It’s absolutely insane how most medical professionals push estrogen. It’s very clear that progesterone is the one that’s deficient starting around age 35. Maybe, and this is a stretch, it’s part of a deep population. Because if you don’t have enough progesterone, you will miscarry.
Yes! I've been saying this for years. Why does the western medical community not like the words, hormone balance and estrogen dominance?
Have you read Dr. John Lee's book from the 90's?
What Your Dr May Not Tell You About Menopause. And later he wrote one with the same title except it was Perimenopause. Both are good.
Both talk about the need for progesterone.
In my Substack I educate about menstrual cycle awareness. I truly believe our health starts with this vital sign. Living with the cyclical nature of our phases we will see the areas that we need more self care in our month.
But first- awareness.
Thank you for this article. I have only read this one and now I subscribed. Looking forward to what you share. Really important work.
Just stumbled across this and thank you! I have been saying that the push for estrogen these last few years seems very ... pharma funded? As if there are no risks at all from this "miracle drug"! When something is all over the media that hard, I get skeptical. Without any conversation about liver, detox pathways, and preparing for menopause over time.... I am curious your thoughts on progesterone oil - I started to use it for menopausal sleep issues and it is so goooood! Ahhhh that plus and infra red heat mat before sleep changed so much!
I tend to be estrogen dominant and have a hard time with it sticking around my body too much like you mentioned. (Huge chest from hrt anyone)
But I’m post meno and I really need it for joint pain, which whatever is in my tissues doesn’t help with. How can I still take it? I’m fully aware of how no one focuses on progesterone even though that’s the life saver for many of us especially during peri.
How can we find a healthy balance here? How can we successfully take a small amount of estradiol during menopause and still make it work? Or are you saying we don’t need to take estradiol during post menopause at all? And progesterone should be enough?
My breast thermography research and the research of my mentor Dr William Hobbins M.D. has proven the documented risks with all forms of exogenous estrogen including BIHRT and Phytoestrogens for over 50 years. Social media influencers like Dr Mary Claire insist on harming women and laugh in the face of actual research. It's criminal what they're doing to women. Aside from their misinformation now being blasted on social media influencer pages.
I have never heard that synthetic, pharmaceutical hormones are derived from phyto estrogens so please share whatever source you have for this assertion. I’m very interested to learn more about this.
I have long understood synthetics such as the merina coil are made by pharmaceutical companies and potentially what you’re saying is they start with a phytoestrogen and then they alter its chemical structure so they can now call it a drug that they can get FDA approved and patented.
Dr. MCHaver constantly pushes synthetics. I heard her say recently that she "follows the science." It made me wonder if she is being paid by the pharma companies to push their synthetics.
She talks about the Mireno coil as an option for women. Science has proven it causes breast cancer. It contains progestin which is molecularly different than progesterone.
There was a Finnish Cohort Study that involved almost 100,000 women using the Mirena Coil IUD between the ages of 30 and 49 years of age and they showed a higher incident of both ductal and lobular breast cancers compared to the general population. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26243443/
If she actually followed the science she would only be prescribing BHRT. There are no studies showing it has risks. If there is someone reading this that says there are studies please share the links. We all want to be informed.
We should also keep in mind that synthetics are derived from bioidentical phytoestrogens. Another issue is that many progesterone companies are including raw form of phytoestrogens which is counter productive to using progesterone. Progesterone deficiency is actually estrogen dominance which occurs by over exposure to exogenous estrogen including phytoestrogens.
This conversation is getting confusing around the word “synthetic.” The truth is, all progesterone, even bioidentical, is technically synthetic. It has to be synthesized from plant sterols like diosgenin, usually from wild yam or soy. That’s just the chemistry of how it becomes usable to the human body.
I think we agree on a lot of things. I’ve seen some of your work and appreciate the thoughtful approach. Where we may differ is that I don’t demonize estrogenI believe it has a place, in balance. Some women genuinely feel better with phytoestrogens, or even wild yam creams. It’s highly individual. The problem tends to arise when either side paints with broad strokes or assumes one solution fits everyone.
