benefit from supplementation with

natural progesterone.

 

Estrogen and most of the synthetic progestins increase intracellular sodium

and water uptake. The effect of this is hypertension. Natural progesterone is a

natural diuretic and prevents the cell's uptake of sodium and water, thus

preventing hypertension.

 

Whereas estrogen impairs homeostatic control of glucose levels, natural

progesterone stabilizes them. Thus, natural progesterone can be beneficial to

both those with diabetes and those with reactive hypoglycemia. Estrogen should

be contraindicated in patients with diabetes.

 

Thinning and wrinkled skin is a sign of lack of hydration in the skin. It is

common in peri- and post-menopausal women and is a sure sign of hormone

depletion. Transdermal natural progesterone is a skin moisturizer which restores

skin hydration.

 

Progesterone serves a role in keeping brain cells healthy. A disorder such as

premature senility (Alzheimer's disease) may be, at least in part, another

example of disease secondary to progesterone deficiency.

 

Progesterone is essential for the healthy development of the myelin sheath

which protects the nerve cells. Low progesterone levels lead to recurring aches

and pains.

 

Progesterone creates and promotes an enhanced sense of emotional well being

and psychological self-sufficiency.

 

Progesterone is responsible for enhancing the libido.

 

 

 

 

(Source: John R. Lee, M.D., Slowing the Aging Process with Natural Progesterone,

BLL Publishing, CA, USA, 1994, p. 14)

 

End notes:

 

Archer, John, Bad Medicine, Simon & Schuster, Australia, 1995, p. 191.

 

Op. cit., p. 217.

 

Op. cit., p. 192.

 

Op. cit., p. 211.

 

Coney, Sandra, The Menopause Industry, Spinifex Press Pty Ltd., Australia,

1991, pp. 164-165.

 

The Sydney Morning Herald, 24 June 1995.

 

Coney, Sandra, op. cit., p. 584.

 

Archer, John, op. cit., p. 210.

 

Archer, John, op. cit., p. 211.

 

(a) Dumble, Lynette J., Ph.D., M.Sc., " Odds Against Women with Heart

Disease " , presented at Health Sharing Women's Forum, Royal College of Surgeons,

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 14 September 1995. (b) Barrett-Connor,

Elizabeth, " Heart Disease in Women " , Fertility and Sterility (1994),

62(2):127S-132S.

 

Lee, John R., M.D., Natural Progesterone: The Multiple Role of a Remarkable

Hormone, BLL Publishing, California, USA, 1993, p. 29.

 

Ibid.

 

Newsweek, 18 March 1996.

 

Kenton, Leslie, Passage to Power, Random House, UK, 1995, pp. 19-20.

 

Ibid.

 

Lee, John R., M.D., " Osteoporosis Reversal: The Role of Progesterone " ,

International Clinical Nutrition Review (1990), 10:384-391.

 

Lee, John R., M.D., Slowing the Aging Process with Natural Progesterone, BLL

Publishing, California, USA, 1994, p. 12.

 

 

 

 

© 1996 by Sherrill Sellman The author presently lives in Melbourne where she

conducts a private psychotherapy practice and also devotes time to lecturing,

training and writing. She is a contributing writer to holistic publications in

Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States on topics of interest and

concern to her, relating to health, women's empowerment, relationships, and

personal and planetary transformation. She can be contacted at Light Unlimited,

Locked Bag 8000 - MDC, Kew, Victoria 3101, Australia, Telephone +61 (03) 9840

6496. Fax: +61 (03) 9855 9991 E-mail: golight

Hormone Heresy : What Women MUST Know About Their Hormones by Sherrill

Sellman

A comprehensively researched book that explains how the use of conventional

hormone replacement therapies have put women at great risk and shows the

suffering they have endured. It provides women of all ages the vital information

necessary for making informed choices; such as the scientific research that

shows that synthetic hormones used in HRT and The Pill contribute to breast,

ovarian and uterine cancers and further, how longer term use contributes to CFS,

liver disease, impaired thyroid function and reduced or complete deletion of a

woman's sex drive.

 

Beginning with an explanation of how the medicalization of women's reproductive

cycles has brought about the enslavement of modern woman into a cycle of

chemical entrapment and it concludes with practical and natural alternatives to

safely and effectively handle peri-menopausal and menopausal symptoms. Women

from around the world have commented on its easy readability, it's sensible

approach to the changing times that each woman will experience during her

lifetime. This invaluable volume contains the most optimal, safe and effective

solutions to hormonal imbalance at whatever age it occurs. With the knowledge

and understanding held within this book women are inspired to create a " hormonal

balancing " program for their long term health.

 

 

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause by Dr. John R. Lee

Women considering hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for menopause symptoms and

health benefits should read this controversial, provocative book first.

" Advertising and research dollars are spent trying to convince women that

estrogen will cure everything from heart disease to Alzheimer's, " writes John R.

Lee, M.D., " but there is scant evidence for any of these claims and reams of

evidence that synthetic estrogens are highly toxic and carcinogenic. " Lee has

studied the research and concludes that estrogen is not the magic bullet for

protection against heart disease and osteoporosis, nor does it retard aging.

Natural progesterone, instead, puts postmenopausal women's hormones in balance,

says Lee. He cites study after study that indicates that natural progesterone,

obtained in cream form, delivers what the usual HRT only promises.

 

" Menopause as a disease has been largely fabricated by physicians and the

pharmaceutical industry, " says this leader of a " quiet but powerful revolution "

regarding HRT. What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause covers the

benefits of natural progesterone, the history and politics of the medical and

drug establishment, the biochemistry and dynamics of hormones and how they get

out of balance, and how to prevent hormone imbalance and stay healthy. Lee

empowers you to ask hard questions of your doctor. Highly recommended.

 

 

 

 

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