But in a non-pregnant state it can result in weight gain. The weight gain is often temporary since the body eventually adjusts to shifts in fluid. Estrogen can also stimulate the growth of fibroids, benign tumors of the uterus which are very common is peri and post-menopausal women. An increase in the size of previously undiagnosed fibroids may result in a small increase in weight or girth. Fibroids are often undiagnosed since they can be symptomless.
Diagnosis can be easily, non-invasively and painlessly made via pelvic ultrasound.
The results of an earlier trial are consistent with those of the PEPI trial. While the authors of the above study, known as the Rancho Bernardo Study, conclude that HRT did not result in weight gain, this conclusion does not appear to be warranted, given the fact that the women who used hormones were leaner to begin with. Since there was no difference in the weight of the groups at the end-point of the trial, the study in fact suggests that the hormone users must have indeed gained more weight during the study period. While admittedly not scientific, perhaps the most convincing evidence that estrogen replacement therapy does not cause weight gain is the fact that estrogen, specifically Premarin, remains among the best-selling drugs year after year, though it has recently been deposed from its top 1 or 2 spot by the arthritis drug Celebrex, the ulcer drug Prilosec, and the blockbuster Viagra. Since slenderness is rightly or wrongly considered arguably the most important element of attractiveness, women would simply NOT keep on taking a drug that causes serious weight gain, regardless of its other benefits.