Thank you for reviewing breast thermography research, However, after 17 years of evaluating patients and interpreting breast thermography across multiple clinics—including the clinic where my business partner, Dr. Bales, was featured explaining thermography in the documentary Truth About Cancer—I’ve consistently observed one thing: women using bio-identical estrogen do not show improvement on thermographic imaging. In fact, vascularity often worsens—mirroring the atypical vascular patterns we see with hormone replacement therapy (HRT), The Pill, and IUDs with hormones. This can also be substantiated with mammograms as bio-identical estrogen causes dense breasts. When the estrogen is removed the breasts soften.
Many women say they “feel better” on bio-identical estrogen/wild yam cream—but symptom suppression is not healing. The same temporary relief occurs when women are placed on The Pill for PMS or PCOS. The underlying imbalance is masked—not resolved—and long-term risk increases.
Historically, women did not require estrogen therapy to age well. As a doctor trained in Traditional Chinese Medicine—a 5,000-year-old system—we recognize symptoms like PMS or menopause as a disorder, they were not “normal” as women toady are told. TCM doctors are taught the human body was designed to live 100–120 years. Telomere research now confirms this potential. Yet Western healthcare systems project life expectancy at just 76.
Western medicine teaches that the body is inherently deficient, requiring pharmaceutical and supplemental support. Yet despite decades of estrogen based therapies, foods, and now popular herbs we see declining health outcomes:
In the U.S., Japan, and globally, breast cancer ranks among the highest of all cancer diagnoses.
The U.S. has the early puberty - age 8.
Infertility and low testosterone have become epidemics.
Miscarriage is increasingly frequent—with some of my patients reporting 10 pregnancy losses.
Breast thermography is a physiological evaluation of the breasts. It provides clinical insight into the efficacy or ineffectiveness of therapeutic interventions. I do not speculate. I interpret the imaging. And the evidence is clear: phytoestrogens like flax, soy, CBD, ashwagandha, chasteberry, astragals, bio-identical estrogen, and other estrogenic therapies are not benign. They alter vascularity, stimulate neoangiogenesis and hyperplasia, and increase long-term risk.
What would you do if your research—and 50 years of documented findings from your mentor—consistently demonstrated this? Would you stay silent, or tell the world?
The word "synthetics" is used to describe the pharma "hormone" drugs that have a chemical structure that is different than the chemical structure humans make inside of their bodies.
In contrast, bioidenticals are identical or aka an exact match in their chemical structure to the hormones humans make inside of their bodies.
Big Pharma Synthetics=fake ~ Bioidenticals=an exact match
This isn’t oversimplified—this is decades of research. Breast thermography is a physiological evaluation of the breasts, and my mentor, Dr. William Hobbins, was a pioneer in the field. As the leading researcher in breast thermography, he began noticing significant changes in thermographic patterns between the 1970s and 1980s.
Why the shift?
After several years of investigation, he identified the cause: soy. Specifically, the introduction of soy into the human food supply and livestock feed. His groundbreaking research contributed to the now widely accepted warning that soy increases breast cancer risk.
In 2013, we were the first researchers to publish medical evidence showing that flaxseed, bio-identical estrogen, and wild yam creams also increase risk.
Dr. Hobbins also studied in France, where he was awarded the Key to the City of Lyon in recognition of his thermographic research. In 1986, he published one of the earliest progesterone studies using thermography to measure the effectiveness.
His findings?
Breast thermography reveals that not all progesterone applications are equal. Oral and sublingual progesterone are often less effective because they are partially destroyed during digestion. However, thermographic research has shown that when progesterone cream is applied directly to the area where the estrogen receptors are located—such as the breasts—it produces measurable therapeutic effects. In addition, when phytoestrogens are added to progesterone creams, like black cohosh, CBD, or lavender, they increase vascularity in the breasts.
