The Anti-Aging Concept and Hormones
No one can stop the process of aging. Currently, there is no "magic potion," and there is no such thing as a "cure for aging." However, the good news is that by applying recent advances from biomedical research, it is possible to slow the rate of the aging process, and even slow and reverse some of the effects of aging.
Dr. Georgiev is not a big fan of the term “anti-aging” medicine – for many it means that we can reverse chronological age. We cannot change your chronological age. If today you are 55, in 5 years we will be 60. However, we have all seen 60 year-old who look and function like someone who is 10-15 years younger or 10-15 years older. This is called biological age, and it depends on your genetic makeup and to a large extent how well you take care of yourself.
Aging is the result of cumulative cellular damage that begins to occur from the moment of conception. As you reach physical and sexual maturity, the cumulative rate of damage increases in speed and intensity. The longer you wait to attack your rate of aging the harder it is to get it under control and the harder it is to reverse its effects.
The bottom line is we can not reverse time and your chronological age, but your biological age can be improved.
Bio-identical Hormone Restoration (BHR)
The term "Bio-identical Hormone Restoration" is more accurate than "Bio-identical Hormone Replacement" since we are restoring your bio-identical hormones to "your younger you" physiological level, and do not replace them with drugs (substances that the human body does not produce). The basic rules of BHR are simple:
- Identify which hormones are missing. You do not have to wait for a hormone to be missing completely before starting to restore it.
- Restore the missing hormones with the same hormones. This sounds like a very obvious rule, but this is the rule that we feel is broken the most. A good example is when Premarin (Equinol) is prescribed in a post-menopausal woman, when Estradiol is the missing hormone. Premarin (Equinol) is not the same as Estradiol.
- Mimic normal physiology as closely as possible. We strongly feel that the human body was designed correctly and that we should continue to follow the blueprint of physiology.
- Monitor hormone therapy with appropriate testing.
- Improved sex drive and performance
- Improved or resolved Perimenopause, Menopause or Andropause symptoms
- Improved mood and emotional balance
- Relief from anxiety and depression
- Increased mental clarity, focus, energy and memory
- Greater capacity to get your body back into shape
- Improved look of hair, skin and nails
- Decrease, reverse and prevent chronic disease states such as: Heart Disease, Stroke, Cancer, Dementia and Osteoporosis
- Lower cholesterol levels
- Improved sleep
Some Benefits of BHR
It takes a lot of work on the part of the patient and the physician to monitor BHR. Every body is different and it is most important to honor those differences - allowing your body to self-heal by feeding it healthy food, managing stress appropriately, avoiding drugs and toxic chemicals, and exercising regularly. Many of the distressing menopause and andropause symptoms will subside if these basic rules of good living are respected. Then, if you still need BHR therapy, it will work much better for you.