Conventional Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) has been used to help women cope with the effects of menopause and aging for many decades. Doctors routinely used Conventional HRT to address hot flashes, vaginal dryness, mood swings, sleep problems, and decreased sexual desire. However, in 2002 a well publicized Women’s Health Initiative Study concluded that women using Conventional HRT were at a much higher risk for breast cancer, blood clots, stroke and heart disease.
Obviously, the mainstream, traditional doctors were stunned by the results of the study and a majority of women who were undergoing Conventional HRT at the time decided to stop their treatment until more information was available. In addition, many mainstream doctors have discouraged the use of Conventional HRT since then, and it seems that “the jury is still out” in the minds of many health professionals.
It is very important to understand that this study was done on women undergoing Conventional HRT, meaning, the hormones used in treatment were not Bio-Identical Hormones. For example, the Estrogen used in Conventional HRT hormones is taken from the urine of pregnant horses. These hormones are not identical to the hormones produced naturally by a woman’s body. The differences between these Conventional HRT hormones and natural hormones explain many of the undesirable side effects found in the study.
Bio-Identical Hormones are carefully crafted to be identical to the hormones produced naturally by a woman’s body. They are identical in every respect. In fact, a woman’s body can not tell the difference between it’s own natural hormones and true Bio-Identical hormones. Bio-Identical HRT is associated with far fewer adverse effects than conventional HRT, and there is emerging evidence that they may reduce the risk of certain cancers. In addition, Total Med Solutions creates a custom blend of Bio-Identical hormones based upon your individual needs – this is truly the best of both worlds.
Concern about cancer is the main reason why many aging women shy away from restoring their hormones to youthful levels. But if estrogen levels were the primary cause of breast cancer, common sense tells us that younger women, who have the highest estrogen levels, should have the most breast cancer and that breast cancer risk should decline over time as estrogen levels decrease. However the data related to age and breast cancer shows the opposite. The younger women who have the highest estrogen levels have the lowest risk, and older women with the lowest estrogen levels are at the highest risk. This data seems to indicate that aging is the main cause of breast cancer.
Risk of Developing Breast Cancer by Age
By age 25: 1 in 19,608
By age 30: 1 in 2,525
By age 40: 1 in 217
By age 45: 1 in 93
By age 50: 1 in 50
By age 55: 1 in 33
By age 60: 1 in 24
By age 65: 1 in 17
By age 70: 1 in 14
By age 75: 1 in 11
By age 80: 1 in 10
By age 85: 1 in 9