This explains why many women fail to see results from progesterone therapy: the phytoestrogens are overpowering or neutralizing the intended effect.
Breast thermography serves as the first line of defense because changes in vascularity within the breasts can be detected as early as 30 days.
Watch the video in this feed of a breast cancer patient whose diagnosis was linked to bio-identical estrogen use. See with your own eyes how bio-identical estrogen stimulates vascularity and neoangiogenesis.
I strongly encourage you to review the research behind breast thermography. Why would a breast cancer researcher’s eighth book focus on the feminization of men? It is one of the most comprehensive body of research on phytoestrogens and their effects on the entire family. “Soy Boys: The Rise in Low Testosterone & the Feminization of Men Due to Phytoestrogens.”
You stated: "synthetics are derived from bioidentical phytoestrogens." Please share links about this so that I can read more.
I don't ever recall learning that pharma companies start with phytoestrogens to formulate their synthetic "hormones." To be sure we are on the same page, when I say "synthetics," I am saying a drug with a chemical structure that is different than the chemical structure humans make inside of their bodies.
Thank you for the link. If you could please send me the link or links that will support your assertion that naturally occurring bioidentical forms of estrogen are increasing risk of breast cancer. Please share those links. I want to read those first and then I will go onto your Instagram and read what else you have there.
This essay, in the course of explicating the toxicities in our political climate, suggests that America is overdosing on estrogens, as indicated by declining testosterone and sperm count levels among men, increased gynecomastia among men, an increase in animals which can't reproduce and, perhaps, increased homosexuality and transgenderism
I don't get the progesterone issue. Last August I started on estradiol (75micrograms) and progesterone (100mg - 'Prometrium'). I've put on about 15kg since then. That might mean I'm estrogen dominant (always had heavy periods, depression, weight around hips, bad PMS, fatigue etc). The Prometrium box says each capsule contains 100mg of progesterone.
My question: Is Prometrium synthetic and therefore no use to me? Or should I ask to increase my dose to counterbalance the (assumed) estrogen overload? I am definitely in need of calming and balancing - and some sleep would be nice too.
As an aside, Prometrium was recently put onto the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme which means it's much cheaper to buy now, so more accessible.
Mainstream loves to push hormonal balance but fundamentally misleading women into believing that estrogen is the hormone they need to balance ignoring several others.
Interesting article. I have triple positive breast cancer and do not want to take Tamoxifen. It makes sense to me to balance my hormones not try to block one. After reading this I likely fall into the category of normal estrogen on labs but maybe not detoxing…sadly I will never know now that I have cancer at 50 and have gone into menopause due to chemo. It’s hard to find good info supporting how to manage hormones post cancer without drugs.
had my well woman exam today at age 56.75 yrs of age and told since last year I am now MD estrogen deficient. My Dexa scan shows I have Vit D level of 20yr old. I am need to figure out what next. I will take a look at this pdf.
It’s absolutely insane how most medical professionals push estrogen. It’s very clear that progesterone is the one that’s deficient starting around age 35. Maybe, and this is a stretch, it’s part of a deep population. Because if you don’t have enough progesterone, you will miscarry.
Anything is possible gypsy queen. We are being fed the wrong information all around..
Yes! I've been saying this for years. Why does the western medical community not like the words, hormone balance and estrogen dominance?
Have you read Dr. John Lee's book from the 90's?
What Your Dr May Not Tell You About Menopause. And later he wrote one with the same title except it was Perimenopause. Both are good.
Both talk about the need for progesterone.
In my Substack I educate about menstrual cycle awareness. I truly believe our health starts with this vital sign. Living with the cyclical nature of our phases we will see the areas that we need more self care in our month.
But first- awareness.
Thank you for this article. I have only read this one and now I subscribed. Looking forward to what you share. Really important work.
Have you Dr Ray Peat’s book “From PMS to Menopause”
No, but thanks for the recommendation. I'll look into it.
