Dr. Erika's Blog | Balanced Hormones for Life!

How Hormones Support A Healthy Heart

In case you haven’t heard it yet, heart disease is the number one killer of women in the U.S. To put it in more concrete terms 306,000 women died of heart disease in 2007, more than died from breast cancer, the flu or in motor vehicle accidents. 

It’s a staggering number that means we need to look at what happens to increase the risk of heart disease in women as they age.It’s a simple connection between heart disease and menopause. Estrogen, the hormone women have an abundance before menopause, is a major protector of the heart and once that disappears, women catch up with men and even surpass them in having more heart attacks, strokes and cardiac disease.There are 52 million women over age 50 today who should run to get prescriptions for bioidentical hormones, which would immediately drop their risk of heart disease by more than 60 percent.

Let me explain why.

When we are in our 20s and 30s, we are full of hormones. By that I mean we are full of estradiol (estrogen of youth), progesterone (the hormone that balances estrogen) and yes, even testosterone. We are full of energy, want to have sex  and don’t have wrinkles. Our skin glows and weight loss is easy with diet and exercise. Hormones are the root reason we are healthy when we are young.  They also support our immune function so we get over a cold in 48 hours and eliminate inflammation so we don’t suffer with arthritic joints. 

In our 40s, things change. We manufacture fewer hormones, ovulate irregularly and the quality diminishes until we stop making them altogether at menopause. On the outside, wrinkles appear, midriff bulge spills over, energy drops and sleep becomes a nightmare, accompanied by hot flashes, night sweats, palpitations and, of course, anxiety.

Inside, the loss of hormones increases bad-cholesterol levels, plaque in our arteries and shortness of breath.

Complicating the picture for women is the fact that they do not experience or manifest heart disease like men.

Chest pain may not be the presenting symptom. Heart disease in women can be a nagging toothache, jaw aches, arm pain and often exhaustion and persistent cough. 

Too many women who die are misdiagnosed, because studies on and treatments for heart disease have been conducted with men. 

If women would learn to be unafraid of bioidentical hormones – which are manufactured to look identical to their own hormones – and take them before menopause, heart disease would claim fewer women’s lives.Let’s start today, shall we?

1. Become aware that hormones are your saviors and protectors.
2. Start taking bioidentical hormones as soon as you begin experiencing symptoms of pre-menopause.
3. If you have a family history of heart disease, start bioidentical hormones as early as possible.
4. Change your diet to low carbs, low animal fat, high vegetable and fruit by age 40.
5. Cut down on alcohol, caffeine, soda and sugar substitutes.
6. Increase the amount of cardio exercise and strength building to 30 minutes a day.
7. Sleep eight hours every night.
8. Eliminate fear and anxiety from your life. They are dangerous to your heart.
9. Work with doctors who support and encourage you, not fear-mongers.
10. Don’t fear heart disease or cancer. Take control of your life and enjoy every minute. Stay young and full of hormones forever. 

The above article originally appeared in WAG Magazine. 

Lose weight by balancing your hormones and support your hormones with proper age specific supplements

Dr. Schwartz Dr. Erika talks about the importance of hormone balance. This excerpt is from an hour long radio program that airs once a week on Friday's on WVOX 1460am in New York.

Later in the actual broadcast Dr. Schwartz spoke about the importance of supporting hormone balance by eating a healthy diet and taking the right supplements for your particular age.

Dr. Schwartz developed age specific supplements for women and the most popular of these is the supplement pack for women 45-59.

Balancing hormones takes to the airwaves!

There are various methods for testing your hormone levels...

Methods of Testing Your Hormone Levels Explained

 

Blood Tests

Your gynecologist will either tell you that blood tests to determine your hormone levels in health are useless, which would be truthful, or he/she will tell you blood FSH is the key blood test to identify how close you are to menopause.

After over 10 years of work with bioidentical hormones and over 30 years of being a doctor, I beg to differ with the whole idea of testing FSH.

