#11: Hormones & The Untold Power of HRT
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In This Issue:
Quick Takes: Rachel Rubin, MD on The Drive podcast discusses hormonal changes in menopause, the need for investment in women's health, and the benefits of hormone treatment.
Community Buzz: A mom-approved dance club, healthy vending machines, and protein-packed pantry items.
Expert Q&A: Alexis Williams, RD shares her tips on nutrition for building muscle.
New Releases: Check out Benchmark's first ever brand video! Better Data. Better Insights. Better You. We hope you love it.
QUICK TAKES
Takeaways from recent content we've discovered
Hormones & the Untold Power of HRT
Peter Attia recently hosted Rachel Rubin, MD on The Drive podcast, to discuss women’s sexual health, menopause, and hormone replacement therapy (HRT). Many of you sent us this episode, and for good reason. It is equal parts fascinating, shocking, and mobilizing. Rachel Rubin, a urologist and leading expert on sexual health, explains the impact of hormonal changes that come with age for both women and men, and the power of hormone replacement therapy when done properly. She discusses the devastating impact of a study that upended the HRT industry, the ongoing dearth of research, the gap in investment and clinical competency when it comes to women’s health, and how we can swing the pendulum in the right direction.
Below we highlight just a few of our takeaways from this discussion:
The hormone roller coaster
Menopause is marked by a sudden loss of sex hormones, as the ovaries stop producing estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone as they did during women’s reproductive years. This sudden loss results in a myriad of symptoms. The drop in estrogen can bring hot flashes, vaginal dryness, “brain fog”, and joint pain, while the drop in progesterone can bring increased anxiety, poor sleep, and irritability, among other symptoms. Men also experience a decline in sex hormones with age, but theirs occurs more gradually.
In perimenopause (the phase before menopause, typically lasting several years starting in a woman’s 40s, but sometimes their mid-30s or early 50s), women experience drastic and unpredictable fluctuations in their sex hormones. Rubin says even testing hormone levels every 10 days will show drastic swings. She compares it to a car’s gas tank that starts out full and suddenly drops to empty without warning. “And that's the challenge of perimenopause,” she says, “sometimes you have symptoms because you're too low, sometimes you have symptoms because you're too high, and sometimes it's that fluctuation”. The physical, emotional, and cognitive symptoms that can result are highly individualized and can be very challenging. We may feel a loss of control, uneasy in our own bodies, and unlike our true selves.
The lasting damage of misinformation
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can be highly effective in addressing these symptoms by replenishing hormones (estrogen, as well as progesterone and testosterone in some cases). However, a fraught study in 2002 essentially killed the HRT industry overnight. Attia and Rubin discuss the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study and the long-term damage it caused. It was a randomized controlled trial to understand the effects of HRT, rolled out with a massive marketing campaign. Unfortunately, the analysis was flawed, so instead of shedding light on the benefits of HRT, it caused undue alarm about its dangers. As Rubin put it, “we scared an entire generation of people away from hormones because of a bad misinterpretation of statistics.”
This deprived women of the many potential benefits of HRT, and as Rubin pointed out, it has left us with a cohort of doctors that doesn’t know how to prescribe hormones. Rubin plainly states, “this is a disaster.” It only adds to the lack of understanding of women’s health across the medical system (Rubin and Attia both recount learning nothing of menopause throughout med school).
The overlooked power of testosterone
Rubin highlights the importance of testosterone, not only for men, but also for women, which is under-appreciated and often misunderstood. She says “women are shocked to learn that they have ten times the amount of testosterone in their body than they do estradiol at peak estradiol.” Women’s testosterone declines with age, as it does for men. Rubin discusses the stigma around testosterone therapy for women, grounded in misconceptions, and just how valuable it can be under the right circumstances. Rubin says there is (rare) global consensus that testosterone is effective for improving libido in post-menopausal women. Further, many women experience greater energy, improved focus, and in some cases a truly life-changing sense of feeling like themselves again with appropriate treatment. As awareness grows, perhaps more people will benefit from these options.
The path forward
Rubin recounts many stories of the potential life-changing benefits of hormone therapy done well, and offers perspective on the merits, risks, and tradeoffs of various products and protocols, dependent upon each individual’s circumstances. Rubin’s mission is to build awareness, and bring attention and investment to the long-neglected domain of women’s health and the power of hormone therapy for both men and women. She encourages us all to become more informed, to understand our options, and to seek out qualified professionals. She mentions ISSWSH as one source of high-quality resources. We encourage you to listen to this conversation which includes much more than what we've highlighted, to dig in and learn more, and to discuss your own options with your doctor to find the path that’s right for you.
COMMUNITY BUZZ
Highlights from Benchmark’s community
Night Evening Club 💃
Last month we talked about the social fitness trend with fitness competition-music festival hybrids, and events like the UK's Ministry of Sound Games, “where iconic nightlife meets the ultimate fitness event”. But if you’re looking for a more relaxed healthy social scene, the Earlybirds Club may be just the ticket. Designed specifically for women who miss their carefree nights out dancing with friends, but now need sleep more than ever (🙋🙋), Earlybirds invites women to let loose on the dance floor...from 6-10PM. It's "a celebration of female friendship, dancing as therapy, and finding happiness anywhere you can." A community giving women the benefits of social connection, with dancing, music, and a sensible bedtime? Sold!
Vending Goodness 🤖
AG1 vending machine at San Francisco Airport
Vending machines don’t usually conjure up the picture of health, but the tide may be turning. I spotted this AG1 machine at San Francisco Airport, which is also home to a machine selling Therabody massage equipment, to help you work out those travel kinks. My personal go-to is Farmer’s Fridge, which offers fresh salads on demand, with quality ingredients and surprisingly affordable prices, even at the airport! If you’re interested in the (challenging) business model behind this concept, 🤓 check out this interview with the company's founder.
Packaged Protein 🍫
Flourish protein-enriched pancakes
The food industry is taking note of our efforts to eat more protein, and now old and new products are now enhanced with this powerful macro (or at least their labels are 🔍). Emily shared Canadian brand Flourish’s hearty protein pancakes (23g protein, 1g sugar, 7g fiber). The much-talked about David protein bar (28g protein, 0g sugar) just started shipping to Canada. And new categories are getting in on the action, with Protein Candy, protein popcorn (from a Kardashian, no less), and Protein Cheerios. Be wary of good marketing vs. good nutrition. Cheerios "Protein" Cinnamon adds 3g of protein vs. original Cheerios, along with 11g more added sugar 🤔. We love to see the growing demand for protein pushing the trend, just be sure to check the labels. Or, consult a professional...segue to Q&A below 😉...
EXPERT Q&A
Lessons and tips from friends in health & wellness
Alexis Williams, RD
Nutrition for Building Muscle with Alexis Williams, RD
Alexis Williams, RD provides nutritional guidance for athletes and fitness enthusiasts to improve their performance, and anyone looking to optimize their nutrition to promote healthy aging. In our Q&A, she discusses how nutrition supports muscle growth, covering protein targets, the importance of leucine, her take on essential amino acids and creatine supplements, and more...read the full Q&A.
NEW RELEASES
Our latest featured content
Better Data. Better Insights. Better You. 📽️
🔥 Hot off the press, we have a brand new brand video, introducing what Benchmark is all about. Fun fact: every adult pictured is indeed a Benchmarker 🙌. Check it out and tell us what you think!
NOTE: This newsletter is informational only; it is not medical advice.
We have no stake in the products or brands we highlight here.
