Q: What’s the Deal with Synthetic Hormones?

Photo by Mai Le.

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Q: More than ever my patients are asking about alternative hormone replacement. Many are concerned about developing reproductive and associated cancers or adding something seemingly un-natural to their bodies after never having used medication their entire lives. What course of action do you suggest to your patients? -Dr. Charlotte R., UCLA, Second Year Resident Women’s Health

A: This is a great question! I’m glad to hear that more patients are becoming proactive before they dive into synthetic hormone replacement. This is a topic of great debate among health care professionals. I steer both providers and patients to the ethical, sociological and physiological concerns to sum it up.

Why Not Synthetic?

• Upsets genetic expression in fetal development and adulthood
• Increases risk of reproductive cancers such as ovarian, uterine, and breast
• Decreases the natural immune response
• Exacerbates pre-existing auto-immune and endocrine issues
• Ethical concerns involving the production of and harmful environmental affects
• In-activates healthy stores of hormones already present

Consider Before any Hormone Treatment

• Insist on a complete and comprehensive saliva test measuring hormone levels
• Rule out thyroid and other endocrine issues
• Synthetic-proof your food and drinking water supply
• Treatment with bio-identical hormone replacement and lifestyle changes

Christine M. Dionese L.Ac. specializes in integrative medicine, medical journalism and was the VP of marketing at WellWire LLC. Visit her wellness and lifestyle blog, Reaching Beyond Now.