 

FSH-Follicle Stimulating Hormone is a useless test. Depending on what time of the month the test is done, the result may classify you as menopausal or not, literally in a vacuum.

I can’t tell you how many devastated 30 something year olds have come to me with the diagnosis of ovarian failure based on absent periods and elevated FSH levels. The same women who months later even got pregnant while under my care on the proper bioidentical hormones and thyroid regimen.

Other hormone levels tested in the blood tests include : LH, Prolactin, DHEA, Estrogen (Total/ Estradiol (E2), Estriol (E1), Estrone (E3), Progesterone (Total/Free), Testosterone (Total/Free), T3, T4, TSH and the new RT3 (reverse T3 not FDA approved). Depending on what time of the month, week or time of day the blood is drawn, the results may ether fit your symptoms or not.

If the results fit your symptoms, your doctor can use the blood tests as guideline in your hormonal treatment. If the results are not in concert with the symptoms, what happens next depends on you and your doctor. If you are working with a doctor who pays attention to you, the blood tests stay in your chart for future reference. If your doctor doesn’t listen to you, my advice is to change doctors and ignore his/her comments.

 

A more useful, expensive and excessive way to use blood tests, is to have samples drawn at days 1, 15, 25 of your cycle and see how the hormone fluctuations compare to your symptoms.

With my patients, I only do baseline blood tests in women with history of cancer, serious medical problems: women whose symptoms are confusing and may also reflect other underlying problems. In these cases I use blood tests to help us navigate the distance between health and discomfort and accordingly adjust the treatment plans.

I repeat bloods once a year for many patients I work with on a regular basis. Call it the conventional medicine backbone of my training. I do temper my urge to order blood tests especially when my patients remind me of the exorbitant cost of “maybe” information.

 

Urine Tests

 

24 hour urine tests to measure excretion of the metabolized waste products of the hormones we use are often a method of testing employed by endocrinologists in search of serious illnesses. So far, this method has not caught on in the treatment of hormonally challenged women. The method is cumbersome, expensive and again, of doubtful usefulness.

For the results to mean anything at all, you have to insure collection of every drop of urine you generated for 24 hours. Most women have better things to do with their lives. Use this test only if you have addressed everything else; from diet, to exercise, to stress management, to working with a caring, knowledgeable MD with the right supplements, vitamins and bioidentical hormones and your symptoms still persist.

 

Saliva Testing

 

I am not a fan of this method of testing either. And I must tell you, many have tried to convince me to jump on board of this co-called “best method to monitor bioidentical hormone therapy”.

I am not really clear what saliva testing brings to the table. I know it makes the people who promote and perform it rich, but I am not sure it helps you understand your symptoms any better, or me treat you more effectively.

It’s easy to perform and it isn’t expensive. You don’t need a doctor t order it so the marketing expert has the upper hand with you. It measures the amount of hormones present in your saliva, supposedly a direct reflection of how much of the particular hormone is freely circulating in your blood stream. Only it isn’t measuring anything in your blood stream, it is your saliva. Confusing, ha? Yep.

Many patients I see bring the tests to me and tell me their compounding pharmacists have encouraged them to take them. I am not moved.

My verdict on the tests is the following:

Depends on who you work with when balancing your hormones and your life.

Ask questions and make sure the answers make sense to you. Nothing is too complex or above your head. This is your life and you need to be in control of it to be successful and enjoy it! 

 

Finally, when it comes to testing there is an over the counter Do It Yourself kit to measure your FSH levels to determine if you are menopausal or not. Don’t waste your money on it. Go buy yourself a present and have fun!

 

 

Guest Author Sheri Goddard Menopause Coach: Why Have You Struggled With Weight All Your Life?

Why is it that some of us can eat what we want and others look at certain foods and feel like they gain weight?

I want to share some information I recently learned. There are reasons why people cannot lose weight. Some make the assumption if a person is overweight, they are eating too much.

