Suzanne Somers' Rx: Heal thyself

Suzanne Somers' Rx: Heal thyself
Author/actress pushes diet, bioidentical hormones as path to wellness
By Tony Lofaro, Ottawa Citizen; Canwest News ServiceSuzanne Somers wonders when the madness will end and people will start to take better control of their health.
The 62-year-old author and actress is a tireless promoter of good health and has sought to restore her own health on her own terms ever since she was diagnosed with breast cancer eight years ago.
Happily, she is cancer-free, but claims her road to recovery has meant eliminating many things in her diet and environment. Today, she boasts she is a much happier, healthier and productive person.
"I always talk about a tipping point," Somers said in a recent interview, reciting a long list of no-no's that people should try to avoid.
"Let's start adding it all up: We're taking drugs because our legs are restless, we're spraying ant poison in our house, eating Doritos which are 40-per-cent chemicals, adding NutraSweet and Splenda to our food, then we're taking drugs to sleep, drinking fluoride in our water and taking more drugs for our anxiety."
Now we can add to that list the bad economic climate, which, we are told, has even more people turning to drugs for relief.
"What is the thing that makes the cup runneth over and your liver say, 'I give in, I'm a toxic sludge and I can't help you anymore?' " asked Somers. "And then you get cancer," she added, not missing a beat in her dire warning.
Best known for her role as Chrissy Snow in the '70s and '80s sitcom Three's Company and her cameo in the 1973 movie American Graffiti, Somers has moved away from performing regularly and in recent years has concentrated on writing books. She has written 18 so far, and her views on bioidentical hormones have been controversial with doctors who dismiss her claims that women should use them to treat the symptoms of menopause.
Somers credits bioidentical hormones -- made from plants, not synthetic chemicals -- for giving her a new lease on life. She claims they provide anti-aging benefits and help ward off diseases such as cancer and are closer to the hormones our bodies make on their own than the synthetic hormones normally prescribed by doctors.
"I have my natural hormones in perfect ratio," she said, adding that balance has led to a fulfilling life and sexual relationship with Alan Hamel, her husband of 41 years.
But then she's off on a tangent: "Women are losing their hormones earlier and earlier because of toxicity and stress. Children are getting illnesses that were never before seen because of toxicity, mostly from exposure that started in the womb by well-meaning mothers who drank diet soda."
In her latest book, Breakthrough, Somers talks about her eight steps to wellness. They include: using bioidentical hormones, avoiding chemicals, detoxifying your body, avoiding pharmaceutical drugs, creating a healthy gastrointestinal tract, getting lots of sleep, supplementing your diet and exercising regularly.
Still, she knows the medical community will be casting a wary eye, and figures some people are just waiting for her to get sick again.
"You can never get cocky, but with the way I eat and the good thoughts that I think and the sleep that I sleep, I really don't expect to get cancer again. I truly don't. Belief is a big part of health."
People can no longer afford to put their "head in the sand" and not be proactive about their health. "If you don't change anything, then don't be surprised down the road when it's you (who gets sick)."
She said North American women should take a page from Europeans when it comes to bioidentical hormones.
"They've been using these (hormones) for the last 50 years, and, you know, they have less cancer.
"And they eat a lot better. At some point we have to take responsibility for our health and realize that good food is the stuff of life and nutrients."