New Book About Women's Health Looks At The Good And Evil Of Hormones

Main Category: Women's Health / Gynecology
Also Included In: Endocrinology;  Clinical Trials / Drug Trials
Article Date: 13 Jun 2009 - 1:00 PDT

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The evidence is in. Estrogen does not halt aging or protect women from heart disease and dementia, nor is it the safest or best treatment for the hot flashes, night sweats and the insomnia that are associated with menopause and perimenopause. Quite simply - estrogen is not a good and magical hormone - as Susan Baxter, PhD., and Dr. Jerilynn C. Prior, painstakingly prove in their book, The Estrogen Errors; Why Progesterone is Better for Women's Health.

"The Women's Health Initiative, the largest (in history) clinical trial of women's hormones conclusively showed that our infatuation with estrogen was just plain wrong." Baxter adds, "They followed almost 28,000 women finding that menopausal women who took the placebo instead of estrogen or estrogen/progestin were healthier. Yet even now, women are being told it wasn't the estrogen that was at fault but the dosage and timing."

"For over 30 years," Prior notes, "I have worked with my patients, designed studies to address women's unanswered questions, and conducted randomized trials on the subject of hormones and health. Our book shows that contrary to the estrogen myth, it's progesterone with estrogen that makes a girl, a woman. One researcher refusing to believe me asserted that progesterone is evil."

In their lively, in-depth book, Baxter and Prior put to rest the debate about hormone replacement therapy and explain how too much estrogen can dangerously increase a woman's risk of breast cancer, strokes, blood clots and more. Based on scientific evidence, personal experience, case studies, historical and sociological analyses, this readable book explains how progesterone, which balances out estrogen during each menstrual cycle, is essential for optimal health.

Baxter, an experienced medical journalist and social scientist, has extensively investigated the medical and popular literature about hormones and women's health. With her almost encyclopedic knowledge about the literature, Baxter needed to buttress her theoretical understanding and analysis with specific medical information and clinical insights. So she turned to Dr. Jerilynn C. Prior, MD.

Prior, a pioneering endocrinologist; founder of the Centre for Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research (CEMCOR); and professor of Medicine at the University of British Columbia, has worked tirelessly and against considerable odds to educate medical practitioners and women everywhere about the importance of progesterone for women.

Estrogen Errors, a book written for lay people, doctors, and other interested professionals, moves us beyond the good and evil hormone discussion. It's an examination of how we got here and how we can move forward to a more balanced view of the reproductive hormones necessary for a woman's health throughout her life cycle.

Notes:

Estrogen Errors (Praeger Publishers, May 30 2009.)

Susan Baxter, PhD, is a medical writer and social scientist with more than 20 years experience writing about medical controversies. Her previous books include Immune Power and Evaluation in the Health Care Sector. She is a peer reviewer for articles on clinical decision making and policy for the Canadian Medical Association Journal. She has written extensively for physicians (Family Practice, Medical Post) as well as the lay public (Psychology Today, Health Watch, etc.) She is based in Vancouver, Canada.

Dr. Jerilynn C. Prior, MD is a Professor of Medicine, Endocrinology at the University of British Columbia (Vancouver, Canada). She is the founder and Scientific Director of the Centre for Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research (CeMCOR) and has published 100 peer-reviewed scientific articles in medical journals including The New England Journal of Medicine and the Lancet. Prior is invited as a Visiting Lecturer at institutions across Canada and the US (including the New York Academy of Sciences and Harvard School of Public Health) as well as internationally. She is author of the award-winning book, Estrogen's Storm Season - Stories of Perimenopause (CeMCOR, 2005, Vancouver, Canada).

Source:
Brian Lin
University of British Columbia