Not always the case, I have found out. Most women have struggles with weight issues around the time of menopause, if not their whole life. For some it began during the teenage years and has continued.

There are fat-storing hormones and fat-burning hormones. The fat-burning hormones in the body have to be working with your body – not against it. Any of these 9 reasons could be why you have been struggling with weight issues.

1. Skipping meals and letting yourself get hungry -when you skip meals, your body goes into starvation mode. It may help to eat 4-5 little meals during the day so you don’t get hungry.
2. Excess sugar mixed with excess protein - Don’t eat sugary desserts right after eating protein.
3. Overeating – especially refined grains and sugars - Eating refined sugars and flours are empty calories. The nutrients have been stripped away. They are the “quick fix” canned and packaged foods, best to eat live veggies, fruits, legumes.
4. Consuming alcohol – Alcohol triggers insulin, thus causing weight gain.
5. Consuming caffeinated drinks such as coffee or sodas
6. Wrong exercise for your body type.
7. Too much stress - How are you coping with the stress?
8. Poor sleeping habits - Getting 8-9 hours of sleep is best - the growth hormone is triggered after you have been asleep 2-3 hours.
9. Poor liver function - The liver is a major detoxifying organ because everything goes through the liver- it needs to be functioning efficiently.

These are things we can be aware of. Making changes in our lifestyle can start with one baby step at a time.

Sheri Goddard, Menopause Coach

Ms. Goddard is a coach, mentor, teacher, and author on the subject of natural health and wellness and our newest guest author. Welcome Sheri we're excited to have your input!

Breast Cancer Rates Decrease in White Affluent Women over 50: Dr. C.W. Randolph Unveils the Hidden "Money-Hormone-Choice" Variable

Only white, affluent women over 50 are showing a decline in breast cancer rates across the country, according to a new study published in the American Journal of Public Health. Harvard researchers analyzed data evidencing a decline in breast cancer rates across the country and discovered this startling fact. No such decrease in the number of diagnosed breast cancers was evident among African American, Hispanic or Asian/Pacific Islander women. The researchers attributed the decrease in this racial, socioeconomic slice of women to a decline in these same women’s use of synthetic hormones often prescribed for menopausal symptoms. Breast cancer rates declined by as much as 10% annually in this group.

“This new research is seminal in that it throws light on a previously obscured variable.” says Dr. C. W. Randolph, Jr., “This demographic of women - white, educated and informed -is not only the segment of the female population most likely to stop using synthetic hormones, it is also the segment of women most actively embracing bioidentical hormone replacement therapies (BHRT) as a safe and effective alternative.”

After the published results of the 2002 Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study unequivocally linked the use of synthetic hormone replacement drugs to an increased risk of breast cancers, heart attack, stroke and Alzheimer’s disease, millions of women decided to stop filling their prescriptions. Sales of the 2.2 billion dollar pipeline of synthetic hormones products, such as the popularly-prescribed Premarin and Prempro, soon plummeted by 50%. But according to Randolph, “The declining use of synthetic hormones is just one variable in this equation of decreased risk and the increasing popular choice of bioidentical hormone replacement therapies (BHRT) is the other.”

Dr. Randolph, a nationally-recognized medical pioneer in treating hormone health issues for both women and men, reports an astonishing clinical finding. “For close to fifteen years, I have used BHRT to successfully treat tens of thousands of women suffering from menopausal symptoms and other issues associated with hormone imbalance.” Randolph said, “In all those years, we know of only two women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. When the national average of women diagnosed with breast cancer is still 1 out of 8, I contend that the trend I am witnessing in my practice reflects the growing body of evidence that bioidentical progesterone is breast tissue protective.”

Randolph acknowledges the use of bioidentical hormones has sparked an intense debate and some enmity within the medical community.