Just stumbled across this and thank you! I have been saying that the push for estrogen these last few years seems very ... pharma funded? As if there are no risks at all from this "miracle drug"! When something is all over the media that hard, I get skeptical. Without any conversation about liver, detox pathways, and preparing for menopause over time.... I am curious your thoughts on progesterone oil - I started to use it for menopausal sleep issues and it is so goooood! Ahhhh that plus and infra red heat mat before sleep changed so much!
I was hoping you would have shared the natural Progesterone in this article. Is it Wild Yam? What’s a natural Estrogen? Thank you for letting us know.
Wild Yam is not a natural progesterone, it’s a mild adaptogenic compound.
Progesterone can be made from the plant sterol of wild yams but wild yam cream is not progesterone.
Natural phytoestrogens like flax and organic non gmo soy are natural estrogens.
I tend to be estrogen dominant and have a hard time with it sticking around my body too much like you mentioned. (Huge chest from hrt anyone)
But I’m post meno and I really need it for joint pain, which whatever is in my tissues doesn’t help with. How can I still take it? I’m fully aware of how no one focuses on progesterone even though that’s the life saver for many of us especially during peri.
How can we find a healthy balance here? How can we successfully take a small amount of estradiol during menopause and still make it work? Or are you saying we don’t need to take estradiol during post menopause at all? And progesterone should be enough?
My breast thermography research and the research of my mentor Dr William Hobbins M.D. has proven the documented risks with all forms of exogenous estrogen including BIHRT and Phytoestrogens for over 50 years. Social media influencers like Dr Mary Claire insist on harming women and laugh in the face of actual research. It's criminal what they're doing to women. Aside from their misinformation now being blasted on social media influencer pages.
And now celebrities like Halle Berry are pushing it as well
Reminds me of Suzanna Somers. She promoted it as well, then unfortunately ended up with breast cancer.
I have never heard that synthetic, pharmaceutical hormones are derived from phyto estrogens so please share whatever source you have for this assertion. I’m very interested to learn more about this.
I have long understood synthetics such as the merina coil are made by pharmaceutical companies and potentially what you’re saying is they start with a phytoestrogen and then they alter its chemical structure so they can now call it a drug that they can get FDA approved and patented.
Dr. MCHaver constantly pushes synthetics. I heard her say recently that she "follows the science." It made me wonder if she is being paid by the pharma companies to push their synthetics.
She talks about the Mireno coil as an option for women. Science has proven it causes breast cancer. It contains progestin which is molecularly different than progesterone.
There was a Finnish Cohort Study that involved almost 100,000 women using the Mirena Coil IUD between the ages of 30 and 49 years of age and they showed a higher incident of both ductal and lobular breast cancers compared to the general population. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26243443/
If she actually followed the science she would only be prescribing BHRT. There are no studies showing it has risks. If there is someone reading this that says there are studies please share the links. We all want to be informed.
We should also keep in mind that synthetics are derived from bioidentical phytoestrogens. Another issue is that many progesterone companies are including raw form of phytoestrogens which is counter productive to using progesterone. Progesterone deficiency is actually estrogen dominance which occurs by over exposure to exogenous estrogen including phytoestrogens.
This conversation is getting confusing around the word “synthetic.” The truth is, all progesterone, even bioidentical, is technically synthetic. It has to be synthesized from plant sterols like diosgenin, usually from wild yam or soy. That’s just the chemistry of how it becomes usable to the human body.
I think we agree on a lot of things. I’ve seen some of your work and appreciate the thoughtful approach. Where we may differ is that I don’t demonize estrogenI believe it has a place, in balance. Some women genuinely feel better with phytoestrogens, or even wild yam creams. It’s highly individual. The problem tends to arise when either side paints with broad strokes or assumes one solution fits everyone.
