Denver Post

10/22/2006 03:12:08 PM MDT
A better option to PremPro

A better option to PremPro
Q & A | Pharmacist
Article Last Updated:10/22/2006 03:12:08 PM MDT

Q: I'm scared because I take PremPro and I've read bad things about that drug. I've talked to my endocrinologist, and now I'm terribly confused. He says my medication is just like my hormone, progesterone, but from what I've learned it's not and it's dangerous. You are the one I trust, Suzy. Is he right?

- A.P., Los Angeles,

Calif.

A: No, he's completely wrong. The substance in PremPro is not progesterone; it's an imposter called a "progestin." Progestins are lab-created prescription drugs intended to imitate a person's natural progesterone hormone, but they do a poor job.

Drugs are incredibly profitable; natural hormones aren't. Natural progesterone is available by prescription. Most people are shocked when they learn that high-quality progesterone sold over the counter matches your own progesterone hormone exactly, unlike prescribed drugs!

Don't be scared, be motivated instead. Your fear has intuitively put you in the driver's seat of your own health. On a deeper level, you may have realized that your treatment is no longer right for you. After all, you're the world's leading expert on how you feel. Side effects of PremPro include swelling, depression, skin rash or discoloration, weight gain, weakness, headache and possibly cancer.

If it were me, I'd find a doctor who is knowledgeable in saliva hormone testing and natural, bio-identical hormones. He'll help you alleviate menopausal symptoms and wean you off the PremPro, a drug closely linked to blood clots, heart disease, various cancers and stroke, according to The Women's Health Initiative.

In case you haven't heard, this study was stopped midway because too many women were suffering or dying. The landmark clinical trial used Premarin (horse estrogen) and PremPro (horse estrogen and medroxyprogesterone). Both drugs are still sold by prescription in the U.S., despite their harmful side effects.

It bugs me that the FDA is taking a nap while the makers of synthetic hormones rest easy with thriving sales - over a billion dollars annually. Our supposed health watchdog says (and this is straight off their website): "The FDA is not thinking of taking estrogens or estrogen with progestin drug products off the market at this time."

That's simply remarkable, since the FDA was so quick to yank natural products like ephedra and L-tryptophan. The latest "poison" on the market is a mere vegetable! Yup, E. coli-

tainted spinach - Popeye would have a stroke.