Natural Hormone Replacement Therapy?
What is Natural Hormone Replacement Therapy?
Whenever a medicine or treatment represents itself as actually having some benefits to the patient, it is only a matter of time before alternative approaches to that care are sought after. Anytime there is a chance to replace a man made drug product with something natural and is just as effective there will be a market for it. Hormone replacement therapy and Estrogen replacement therapy are no different.
Partly due to the results of recent studies devoted to ERT and HRT that show some dramatic risks involved while taking these drugs, women have started taking herbal remedies, natural supplements or flora based products to reduce or diminish their menopausal discomfort. As an example some women swear by St. John’s Wort and Chasteberry that act as a natural anti-depressant.
This trend toward natural cures to hormonal loss due to age, hysterectomies, or menopause has begun to focus more on what are called bioidenticals. These are identical in their cellular structure to hormones produced in the body naturally but they are still a synthetic version derived from the chemicals in plants of soy and yams. Other “natural” non-bioidenticals hormones are a derivative of animal and plant life. The question begging to be asked is are these non-human hormones termed “natural” actually as effective and safer than those used in conventional HRT’s are?
The jury is still out on bioidenticals being safer than standard hormones produced in the body. There have not been any extensive studies to investigate the any obvious difference between natural and human produced or even exogenous hormones available to physicians for prescribing. It is fact that bioidenticals do relieve menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes and vaginal dryness. These bioidenticals are available in various products such as skin patches, creams, and even some FDA approved tablets and products.
The mixing of bioidenticals or custom compounding as it is referred to, by pharmaceutical companies and pharmacists is a myth. Custom compounding of hormones is only necessary when a medical specialist wants to recommend particular combinations of hormones, dosing variations or specific preparations not normally available “behind the counter”. Custom Compounding is also used by clinicians when prescribing a hormone not readily available to female patients such as natural steroid hormones or testosterone. Certain FDA approved products containing the same chemical elements are used by these custom compounding pharmacies but the products are not FDA approved.
In summary there are natural ERT and HRT products on the market that are effective at treating certain ailments associated to hormonal health issues. The caveat seems to be understanding the risk –reward relationship and becoming knowledgeable about the natural products available. The jury is out regarding safety concerns, so once again HRT and ERT candidates seeking treatments that are natural should have a consultation with their health care provider about options before diving into any herbal/ natural hormone therapy treatment.