The Truth About Bio-Identical Hormones

"Bio-identical" hormones are those that chemically match hormones produced by the human body. Although they do originate from a plant source, usually yams or soy as do many other synthetic hormones, they undergo an extensive multi-step chemical conversion process to become progesterone, estradial, etc.

Bio-identical hormones are manufactured in pharmaceutical laboratories and sold, usually in powdered forms, to compounding pharmacies and companies who manufacture skin creams containing these hormones. "Bio-identical" is a marketing term, not a medical term. The legally and medically accepted terminology for bio-identical hormones is progesterone, USP or estradiol USP, etc. USP stands for United States Pharmacopia.

Bio-identical hormones are not grown in a garden. They are manufactured in pharmaceutical labs and pharmaceutical companies; Pfizer and Upjohn have been in the bio-identical hormone business for years. This is important to know, as most companies selling progesterone creams on the internet are fond of saying there has been no testing on bio-identical hormones because the pharmaceutical companies can?t patent something found in nature and are therefore unwilling to manufacture or test them. While, pharmaceutical companies may not be able to patent their molecular structure, they can design and patent their delivery methods such as a patch, gel etc. and currently, bio-identical HRT has become popular enough for pharmaceutical companies to create more unique delivery systems and put more versions of these drugs on the market.

Marketers selling bio-identical hormone products also claim that there are no side effects associated with bio-identical hormones. This seems to be an odd claim to make since they also say pharmaceutical companies won?t test them. Well, there are thoroughly tested FDA approved bio-identical hormone replacement options that doctors can readily prescribe. Prometrium, for example,is a "bio-identical" USP progesterone available in a variety of doses and Prometrium, a regulated bio-identical progesterone, carries a list of contraindications. These side effects include breast tenderness, dizziness, abdominal bloating, vaginal discharge, chest pain, and diarrhea. There are also warnings that women suffering from certain medical conditions should not use Prometrium.

Just because a hormone is created to be identical to a hormone your body makes does not mean it is perfectly safe and well tolerated by everyone, or that women can?t use too much. Some creams on the market contain thousands of milligrams of progesterone, USP per jar! Women can overdose on these products with contraceptive side effects, or even worse! Product labels do not include a list of possible contraindications or warnings for women with medical conditions who use these hormones stating the dangers.

Should you choose to use "bio-identical" hormones we highly recommend working with your health care provider and have him or her help you choose a product that is the safest for you. Please don?t buy this type of a hormone creams in health food stores or over the internet as these unregulated products coupled with women not understanding that bio-identical hormones are not plants, can be hazardous to your health without doctor supervision and prescription.

Should you choose to use a safe alternative to HRT we firmly stand behind Resolve and Balance Wild Yam Creams, because they are topically applied skin creams containing Mexican Wild Yam extract and plant nutrients designed to give the body what it needs to make its own progesterone safely and naturally. Neither contains any type of drugs or hormones. They simply provide women with the nutritional building blocks their system needs to achieve and maintain hormonal balance. This is a truly natural product for women who are looking for a safe alternative to bio-idential hormones HRT.

We have had a lot of success with these products however, there are women who just haven?t gotten the results they need and have found that they do need HRT and that?s just the way it goes when you address issues from a nutritional standpoint - everyone is different. In fact that?s the way it is with every product. People can be allergic to certain ingredients or their systems just don?t tolerate a product well, or it just doesn?t work for them. If you ever encounter a company that claims to have a 100% success ratio turn and run the other way because they are not being honest with you!