fjrigjwwe9r0Board:Content
The Women's Health Initiative
Nita Bishop, N.D.
February 2002: The Women's Health Initiative, a federally sponsored study of 16,608 postmenopausal women ages 50-79 who were projected to be followed for 5 years was cut short due to unexpected statistics: increased risk of breast cancer, thickening of the endometrial lining in the uterus, a 29% increased risk for heart disease, a 26% higher risk for invasive breast cancer, a 41% increased risk for stroke or blood clots. The estrogen only arm of the study is continuing.
Recently a consensus of the study was released from experts at an NIH workshop in Bethesda, Maryland which states, "if you use hormone replacement treatment for hot flashes, the only acceptable use is for short-term relief of severe menopausal symptoms. Otherwise, don't."
February 2003: A reanalysis of data previously released from the Women's Health Initiative, headed by Sylvia Wassertheir-Smoller, professor of epidemiology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York stated, "There is no doubt in my mind that the use of the estrogen-progestin combination should not even be considered as a strategy for protecting a woman's health.
March 2003: A study from the Baylor College of Medicine using estrogen and progestin published results stating that these combinations were bad for a woman's physical health. The estrogen/progestin combination specifically increased the incidence of breast cancer, heart disease and stroke.
April 2003: In the Mayo Clinic Women's HealthSource Newsletter, the following recommendation was made, "Estrogen is still the most effective treatment for hot flashes and is appropriate for most women with bothersome menopausal symptoms."
May 2003: More data from the same Baylor study was published suggesting these combinations do nothing for memory, sleeping or mental outlook and actually do more harm than good. Jennifer Hays, a psychologist who directed the analysis stated, "The average woman will not experience an improvement in her quality of life by taking this estrogen/progestin pill."
June 2003: Another impressive reversal: A new study was released which indicates that women who commence hormone therapy after the age of 65 may increase their chances of getting Alzheimer's disease. |