Hormones are chemicals that are released by a cell in one part of the body and which are transported within tissue fluids to specific cells or tissues to stimulate them into certain types of actions or to carry certain messages that affect cells in other parts of the living organism.

When hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is initiated two entirely different types of hormone molecules are common used: 1) Synthetic hormone molecules or natural, bio-identical hormone molecules.


About Natural, Bio-Identical Hormones

The molecule of the natural hormone is identical in structure to the hormone molecules naturally found within the human body. Pharmaceutical companies cannot patent natural or or bio-identical compounds. However, they can patent molecules which are chemically different then normally found in the body. Generally, since pharmaceutical companies cannot patent natural, bio-identical molecules, they create similar yet different synthetic molecules, designer drugs, if you would.


Synthetics versus Natural Hormones

In fact, these synthetic molecules are highly profitable. Obtaining a patent immediately guarantees that the pharmaceutical company will have an exclusive right to manufacture, sell and profit from their product. Often tremendous monetary investments go into studying and developing a new pharmaceutical product. It is logical that the pharmaceutical companies would want their investment protected with an exclusive, patented product. On the contrary, because drug companies cannot patent natural, bio-identical hormones, there is going to be very little research and minimal marketing of natural hormones. Since the profits are not very significant and others can use their information and techniques to profit from, this makes studying or manufacturing natural hormones financially unrewarding.

Since a large part of marketing any drug always involves the education and instruction of a physician on how and when to prescribe it, drug companies often ignore natural hormones and only tell doctors and the public about what will be profitable for them. Since, much of what physicians know about drugs come directly from pharmaceutical companies promoting their products, and  because pharmaceutical companies don’t manufacture natural hormones, most physicians do not learn about them unless they do personal research.


Where Do These Natural Hormones Come From?

The pure human biologically identical hormone is either extracted from plants or is synthetically manufactured. The initial source is less important then that the end product is a molecule identical in every way to the natural human hormone molecules found naturally in the human body. This applies to all hormones including  tcl.


Where Does One Fill Prescriptions for Natural Hormones?

Natural hormones are filled at special type of pharmacies known as a “compounding pharmacies.” These are regular licensed pharmacies that are capable of providing you with any drug from any pharmaceutical company. Compounding pharmacies are however, able to do more. The compounding pharmacist is similar to the old-fashioned concept of a pharmacist with a mortar and pestle. They acquire the pure pharmaceutical grade hormone and compound it into the dose and form ordered by the physician. They produce pills, capsules, liquids and creams per the doctor̓s prescription orders. This allows for your doctor to write a prescription that is designed exactly for your needs, it is customized and personalized.


Don’t Health Food Stores Carry Natural Products?

Products in health food stores provide people with a variety of natural options, usually from an herb or plant source. Folk medicines, naturopathic and herbal medication, have become more popular as people seek alternatives to conventional, synthetic medicines. However, the products from a compounding pharmacies are different in several ways.

First, and most important, medications provided by compounding pharmacies require a physician’s prescription. Health food store products are most often of a dose that is so low in strength that it does not require a physician’s prescription.
Usually the dose is so small that it is virtually insufficient to produce a measurable difference in the body, based on standard laboratory tests.

Second, the products from the compounding pharmacy utilize ingredients of a pure pharmaceutical grade that are micronized. Micronized means that the product is ground to such a fine grain that will be much more easily absorbed.

Third, the natural hormones from the compounding pharmacy can be prescribed as long-acting, or time release. This helps the body have a better balanced hormone level instead of the normal highs and lows that come with quick acting, rapidly or poorly absorbed products.

A compounding pharmacy is able to customize each prescription  individually as well as provide several options for a personalized hormone program. This ranges from individualized doses, to custom fillers (i.e., lactose free), to options of delivery (sublingual triturates, tablets, capsules, liquids, and creams). In order to assure adequate replacement, hormone levels are monitored and then adjusted to maintain optimal levels of all hormones. HRT might be worthless unless monitoring and adjustment is done.


Why Prescribe Synthetic Hormones?

Given, what we have said above, you might ask, “If there are hormones available that are natural to my body, why do doctors still prescribe synthetic hormones?” The answer to this question involves understanding the power of the pharmaceutical industry in the United States, politics and economics, need to make a profit and controlled education of the medical profession and the general public. In short, for many years it has been much more profitable for doctors to be indoctrinated that patent medication should be used and naturals are not as good. Even today the largest percentage of doctors still believe this. Since the advertising bucks belong to the manufacturers, this is not likely going to change in the near future.


Summary

A bio-identical hormone has a chemical structure that is identical to hormones naturally produced by the human body. We refer to them as natural because they are natural to the human body. Natural hormones cannot be patented by drug companies. Synthetic hormones have a structure similar to but not exactly the same as a hormone produced by your body. These chemical differences mean that the synthetic hormone acts differently and produces substantially different effects. Natural, bio-identical and synthetic hormones should not be considered to be the same nor should they be used interchangeably. They are entirely different. A multitude of studies have demonstrated many harmful effects of synthetic hormones whereas the medical literature supports no harmful effects of natural hormones, only beneficial effects.