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A: Unfortunately at this time, there is no diet, herbal
or acupuncture treatment proven to decrease the size of uterine
fibroids. But there are a few things that a patient might do
for herself, and it seems primarily to involve weight control.
What remains unclear, however, is how much of an effect all this
has in the long run.
To begin with, overweight women
tend to have more fibroids than women of normal weight. Athletic
women have fewer fibroids than non-athletes. The common denominator
may well be estrogen levels. To see how it may be related, let's
examine the effect of estrogen on fibroid growth.
Generally
speaking, Estrogen stimulates fibroid growth.
(Even this statement
appears to have exceptions. No one ever said this subject
was simple!!)
It is unlikely that estrogen
triggers the change of a normal cell to a growing fibroid. It
appears that fibroid tumors - like many other benign growths
- may begin because there has been some sort of injury to a gene
in a single cell. This so-called "mutation" causes
the cell to lose control of its normal growth pattern, and by
uncontrolled division the fibroid becomes increasingly larger.
Estrogen probably exerts a stimulating effect only AFTER the
fibroid develops.
Consider these facts
about estrogen and fibroids:
- Birth Control
Pills: Estrogen is -
of course - one of the two ingredients of the pill. From what
has been said, it would appear logical that the pill will increase
fibroid size. This has in fact been observed. However, it all
becomes a bit confusing when one learns that there are studies
which found that if "The Pill" was used BEFORE fibroids are detected, there appears to be a DECREASE in fibroid frequency! (Somehow timing
must be important, but what this has to do with altering the
incidence of mutation - if this is where it exerts an effect
- is not worked out.)
- Pregnancy: In pregnancy there is an extremely high
estrogen environment. This causes pre-existing fibroids to enlarge
3-5 times their pre-pregnancy size. When the estrogen environment
goes back to normal after pregnancy, most fibroids shrink back
to near pre-pregnancy size! There may be some relation between
this fact and the studies which suggest that women who have more
pregnancies have fewer fibroids. What sort and how much of a
protective effect pregnancy may give an individual woman - cannot
be predicted.
- Menopause: We have observed two opposite effects
of Estrogen on fibroids during the menopause. (a) Fibroids may
continue to increase in size, and pose a problem with the continuation
of estrogen replacement (this is the most common scenario),
or (b) Despite the use of estrogen, the fibroid size may remain
unchanged. Why this happens and how to predict WHICH will happen
- is unknown.
- Greater Body
Fat: Fat appears to increase
estrogen levels. This may be why overweight women have more fibroids
and less osteoporosis. Women who are very athletic tend to have
lower body fat content, and - probably because of the Fat/Estrogen
Connection - have fewer fibroids.
- Pituitary
Growth Hormone: A shadowy
chemical from the pituitary may also be involved in fibroid growth.
In other words, estrogen may have a partner in all this. The
chemical in question is Growth Hormone. Women with fibroids tend
to have higher levels of this chemical. Afro-American women have
both higher Growth Hormone Levels than their Caucasian sisters,
as well as a higher frequency of fibroids. Women with Diabetes
have higher levels of Growth Hormone as well as a tendency to
excess weight resulting in higher estrogen levels. Even if we
knew ways to simply adjust the Growth Hormone Level, no one knows
what sort of other side effects might result. The researchers
are going to have to work this out first.
Bad Solutions
to avoid: For instance,
extreme exercise can result in such a drastic loss of estrogen
that some women cease to menstruate. This is an unhealthy way
to lower estrogen, and is not appropriate. Smoking is also correlated
with fewer fibroids in some studies, but because of its correlation
with lung and bladder cancer, and major cardiac and pulmonary
disease - it too is a non-solution
Summary: If we are talking about changing fibroid
size (as opposed to altering symptoms), there does not
appear to be an Herbal, Vitamin or Acupuncture solution. Possibly
(a) the early use of the birth control pill, (b) more pregnancies
and (c) good weight control can lessen the frequency of fibroids
somewhat. However - and this is the problem - it is not clear
as to how effective any of these will be in an individual case.
The data is "soft" at best.
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