Thank you for reviewing breast thermography research, However, after 17 years of evaluating patients and interpreting breast thermography across multiple clinics—including the clinic where my business partner, Dr. Bales, was featured explaining thermography in the documentary Truth About Cancer—I’ve consistently observed one thing: women using bio-identical estrogen do not show improvement on thermographic imaging. In fact, vascularity often worsens—mirroring the atypical vascular patterns we see with hormone replacement therapy (HRT), The Pill, and IUDs with hormones. This can also be substantiated with mammograms as bio-identical estrogen causes dense breasts. When the estrogen is removed the breasts soften.
Many women say they “feel better” on bio-identical estrogen/wild yam cream—but symptom suppression is not healing. The same temporary relief occurs when women are placed on The Pill for PMS or PCOS. The underlying imbalance is masked—not resolved—and long-term risk increases.
Historically, women did not require estrogen therapy to age well. As a doctor trained in Traditional Chinese Medicine—a 5,000-year-old system—we recognize symptoms like PMS or menopause as a disorder, they were not “normal” as women toady are told. TCM doctors are taught the human body was designed to live 100–120 years. Telomere research now confirms this potential. Yet Western healthcare systems project life expectancy at just 76.
Western medicine teaches that the body is inherently deficient, requiring pharmaceutical and supplemental support. Yet despite decades of estrogen based therapies, foods, and now popular herbs we see declining health outcomes:
In the U.S., Japan, and globally, breast cancer ranks among the highest of all cancer diagnoses.
The U.S. has the early puberty - age 8.
Infertility and low testosterone have become epidemics.
Miscarriage is increasingly frequent—with some of my patients reporting 10 pregnancy losses.
Breast thermography is a physiological evaluation of the breasts. It provides clinical insight into the efficacy or ineffectiveness of therapeutic interventions. I do not speculate. I interpret the imaging. And the evidence is clear: phytoestrogens like flax, soy, CBD, ashwagandha, chasteberry, astragals, bio-identical estrogen, and other estrogenic therapies are not benign. They alter vascularity, stimulate neoangiogenesis and hyperplasia, and increase long-term risk.
What would you do if your research—and 50 years of documented findings from your mentor—consistently demonstrated this? Would you stay silent, or tell the world?
The word "synthetics" is used to describe the pharma "hormone" drugs that have a chemical structure that is different than the chemical structure humans make inside of their bodies.
In contrast, bioidenticals are identical or aka an exact match in their chemical structure to the hormones humans make inside of their bodies.
Big Pharma Synthetics=fake ~ Bioidenticals=an exact match
Highly oversimplied statement.
This isn’t oversimplified—this is decades of research. Breast thermography is a physiological evaluation of the breasts, and my mentor, Dr. William Hobbins, was a pioneer in the field. As the leading researcher in breast thermography, he began noticing significant changes in thermographic patterns between the 1970s and 1980s.
Why the shift?
After several years of investigation, he identified the cause: soy. Specifically, the introduction of soy into the human food supply and livestock feed. His groundbreaking research contributed to the now widely accepted warning that soy increases breast cancer risk.
In 2013, we were the first researchers to publish medical evidence showing that flaxseed, bio-identical estrogen, and wild yam creams also increase risk.
Dr. Hobbins also studied in France, where he was awarded the Key to the City of Lyon in recognition of his thermographic research. In 1986, he published one of the earliest progesterone studies using thermography to measure the effectiveness.
His findings?
Breast thermography reveals that not all progesterone applications are equal. Oral and sublingual progesterone are often less effective because they are partially destroyed during digestion. However, thermographic research has shown that when progesterone cream is applied directly to the area where the estrogen receptors are located—such as the breasts—it produces measurable therapeutic effects. In addition, when phytoestrogens are added to progesterone creams, like black cohosh, CBD, or lavender, they increase vascularity in the breasts.
This explains why many women fail to see results from progesterone therapy: the phytoestrogens are overpowering or neutralizing the intended effect.
