Chapter 5
Menopause
Are menopausal symptoms just an extension of PMS?
Important contributions regarding the relationship of PMS and menopause
were made by two prominent medical scientists, Dr. Katharina Dalton, M.D.
and Dr. Ray Peat, Ph.D. Their independent research showed that
premenstrual symptoms result from a relative estrogen surplus and a
progesterone deficiency. We have verified Dr. Peat's research that both
PMS and menopausal symptoms (such as hot flashes) can be markedly reversed
by the use of natural progesterone, as well as other natural medicines and
therapies.
Please review Table 2 for some of the common factors which can
aggravate both PMS and menopausal symptoms.
SEVEN FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE USE OF ESTROGEN
l. The rising incidence of uterine cancer coincides with the increases
in sales of estrogen pills which have more than quadrupled since 1962.
[20]
2. In 1975 the New England Journal of Medicine reported that Estrogen
Replacement Therapy (ERT) is associated with a 5 to 14 times increase of a
woman's chances of developing cancer in the lining of the uterus. [21]
3. A study conducted by medical researchers at Harvard University, the
University of Louisville and the National Cancer Institute showed that
estrogen use was associated with 30% more breast cancer cases than
expected and concluded that the use of estrogen increases the risk of
developing breast cancer. [22] That report also showed that many women
receive from 3 to 5 times as much estrogen as they need for normal
body functioning. [23]
4. Women do not stop producing estrogen during the menopausal years.
When the ovaries begin producing less estrogen during the normal aging
process, the body's adrenal glands and other extraglandular sources begin
producing estrogen to compensate for the loss. In fact, there are healthy
women in their 70's and 80's whose bodies are still producing estrogen!
[24]
5. Heavy and sore breasts and water retention (a common symptom of PMS)
is often caused not by a lack of estrogen, but rather a lack of
progesterone. [25]
6. The "PAP Smear" test is not an accurate guide to the need
for estrogen. [26][27]
7. Adding estrogen pills to an already high level of blood estrogens
may do more harm than good! How many physicians who prescribe estrogen run
a total estrogen blood test (Estradiol, Estrone, Estriol) before
they prescribe Premarin® or other estrogens? Tests might show that total
estrogen levels are already higher than normal in a large number of women.
Why should these women be prescribed even more estrogen and perhaps
worsen their symptoms and cause new health problems?
***********PLEASE NOTE***********
Although we definitely caution against the overutilization of estrogen and
make a strong effort to alert our patients to its many possible harmful
side effects, it may be necessary, in certain medical conditions such as
true estrogen deficiencies, to use estrogen in order to restore the body
to a more normal hormonal balance.
Next Chapter 6 : HYPOGLYCEMIA
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