Statement: Hot flashes and sweats in menopausal women can be treated with SSRI antidepressants. They don’t need to use hormones.
"This is not only wrong, it is criminal. The use of SSRI antidepressants for menopausal symptoms was never FDA approved, and is a cruel mistreatment and medical victimization of women. This practice should be halted immediately. Studies of SSRI drugs show they are no better than placebo for most cases of depression(31), and they are not much better than placebo for menopausal hot flashes. (32) Synthetic hormones are bad enough, they cause cancer and heart disease. SSRI drugs like Lexepro, Effexor and Pristiq are even worse; they are chemically addictive with horrendous withdrawal effects. Avoid becoming a medical victim. Stay away."
Dr Jeffrey Dach
Jeffrey Dach MD Bio-Identical Hormone Blog published a new post entitled "Bioidentical Hormones, Clearing Up the Confusion by Jeffrey Dach MD" on 3/29/2011 7:27:00 AM, written by Jeffrey Dach MD.
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Gary:
Increasingly, I come across cases of women being placed on antidepressants for menopausal symptoms, anxiety and depression. While these drugs may give relief and help rescue a precarious situation, the beneficial effect is measured in weeks and not much longer. The body habituates quickly to the drug and becomes ineffective. As with nicotine addiction, continued administering of the drugs is necessary just to be able to function during the day, let alone to feel good about oneself.
Side effects of these drugs, such as wild blood pressure fluctuations, weight gain, dermatitis, constipation, reflux and sleep disorders result in the progressive addition of more and more drugs in addition to the SSRI. This is, in itself, depressing.
There are effective alternatives. I am personally cautious about any form of exogenous hormone therapy. The first course of therapy is to work on bolstering the body's natural ability to manufacture and use hormones. This entails focus on nutritional support of glands such as the adrenals and thyroid. Get these working well and it is amazing how health in general improves, including a reduction in menopausal symptoms. If this approach does not work well enough after 6-12 months, then bioidentical hormone therapy may be added to the mix.
"This is not only wrong, it is criminal. The use of SSRI antidepressants for menopausal symptoms was never FDA approved, and is a cruel mistreatment and medical victimization of women. This practice should be halted immediately. Studies of SSRI drugs show they are no better than placebo for most cases of depression(31), and they are not much better than placebo for menopausal hot flashes. (32) Synthetic hormones are bad enough, they cause cancer and heart disease. SSRI drugs like Lexepro, Effexor and Pristiq are even worse; they are chemically addictive with horrendous withdrawal effects. Avoid becoming a medical victim. Stay away."
Dr Jeffrey Dach
Jeffrey Dach MD Bio-Identical Hormone Blog published a new post entitled "Bioidentical Hormones, Clearing Up the Confusion by Jeffrey Dach MD" on 3/29/2011 7:27:00 AM, written by Jeffrey Dach MD.
__________________________________________
Gary:
Increasingly, I come across cases of women being placed on antidepressants for menopausal symptoms, anxiety and depression. While these drugs may give relief and help rescue a precarious situation, the beneficial effect is measured in weeks and not much longer. The body habituates quickly to the drug and becomes ineffective. As with nicotine addiction, continued administering of the drugs is necessary just to be able to function during the day, let alone to feel good about oneself.
Side effects of these drugs, such as wild blood pressure fluctuations, weight gain, dermatitis, constipation, reflux and sleep disorders result in the progressive addition of more and more drugs in addition to the SSRI. This is, in itself, depressing.
There are effective alternatives. I am personally cautious about any form of exogenous hormone therapy. The first course of therapy is to work on bolstering the body's natural ability to manufacture and use hormones. This entails focus on nutritional support of glands such as the adrenals and thyroid. Get these working well and it is amazing how health in general improves, including a reduction in menopausal symptoms. If this approach does not work well enough after 6-12 months, then bioidentical hormone therapy may be added to the mix.
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