Human Hormone Replacement
The natural HRT choice

Today there is an alternative to traditional synthetic hormone replacement (conjugated equine, or horse, estrogens and medroxyprogesterone).  It's natural human-identical hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and Healthway Compounding Pharmacy has it for you.  

Human-identical HRT includes estrogens (estrone, estrodiol & estriol), progesterone, testosterone, DHEA and pregnenolone.  These are the same hormones your body has made all your life, unlike synthetic hormones which are not identical to your hormones.

In order to customize your HRT, it is necessary for you to fill out a patient questionnaire.  To access the HRT patient questionnaire, click on HRT patient questionnaire.  Once you have filled it out completely, you can fax it to us at 989-791-4603 or mail it. The information will be reviewed at your consultation.

How do you know you need hormone replacement therapy?  Either your physician may order a blood serum test or you may choose to a saliva test yourself.

Saliva hormone tests reflect the tissue concentration of your hormones. Blood and serum tests contain the total hormone, but your tissue are only bathed with the active or effective fraction as found in saliva. Active fraction measurements are superior to blood and urine measurements both in diagnosis and treatment. For more information on saliva testing, please click here.

Many women experience significant changes in their health before, during and after menopause. Many of these health problems are associated with hormone imbalances that may be overcome with HRT. Hormones are powerful chemical messengers that circulate throughout the bloodstream to specific target cells where they generate biological responses. The interdependent relationship between adrenal function and sex hormones has a profound effect on many organ systems.

Women have traditionally used “synthetic” estrogens and progestins (traditional HRT) to protect against osteoporosis and heart disease. It has been suggested that these “synthetic” hormones offer some protection against heart disease and osteoporosis but have may have unwanted side effects. Because of these side effects many women abandon traditional synthetic HRT very soon after starting. This has led to a strong interest in the use of human-identical hormone replacement therapy.

Human-Identical or "Natural" vs Synthetic

Human-Identical means that the hormones are an exact match to the hormones produced by the human body. This is often also called natural hormone replacement therapy. These hormones get their start in nature, found in soy beans and wild yams, they can then be easily converted into the exact hormones that the body makes. The body can recognize these human-identical hormones and uses them just as it would if they were being produced by the ovaries, testes, or adrenal glands. Most side effects seen with human-identical hormones are associated with incorrect dosing. By making slight variations in the dose, or dosage form, the side effects often disappear.

Synthetic hormones, or tradition hormone replacement, are not easily recognized by the body even though they may produce similar effects. Because they are hundreds of times more potent than the hormones that our bodies make, they are linked to many side effects. 

Human-identical hormone replacement products need to be compounded by a compounding pharmacy, like Healthway Compounding Pharmacy. Compounding offers you and your physician a choice for individualized hormone treatment.

For more information on specific hormones, please click the links below.

Estrogen

Progesterone

Testosterone

Pregnenolone and DHEA

Dosage Forms

HRT requires a written prescription by a licensed medical practitioner.

No two women are alike, of course, and the value of human-identical hormone replacement therapy is that it can be adapted to fit your individual body and hormone levels. In fact, hormones can be made in a variety of strengths and dosage forms including capsules, topical creams and gels, suppositories and sublingual troches or lozenges. With the help of your doctor and a compounding pharmacist, a woman can start and maintain a human-identical hormone replacement regimen that closely mimics what her body has been doing naturally for years.