Natural Bioidentical Hormone Therapy

Hormone replacement therapies are a common treatment approach for women who suffer from the adverse effects of menopause. Hot flashes, mood swings and bone loss are possible effects experienced during this time. Natural bioidentical hormone therapy is an alternative treatment model that's tailor-made according to each woman's body type.

Identification

• Natural bioidentical hormone therapy is a form of treatment used to restore a woman's hormonal balance during menopause. Bioidentical hormones are synthesized in the lab and formulated to resemble the naturally occurring hormones in the body like estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. The term "natural bioidentical hormones" refers to the end product result---naturally occurring hormones---and not the process used to make them. This treatment model is a modified version of conventional hormone therapy, which uses animal-based hormones as its formula basis. Natural therapies claim to be more effective than conventional treatments because the chemical make-up of bioidentical hormones is designed to be compatible with the human body.

Function

• Menopause is a time when a woman's biological processes are in transition. In effect, the hormonal changes that take place can cause significant emotional and physical discomfort. Hormone replacement therapies are designed to replace missing hormones and regulate the body's hormonal balance. Natural bioidentical compounds are made to match the molecular shape and chemical structures of hormones produced by the body. As a result, these formulas provide the body with a compatible replacement, as opposed to the "unnatural" formulas used in conventional therapies.

Custom Compounds

• Natural bioidentical hormone therapy involves matching hormone-compounds to the biochemical make-up of a woman's body. Matching is done by obtaining saliva and blood samples, which are used to compile a custom-made formula. Custom-made formulas are designed to be fully compatible with the woman's body chemistry, and so restore hormonal balance within the body. The actual medication can be manufactured as a pill, a cream, a patch, a time-release subdermal pellet or a suppository. This custom-made method allows for individualized doses and chemical formulas that are otherwise unavailable in the commercial market.

Conventional Hormone Therapies

• Synthetic hormones are the types used in conventional hormone replacement therapies. These formulas are derived from animal hormones and plant compounds and do not resemble the body's naturally occurring hormones. As a result, their molecular shape and structure is different than what the body is accustomed to. The use of components that bear little to no resemblance to human hormones poses an incompatibility issue. This incompatibility may reduce their effectiveness as a treatment therapy. In regards to the use of plant compounds, the defining difference between conventional and bioidentical therapies is in the end product. Conventional therapies combine animal and plant components "as is," whereas bioidentical therapies manufacture naturally occurring "human" hormones out of plant materials.

Considerations

• As of yet, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration has not endorsed natural bioidentical hormone therapy as an effective treatment for menopause. The use of customized formulas makes it difficult to regulate the ingredients used in these medications. As of late 2009, no large-scale clinical trials had been conducted to determine whether these hormones are comparable to the body's naturally occurring hormones. In addition, the use of blood and saliva samples to determine the body's hormonal levels is questionable due to how hormone levels can fluctuate throughout the day during menopause.