Menopause: Learn to Recognize the Signs

| February 16, 2017

Really? How Many Menopause Symptoms Are There??

Are you having trouble sleeping? Do you constantly feel tired or like your brain’s in a fog? While these symptoms are probably annoying, you may not feel like they warrant a doctor’s visit. Maybe some nights you sleep just fine, so you figure there’s nothing really wrong. Or maybe it has been going on for so long that you think it’s just a part of getting older, when actually it could be a sign that you’re experiencing the early symptoms of menopause. Many women expect menopause to happen suddenly and then be over. But perimenopause can actually take place over a period of many years, even a decade or so. There are a multitude of symptoms associated with menopause and perimenopause, although many women only know about the stereotypical ones—the hot flashes and night sweats. Menopause can interfere with many aspects of a woman’s health, and learning to recognize the signs can help in taking preventive action before symptoms start taking over your life—and your health. Read more…

Insomnia Can Be a Nightmare—Do Your Hormones Need a Tune-Up?

| January 20, 2017

How Do Hormones Play a Role in Your Sleep Habits?

Few things are as frustrating as lying in bed wide awake at 3 am with no prospect of sleep, especially when you know that you’re going to suffer for it the next day—dragging through the day exhausted, craving the sweets that will give you a quick boost of energy, only to be followed by a crash that makes you feel worse than ever. You’ll start regaining the couple of pounds you struggled to lose, and the fear of not sleeping the next night will almost guarantee another wakeful night. You may have tried over-the-counter sleep aids, which may or may not work and can have side effects. Or you may have trouble sleeping even when you avoid heavy meals before bedtime, turn off the TV and other devices with screens two hours before bed, and keep your bedroom entirely dark and soundless—all good practices for getting a good night’s sleep. If you’re still fighting sleeplessness despite your best efforts, it may be time to look at your hormones. Read more…

How to Use Nutrition Labels to Stay Healthy

| January 13, 2017

Consumers Confused by Nutritional Labels

Nutrition labels contain all kinds of information, from ingredients to calorie counts to fat content to vitamins and minerals. But you may not realize exactly how all the information on nutrition labels relates to your overall health. Living healthfully means avoiding certain foods and enjoying others. Although many foods found in packages appear and even claim to be healthy, reading the nutrition labels on the back of a package can tell a different story. By reading the nutrition labels, you find out not only what goes into your meal, but also what is going into your body and contributing to the overall state of your health. Nutrition doesn’t just impact your body weight; it also affects your cardiovascular health, your immune system, and even your hormones. Eating well and getting the right nutrition allows your body to regulate its internal processes; when you eat the right foods, your hormones are in better balance, allowing you to feel well and be well. Read more…

Get Off the Weight Loss Roller Coaster

| December 13, 2016

Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy as a Weight Loss Tool

Are you stuck on the weight loss roller coaster? You try this, you try that, you drink kale smoothies one month, you go to spinning classes the next. You lose a little, you gain a little—it can seem like a never-ending battle. But when your best efforts at weight loss just aren’t working, it’s probably time to take a new approach. Difficulty maintaining a healthy weight, even when you eat right and exercise, may mean there’s something else going on—like too much stress, not enough sleep, or hormone imbalance. Getting your hormones checked may be the next direction you need to take in your weight management efforts. Diet and exercise are always going to be an important part of health—and of maintaining a healthy weight—but they’re not the whole story. If a hormone imbalance is sabotaging your weight loss plan, replacing and regulating needed hormones could make the whole process much easier. Read more…

The Leading Cause of Vision Loss

| December 9, 2016

Can Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy (BHRT) Help with Age-Related Macular Degeneration?

Many people do not think about the possibility of losing their vision until it has already happened. Vision loss is seen as either something that happens due to an unusual situation, such as in the case of a chemical spill or an injury, or something that is able to be corrected, such as in the case of cataracts. However, the leading cause of vision loss is neither unusual nor correctible. The leading cause of vision loss is age-related macular degeneration. Macular degeneration is a condition characterized by the gradual degeneration of the part of the retina that controls visual acuity (known as the macula). Age-related macular degeneration results in a loss of acuity in the center of the field of vision, which usually manifests as a gray spot that gradually grows larger. However, despite the fact that age-related macular degeneration is both prevalent and incurable, there are multiple treatment options available that can help protect both vision and overall health. Read more…

The Dangers of Sleep Apnea

| November 28, 2016

Could Sleep Apnea be to Blame for Memory Loss?

