UTERINE POLYPS AND WOMEN’S HORMONAL HEALTH

CASE HISTORY: UTERINE POLYPS

Uterine polyps are abnormal growths on the inside lining of the uterus (the endometrium) and can cause irregular vaginal bleeding, such as several days of bleeding during the menstrual cycle, mid-cycle bleeding or too much bleeding at the time of the menses. These polyps are not to be confused with fibroids, which are growths within the uterine musculature. Polyps originate from the lining of the uterus itself which is made up of “fluffy” endometrial tissue that grows and shrinks during the menstrual cycle. If a woman does not become pregnant, this lining sheds, causing a menstrual period. And after the period, the lining grows rapidly under the influence of hormones like estrogen.

Estrogen stimulates cell growth, while progesterone keeps it in check. Thus, it is of utmost importance that you keep the delicate balance of estrogen to progesterone throughout your life or else you can wind up with too much growth in the areas where estrogen has its influence: breasts, ovaries, and uterus to name a few. High levels of estrogen can create cysts on the breasts and ovaries and polyps and excessive menstrual bleeding in the uterus. Too much estrogen can stimulate breast cancer as well.

Estrogen is produced primarily in the ovaries, but some is also produced in the adrenal glands and fat tissue. This is why athletes who over-exercise tend to lose their menstrual cycles as their fat cells decline.

It is up to the liver to process the estrogen out of the body. It does this in two ways: one is where it breaks down the estrogen into a two phase detoxification process which converts the fatty estrogen (it is made out of cholesterol) into a water-soluble form and it is eliminated through the sweat, urine bowel movement and vapor from the lungs. Thus, if there is stress on the liver, say, for example, from too much alcohol consumption, then the liver has less ability to detox the estrogen out (think of that heavy beer drinker who develops large breasts as his estrogen levels increase, because men have some estrogen as well, produced by the testes, adrenal glands and fat cells — they have lower levels when young and higher levels as they age — and estrogen in men is also responsible for their libido, erectile function and formation of sperm!)

Another way the liver clears out the excess estrogen is through the bile it produces. The bile has two “detergents” in it to break down the fatty estrogen, much in the same way it breaks down the fats we eat (and also fat-soluble toxins) and dumps them into the bowel for excretion through the stool.

However, this process can also become impeded if the bile becomes sludge-like — which is extremely common in our society — from eating too quickly, drinking ice-cold beverages which thicken the fats sitting in the bile, from thyroid problems (I have covered this issue in my upcoming book – stay tuned!), if apana is moving up, preventing the bile flow (this usually occurs if you aggravate Vata by rushing, over-exercising, going to bed late, follow a poor diet, etc.), eating heavy foods such as hard cheeses, nut butters, red meats, deep fried and processed foods.

When I first started studying Western herbs after high school, I always wondered why so many herbs were described as being able to “promote the flow of bile,” or “thin the bile.” I was not sure why nature had given us these herbs, but knew there must be a divine reason which I did not understand quite yet.

Then, when I studied Ayurveda years later, I wondered why the ancients described Triphala as being a formula that “would treat you like a mother, even if you didn’t have a mother.”
Surely, this must be a very important combination of berries (amalaki, haritaki and bibhitaki) that would truly benefit our health! I also wondered why it was one of the most highly prescribed formulas used throughout the large pharmacopeia of Ayurvedic remedies.

Once I opened my practice, I was able to once and for all see why so many people benefited from the use of these Western herbs that promote bile flow and Triphala. It turns out that sooner or later all of us will wind up with bile that becomes too thick. Instead of squirting out of the gallbladder like a liquid when we eat, it can become gel-like and remain stuck in the gallbladder.

Then, if the bile doesn’t flow, a whole host of problems result. I have devoted one whole chapter in my upcoming book describing the gallbladder and its functions and what happens when the bile turns into a sludge, or even worse, develops gallstones.

But for this discussion here, you can see that one of the problems is that you will lose the ratio between estrogen and progesterone as the estrogen remains stuck in the gallbladder and gets reabsorbed back into circulation.

In this patient’s case, this is exactly what happened. So I had to thin out her bile using Triphala. I also gave her a tea using Indian Sarsparilla root which also aids in the digestion and assimilation of fats.

Femi-Ojas products, such as the cream and/or the drops also helps to recalibrate the ratio between estrogen and progesterone, as they contain alodra, ashoka and coriander.

With every patient, you must address their diet and daily routine as well.

This particular patient in the video had problems with excessive bleeding — sometimes she would spot several days before the onset of her period, sometimes she would bleed heavily for the first few days, sometimes the period would continue too many days, and there were times her period would come every two weeks. She continues to monitor her polyps through her yearly gynecological exams, but her bleeding problems have gone away.

I have seen numerous women with menstrual bleeding problems and I am happy to report that we can treat most of them with our SVA protocols, without the use of the birth control pill, which is highly toxic and isn’t getting to the root of the problem anyway. When you get a period while on the birth control pill, it appears that the flow is better, because it is just “breakthrough bleeding” which happens when you stop the pill for that one week, and not really a thorough menstrual cycle. Thus, the pill stops the body’s detoxification cycle (the period is actually a little mini-cleanse every month) and yes, ironically, it clogs the bile from the heavy saturation of fats (remember, the female hormones are made out of cholesterol), creating bile sludge, less capability of clearing out estrogen, and can itself cause more breast cancer (not to mention gallbladder problems in women who take it).

I am always thankful we have less toxic and highly effective protocols for fixing most health issues we are presented with. And this is why I continue to share our case histories with everyone: to show everyone there are natural alternatives to health care outside of the realm of highly toxic pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals.

Dr. Marianne Teitelbaum
Cinnaminson, New Jersey

To make a phone or in-person appointment with Dr T, call her clinic at:
1-856-786-3330