A lot of women and even their physicians are still uncertain about the difference between synthetic and bioidentical hormones, Dr. Randolph said. He explains the human body produces three sex hormones: estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. Each of these hormones has a unique molecular structure the human body recognizes, receives and utilizes at a cellular level. Synthetic hormones, such as the ones in Premarin and Prempro, are manufactured to have a slightly different molecular structure than the hormones produced within the human body. “Why? So they can be patented, says Randolph, “Unfortunately, as the WHI study showed, the slight changes in molecular structure trigger dangerous and even deadly side effects when introduced into the human system.”

“Bioidentical hormones, on the other hand, are synthesized in a laboratory to have exactly the same molecular structure as the hormones produced within the human body. When introduced into the human system in physiologic doses, bioidentical hormones are effectively recognized and received. Menopausal symptoms are safely alleviated and, at a cellular level, optimal healthy hormone balance is restored and breast tissue is protected.”

Randolph said, “Today’s upper-income, educated female healthcare consumer is not the woman of her mother’s era. They do not look at a medical professional in a white coat and take their word as gospel. When these women start teetering into their menopausal years, they are determined to do their homework and understand their choices. Increasingly, after reviewing the growing body of medical evidence, these women are choosing bioidentical hormones and, if need be, they are willing to pay out-of-pocket.”

“Informed, well-heeled white women may be driving a shift in the way the traditional medical community is treating hormone health issues but our real good news will be when all races and all socioeconomic communities of women, whether white, black, Hispanic or Asian, are made aware that they, too, have the same choice for long-term hormone balance and breast health.”

C.W. Randolph, Jr., M.D., R.Ph.is also the co-founder of the Natural Hormone Institute and co-author of the bestselling book, From Hormone Hell to Hormone Well, with Genie James, M.M.Sc.

Please Visit HormoneWell.com

Age Specific Vitamins and Minerals In Depth (Conclusion of a 7 Part Series)

Part 6: Calcium, Boron

Conclusion... In developing my exclusive line of supplements I had one goal in mind. Make it easy for the average woman to get the supplemental support she needs at each stage of life.

Each supplement pack is designed for increased energy production, immune system support, decreasing inflammation and general over all hormone balance support.

Yes you could go to your corner drug store and pick up any multi-vitamin but won't get the years of experience that go into the line I created for my patients. There is Science behind each component and in this short series I explain how each supplement works to support your over all health.

Part 7: Wrap up

Age Specific Vitamins and Minerals In Depth (Part 5 of a 7 Part Series)

Part 5: Alpha Lipoic Acid

Continued... In developing my exclusive line of supplements I had one goal in mind. Make it easy for the average woman to get the supplemental support she needs at each stage of life.

Each supplement pack is designed for increased energy production, immune system support, decreasing inflammation and general over all hormone balance support.

Yes you could go to your corner drug store and pick up any multi-vitamin but won't get the years of experience that go into the line I created for my patients. There is Science behind each component and in this short series I explain how each supplement works to support your over all health.

Age Specific Vitamins and Minerals In Depth (Part 4 of a 7 Part Series)

Part 4: B-Vitamin

Continued... In developing my exclusive line of supplements I had one goal in mind. Make it easy for the average woman to get the supplemental support she needs at each stage of life.

Each supplement pack is designed for increased energy production, immune system support, decreasing inflammation and general over all hormone balance support.

Yes you could go to your corner drug store and pick up any multi-vitamin but won't get the years of experience that go into the line I created for my patients. There is Science behind each component and in this short series I explain how each supplement works to support your over all health.

Age Specific Vitamins and Minerals In Depth (Part 3 of a 7 Part Series)

Part 3: LCarnitine and Coenzyme Q10

Continued... In developing my exclusive line of supplements I had one goal in mind. Make it easy for the average woman to get the supplemental support she needs at each stage of life.

Each supplement pack is designed for increased energy production, immune system support, decreasing inflammation and general over all hormone balance support.

Yes you could go to your corner drug store and pick up any multi-vitamin but won't get the years of experience that go into the line I created for my patients. There is Science behind each component and in this short series I explain how each supplement works to support your over all health.