Breast thermography serves as the first line of defense because changes in vascularity within the breasts can be detected as early as 30 days.
Watch the video in this feed of a breast cancer patient whose diagnosis was linked to bio-identical estrogen use. See with your own eyes how bio-identical estrogen stimulates vascularity and neoangiogenesis.
I strongly encourage you to review the research behind breast thermography. Why would a breast cancer researcher’s eighth book focus on the feminization of men? It is one of the most comprehensive body of research on phytoestrogens and their effects on the entire family. “Soy Boys: The Rise in Low Testosterone & the Feminization of Men Due to Phytoestrogens.”
https://youtu.be/CfwMvbNZtNA?si=sFG7GbywRNhYZ3uS
You stated: "synthetics are derived from bioidentical phytoestrogens." Please share links about this so that I can read more.
I don't ever recall learning that pharma companies start with phytoestrogens to formulate their synthetic "hormones." To be sure we are on the same page, when I say "synthetics," I am saying a drug with a chemical structure that is different than the chemical structure humans make inside of their bodies.
Thank you for the link. If you could please send me the link or links that will support your assertion that naturally occurring bioidentical forms of estrogen are increasing risk of breast cancer. Please share those links. I want to read those first and then I will go onto your Instagram and read what else you have there.
Great article. Drastic change of course is often suspect. Follow the money when the pendulum swings the other way.
I absolutely LOVE this article. Found myself nodding the entire time - white coat worship syndrome and smug IG docs - you nailed it!
This essay, in the course of explicating the toxicities in our political climate, suggests that America is overdosing on estrogens, as indicated by declining testosterone and sperm count levels among men, increased gynecomastia among men, an increase in animals which can't reproduce and, perhaps, increased homosexuality and transgenderism
https://davidgottfried.substack.com/p/trump-the-radical-academic-behind
🎯
I don't get the progesterone issue. Last August I started on estradiol (75micrograms) and progesterone (100mg - 'Prometrium'). I've put on about 15kg since then. That might mean I'm estrogen dominant (always had heavy periods, depression, weight around hips, bad PMS, fatigue etc). The Prometrium box says each capsule contains 100mg of progesterone.
My question: Is Prometrium synthetic and therefore no use to me? Or should I ask to increase my dose to counterbalance the (assumed) estrogen overload? I am definitely in need of calming and balancing - and some sleep would be nice too.
As an aside, Prometrium was recently put onto the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme which means it's much cheaper to buy now, so more accessible.
Prometrium is bioidentical progesterone but it’s very very low dose and most gets converted at the liver to neurosteroids that support brain health
So either another dose is needed or a different form
Mainstream loves to push hormonal balance but fundamentally misleading women into believing that estrogen is the hormone they need to balance ignoring several others.
Interesting article. I have triple positive breast cancer and do not want to take Tamoxifen. It makes sense to me to balance my hormones not try to block one. After reading this I likely fall into the category of normal estrogen on labs but maybe not detoxing…sadly I will never know now that I have cancer at 50 and have gone into menopause due to chemo. It’s hard to find good info supporting how to manage hormones post cancer without drugs.
I'm sorry to hear that, and I totally agree. It's a tricky space to navigate. Have you looked into Raena at all? https://raena.com
I looked at this site. I did not see any estrogen or testosterone. Did I miss something?
I haven’t heard of Raena - thank you!
estrogen supplementation caused me UNTOLD problems. shoo fly,estrogen. go away.
Thank you for putting so much informative content out here. It started me on a healing path!
had my well woman exam today at age 56.75 yrs of age and told since last year I am now MD estrogen deficient. My Dexa scan shows I have Vit D level of 20yr old. I am need to figure out what next. I will take a look at this pdf.
I've been suspicious about why oestrogen is being pushed so hard.
I'm confused about this article though, is the prescribed 'bio-identical' progesterone actually progestin???
(I wouldn't take it anyway, as it contains titanium dioxide, but we're told it's bio identical and derived from yams)