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Episode description

Yulia Mintchin, Forbes 30 Under 30 entrepreneur and creator of FemGene, reveals why perimenopause is an epigenetic reprogramming event — not just a hormone dip — and how genetic testing can predict your symptoms and HRT response before a single prescription is written

Key topics discussed

•  Perimenopause as a communication breakdown between genes and hormones 
•  Why women were excluded from medical research and what that means today 
•  Hormone genomics and hormone genetics — a new medical category 
•  The three hormonal archetypes: Sensitive, Silent and Resilient 
•  The COMT gene variant and oestrogen clearance, affecting around 20% of the population 
•  Why HRT fails for 40% of women — and how FemGene aims to fix that 
•  Hormone metabolites vs hormone levels: the missing safety step 
•  Bioidentical vs synthetic oestrogen — the cherry Haribo analogy 
•  Endometriosis case study: progesterone and halted progression 
•  Oncology’s shifting stance on HRT and oestrogen during cancer treatment 
•  The WHI study and tamoxifen: historical context 

Timestamps

00:00 Why perimenopause may be about genetic response, not just hormone decline
01:00 Meet Yulia Mintchin and the FemGene thesis
03:10 Why perimenopause is medicine’s biggest blind spot
05:05 Hormone genomics and hormone genetics explained
14:15 The three hormonal archetypes: Sensitive, Silent and Resilient
23:05 Why doubling HRT doses can backfire
24:10 COMT, oestrogen clearance and personalisation
31:40 When women should start testing
33:20 Endometriosis case study: progesterone and progression
37:20 How archetypes change HRT decisions
41:05 What the FemGene process looks like
45:00 Bioidentical vs synthetic oestrogen
51:20 Red flags that HRT is being managed poorly
56:05 Oncology, HRT and shifting views on oestrogen
58:10 Outro and disclaimer

References and resources mentioned

•  FemGene hormone genomic test — via Will Be: https://www.mywillbe.co.uk/
  
  
•  The WHI (Women’s Health Initiative) study — landmark trial that shaped HRT policy 
•  Biohacking Eve episode with Jennifer Garrison, referenced as approximately Episode 1, on hormonal changes affecting 80% of body systems 
•  COMT gene and oestrogen metabolism — widely studied SNP; Yulia references the slow COMT variant 
•  Tamoxifen and breast cancer treatment — historical context discussed 

Guest social links

•  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yulia.mintchin/
•  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yuliamintchin/
•  Will Be website: https://www.mywillbe.co.uk/

Insta/TikTok: @BiohackingEve
Website: www.BiohackingEve.com