Obstructive sleep apnea is a disorder that can cause a variety of negative symptoms. Aptly named, it occurs when a person’s airway is obstructed during sleep, impeding the flow of oxygen to the brain and the rest of the body. Obstructive sleep apnea is almost three times as common in men than in women, and it is often caused by obesity. The soft tissue in an obese person’s mouth and throat is thicker than average, and when they go to sleep, the tissue relaxes, and this has the potential to obstruct their airway. This obstruction disrupts the person’s sleep and in some cases can awaken them suddenly in the middle of the night. This disruption can cause a variety of sleep-related symptoms, including insomnia, fatigue, snoring, and even nightmares. Additional symptoms can include mood swings, depression, and sudden weight gain. Memory loss and trouble focusing are also common complaints, and researchers have found this to be a major cause of concern, as it could mean bad news for the long-term health of the brain. Read more…

Treating Joint Pain Without Painkillers

| November 17, 2016

How Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy Can Improve Arthritic Joint Pain

Conventional treatments for joint pain and other symptoms of arthritis often include a class of drugs known as NSAIDs (like aspirin or ibuprofen), which help to alleviate pain but can also cause problems in the digestive tract when taken improperly or over an extended period of time. Injections into joints can also help alleviate joint pain, but this treatment may involve repeated injections and may also have side effects, in addition to not always being effective. Creams, physical therapy, and surgeries are also possibilities for treating the often-debilitating symptoms of arthritis. But one aspect of arthritis-related joint pain that you may not have considered is its probable relation to lowered levels of estrogen in the body. While a drop in estrogen levels often coincides with menopause, suboptimal estrogen levels can occur at any age. And research suggests that for at least some women with joint pain, they may be able to find relief through bioidentical hormone replacement therapy. Read more…

Increasing Your Vitamin D Intake

| October 19, 2016

Sources of Vitamin D

Vitamin D is frequently referred to as the “sunshine vitamin” because your body creates it through direct exposure to the sun. If you don’t get enough direct sunlight, your body can’t process enough vitamin D. And in the northern parts of the country, it’s just not possible to get enough vitamin D through sunlight alone for much of the year. Fortunately, there are other ways to get vitamin D. Vitamin D is found in some (but not many) foods, including certain species of fatty fish like sardines and mackerel, as well as in eggs and liver (many people remember taking cod liver oil as a child, and it’s still a good idea). Organic dairy products fortified with vitamin D can also help meet the requirement (as long as you’re not sensitive to dairy). And of course, vitamin D supplements are a lifesaver for many people. But why is vitamin D so important to health? Turns out it can help protect your body from a whole host of diseases. Read more…

What You Need to Know About Magnesium and High Blood Pressure

| October 4, 2016

Patient getting blood pressure reading

Minerals like calcium and magnesium have been touted for decades as ways to lower high blood pressure levels in patients who are at risk for hypertension. So why are so many people on prescription medication for hypertension? A recent study found that magnesium supplements have the ability to significantly lower and stabilize blood pressure levels, protecting cardiovascular health. This is especially true for people who are not getting optimum levels of magnesium. Although it is not often discussed, taking magnesium for cardiovascular disease prevention is nothing new. Magnesium is an essential mineral that plays a strong role in your overall heart health. Yet because of the modern diet, many people are not getting enough. By taking magnesium supplements and eating foods rich in magnesium like grean, leafy vegetables, quinoa, avocados, and pumpkin seeds, you can boost your levels of the mineral and help lower your blood pressure in a more natural way. Read more…

Testosterone Therapy May Help Men With Type 2 Diabetes

| September 22, 2016

Overweight diabetic man exercising

Traditional medical protocols often call for treating symptoms rather than the underlying medical conditions that are causing those symptoms. But as more and more fear about side effects and overmedicating come to light, more people are seeking out alternative therapies that focus on prevention and the root causes of illness. Even more exciting is that the traditional medical community is taking note. Some doctors prescribe medications to treat each condition as it occurs, regardless of side effects and detriments to quality of life. Now many healthcare professionals are discovering that when the root cause of illness is found, one treatment may take care of a long list of health issues. Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, which has been used in integrative medicine for years, is making headway in the mainstream. Testosterone therapy, for instance, may help reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and more. Instead of taking a handful of pills each day, bioidentical hormone replacement therapy may be the key to restoring health…. Read More