The February "O - The Oprah Magazine" arrived last week and I just got to take a look at it.  Our dLife reader and commenter, diabeteshope, called it perfectly last month right here.  It seems that Oprah's weight gain she attributed to a thyroid problem may well have been hormone related.  MOST people really cannot go off thyroid medication after they have started it.

Oprah says that after just ONE DAY of taking bioidentical hormones, she started feeling better.  Boy, I didn't know any legal drugs worked that quickly!   (Just kidding!)

My fellow Blogabetes! writer Lindsey Guerin has written many times about bio-identical hormones,  such as here, and she is much better-versed in that topic than I am.  My understanding is that most FDA approved prescribed estrogen (such as Prempro) is made from the urine of pregnant horses (ick!), but "bioidentical" hormones more closely resemble the hormone made by human women's bodies.  Most bioidenticals are synthesized from soybeans or wild yam.   Seems odd that our estrogen would be closer to plant-based estrogen than the mammal  version.

In 2002, the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) study was released linking estrogen supplementation with heart disease and breast cancer.  A lot of women went off hormones right then.  Bioidentical hormones have since taken off, with absolutely no proof that they have any different risk levels than FDA approved hormones.

Very confusing stuff. Oprah did a couple shows on it last week also if you're interested.  And if it seems that this topic strays further and further from diabetes, remember that estrogen greatly affects insulin resistance.  Some scientists even think that the estrogen produced by the body from the plastic BPA may be contributing to the global epidemic of type 2.  Which means it may not all be attributable to gluttony, but I doubt we'll shed that preconceived notion anytime soon.

As for my on-going interest  - not only do I share the weight loss struggle with Oprah, I'm only 8 years younger than she.  I will be dealing with these hormone questions soon enough.  With the ties between hormone replacement, high insulin levels, obesity and cancer risks, Oprah and I have more reasons than ever to lose the weight.  How many times can science prove that we need to eat right and exercise for optimum health and wellness before I embrace the change?