The hormone conundrum
Bioidentical hormones generally refer to supplements of estrogen, progesterone or testosterone that are chemically identical to the body’s own hormones. They’re usually derived from plant sources, such as Mexican wild yam and soy, unlike traditional hormones, which come from sources such as the urine of pregnant horses and are molecularly different to a woman’s own. Compounding pharmacists mix bioidenticals to order, usually into transdermal creams, based on a doctor’s prescription.
Whether from plants or animals, all hormones must be manipulated in a lab to make them usable by the body, which, technically speaking, renders them all “synthesized.”
A fairy-tale treatment?
You can’t help feeling inspired by a success story like this one from Diana Boyes. A salesperson from Georgetown, Ont., she had been suffering through four years of a hormonal hell of her body’s own making. “I had so many hot flashes a day that I wanted to run around naked,” says Boyes, 50. She also had migraines, itchy skin, mood swings, insomnia and brain fog, but she refused to take synthetic hormone replacement therapy (HRT) because of its heightened health risks.Then Boyes discovered Suzanne Somers’ books on bioidentical hormones. This is amazing, she thought, and last August she found a doctor who prescribed them for her. Within a week on the treatment, Boyes was a changed woman. “My hot flashes started going away. I was sleeping through the night. The mood swings, joint aches and headaches were gone. I could even remember my appointments.” And, as Somers promised, Boyes felt sexier. She confides, “With this stuff you actually like your husband again.”
A happy ending? Well, it would seem so – except this isn’t the end. In fact, medical science is only beginning to explore the efficacy and safety of bioidentical hormone therapy versus traditional hormone therapy. And the controversy is heating up faster than a 50-year-old in a polyester turtleneck.
Infomercial queen Somers, whose latest book, Ageless: The Naked Truth about Bioidentical Hormones, came out last fall, sees bioidenticals as a fountain of youth.
But a group of seven physicians (some of whom appear in the book) charges publicly that Somers’ recommendations are misleading and even dangerous. Some people say there’s no scientific evidence that bioidenticals are unsafe – which is true. Others counter there’s no proof that they’re safe, either – which is also true. Some argue there’s no national regulation, either in Canada or the U.S., for custom-compounded bioidentical hormones – and that’s true too. One big multinational drug company is pushing hard to get them off the market – but then, that company has seen its own sales of synthetic hormones drop dramatically.
It’s all enough to make the average midlife woman think, Is it hot in here? Or am I caught in the middle of a fiery debate where I’m going to get burned?
