Why Bioidentical is Best
Hormone production diminishes with age in everyone…eventually. No one escapes it. Meanwhile, the hormone deficiencies that occur as a result of this natural decline are responsible for the many symptoms we routinely associate with aging.
Fortunately, you can put back into your body what your body no longer produces on its own thanks to hormone replacement therapy.
What’s important when it comes to hormone therapy is that it be done correctly. When done properly, patients receiving hormone therapy should be healthier in the long run, and they should have good symptom relief. If not done properly…it’s possible to have the opposite outcome. This is why your prescribing doctor’s expertise is critically important.
There are numerous distinctions to be made between hormone therapy that is done correctly versus hormone therapy that is done incorrectly, but one of the most important involves the difference between bioidentical hormones and synthetic hormones.
The Difference Between Bioidentical and Synthetic
As the name would suggest, bioidentical hormones are identical to the hormones your body makes. In fact, if you were to put a bioidentical hormone molecule under a microscope side-by-side with a hormone molecule produced by your body, there would be no difference between the two. One would be an exact carbon copy of the other.
Synthetic hormones, on the other hand, are not identical to the hormones made by your body. While they are very similar, their molecular structure is slightly different.
Why is This Difference Important?
It turns out that this slight difference between synthetic hormones and the hormones your body makes naturally can have negative consequences for how those synthetic hormones work in your body.
Humans have hormone receptors all over their bodies. You can think of these receptors as if they were tiny locks, and the hormone molecules that fit into them as if they were tiny keys. Bioidentical hormone molecules and the hormone molecules that your body produces fit perfectly into those receptors. Synthetic molecules, on the other hand, do not.
This fit between hormone molecules and their receptors is crucial. If the fit between the two is less than perfect—even if that imperfection is slight—the result can be side effects and compromised health.
Think of it this way…
Bioidentical hormones are like going to a really qualified locksmith who makes a perfect replica of the original key to your house.
Synthetic hormones are more like having a made by a fly-by-night locksmith with shoddy equipment. You might be able to wiggle that key into the lock and (sort of) make it work…but that ill-fitting key is more likely to stick in the lock and eventually damage it.
An Individualized Approach
It’s also important to know that hormone replacement therapy—even when using bioidentical hormones—should never be prescribed on a one-size-fits-all basis. For best results, dosing should be tailored to each person’s unique physiological needs.
Better Symptom Relief, Safer Results
In summary, because bioidentical hormones are identical to your body’s natural hormones, they work within your body just as your natural hormones do. That means better symptom relief, and better long-term health outcomes.
Beyond that, it’s important that bioidentical hormones are prescribed correctly by a doctor who specializes in bioidentical hormone replacement therapy. Treatment should be individualized, and progress should be monitored via routine lab work.
At Renew Youth, we have specialized in bioidentical hormone therapy since 1999.
Are you considering hormone therapy? Contact Renew Youth at 800-859-7511 or use our contact form to set up your free 30-minute consultation.
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