BY DR. GARRY F. GORDON, MD, DO, MD(H)

Menopause. The onset of this phase of life is marked by a decline in the production of estrogen–a hormone that serves as a chemical messenger in the body which regulates the menstrual cycle, controls breast development, and helps maintain healthy bones and a healthy heart. From puberty to menopause, the ovaries produce estrogen. Once menopause sets in, the ovaries no longer make estrogen, and body fat becomes the primary source for estrogen.

Estrogen is a vital key to healthy aging. When a woman’s body undergoes menopause, the accompanying symptoms can be severe enough to disrupt her life–and affect the lives of those around her. Hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness and thinness, and frequent bladder infections are common complaints. Women also report chronic fatigue, weight gain, joint pains, bone loss, hair loss, insomnia, mood swings, memory loss, decreased libido, and a decrease in arousal and orgasmic response. Perimenopause (the transition to menopause) also marks the beginning stages of increased risk of heart disease and osteoporosis.

Menopause is a natural stage in a woman’s life, and one that should be embraced and celebrated as a freeing and wondrous time–not looked upon with disdain or fear. Over the years, prescription and various herbal remedies have come and gone for this stage, most have proven either too ineffective or too dangerous to be worth the risk. Sadly, many women continue to suffer needlessly due to the mainstream media’s scare-tactic reporting about the serious and sometimes fatal side effects caused by hormone replacement therapy. It is true that most women will not enjoy optimal health after menopause or reach their maximum intended lifespan without hormonal support. Unfortunately, far too many physicians are under-informed about estrogen supplementation and the risks of heart disease and breast cancer. I am here to tell you that healthy aging and all-natural, safe and effective hormone replacement support is possible!

For hundreds of years, women in Thailand have used the root of Pueraria mirifica (or Thai Kudzu)—an abundant flowering plant of their region—to relieve menopause symptoms. My good friend Dr. Sandy Schwartz relocated to Thailand about 20 years ago, and shared how natives have been using Pueraria mirifica for centuries as both a food and a part of their traditional medicine. As I explored further, I found that the lowest rate of breast cancer in the world was in Thailand’s northern region – the only place in the world where Pueraria mirifica grows. Since that time, dozens of scientific studies have documented the beneficial and protective effects of this amazing plant.

Pueraria mirifica belongs to the same family of legumes that includes soybeans and peas, and contains a bounty of natural chemical compounds called phytoestrogens that foster good health. These naturally occurring chemical compounds have structures which are similar to estrogen. Pueraria mirifica is unique in that it is the only plant to contain a special phytoestrogen called miroestrol, which is extraordinarily similar in structure and function to a type of estrogen called estriol. Of the three types of estrogen found in humans—estradiol, estrone and estriol—estriol is the weakest. Its weakness, however, is actually its strength. Clinical trials have shown no links between estriol and cancer, and women who have taken it reported few side effects compared with those who took estradiol or estrone as hormone replacement therapies.

Once just a promising plant that Asian women whispered about, Pueraria mirifica is now refined and formulated to the highest standards and is called Puresterol. Approved as a food supplement by the FDA, Puresterol is available from Longevity Plus, LLC as H.R.T. Plus (Herbal Remedy from Thailand). H.R.T. Plus has been documented in extensive research to safely eliminate all menopause-related symptoms while actually providing anti-cancer protections for the breast and other tissues. It is a Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulator of the Beta receptor or S.E.R.M.-beta, and provides favorable effects throughout the entire body. It protects against bone loss, depression, insomnia, hot flashes, vaginal dryness and loss of memory. In my experience, there is no comparison between the minimal effects of traditional herbals like black cohosh, red clover or soy, and the dramatic benefits I have seen in my patients receiving Puresterol in H.R.T. Plus.

With an ever increasing number of women searching for safe, alternative, organic and holistic remedies and approaches to breast and hormonal health and longevity, Puresterol, as found in H.R.T. Plus, is the perfect fit.