Joseph F. McWherter, MD FACOG

Summarizing our previous estrogen stocking stuffers discussions:

1. Estrogen is one of the body’s most important hormones because of its ability to squelch chronic inflammatory pathways which are implicated in premature aging and disease.  Upon entering menopause, you suffer greater internal biologic inflammation, manifested by a host of troublesome changes in your body,  including hot flashes, night sweats, insomnia, fatigue,  memory loss, depression, bone loss, skin wrinkling, and weight gain around your waist. If you wait 10 or more years before starting estrogen therapy after menopause, it may be too late to reverse the chronic diseases of aging (dementia, Alzheimer’s, and heart disease).
2. Estrogen has the ability to kill breast cancer when reintroduced into postmenopausal women not currently taking estrogen replacement. Per our discussion on DES (both as a killer of breast cancer when used post-menopause versus being a risk factor if exposure occurs to the fetus), the timing of exposure of breast tissue to estrogen is biologically sensitive and ultimately determines one’s risk for malignancy.
3. Estrogen can provide protection for women with breast cancer who were taking estrogen replacement at the time of diagnosis.
4. Estrogen replacement is a personal choice with many products to pick from.  Referring to the FEM Centre website, we suggest the use of a combination of topically applied, bio-identical estrogens since our program provides for healthy usage and proper disposal of hormonal byproducts. This does not preclude the use of other types of estrogen, but our clinical experience guides us in providing patients with  a successful health and welln­­­­ess plan.

While estrogen balance is essential for long term health, its impact occurs on an area of the body whose stabilization forms the basis of my entire wellness program – the extracellular matrix (ECM). As you continue reading and participating with me in this blog experience, I will explain how the stability of your body’s biologic glue, or ECM, determines your ability to remain creative, energetic, spiritually satisfied, and free of chronic diseases.

Traditional medicine has almost exclusively focused on the cell and its pathways in terms of treatment modalities.  For acute issues involving a single disease such as bacterial pneumonia, one drug (antibiotic) can completely block one biologic pathway (e.g. strep or pneumococcal), which effectively eradicates the bacteria,  and the pneumonia resolves. Unfortunately, in the case of chronic diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer’s , coronary artery disease, and a variety of autoimmune diseases involving multiple pathways, the traditional approach has failed.

Our ultimate endpoint in the war on aging and chronic disease should be in prevention instead of relying exclusively on intervention. For instance, the futility of treating breast cancer as if it is solely was a cell mutation with aberrant biologic pathways is best summarized by a well-respected physician quoted in a 1960s’ medical article as saying, “Cancer is no more a disease of cells than a traffic jam is a disease of cars.” Embracing this concept serves to explain the origins , prevention, and treatment modalities for the chronic diseases of aging.

Join me in my upcoming blogs to find out more about how to stabilize your extracellular matrix and delay the process of aging.

JMcW, MD