My new doctor gave me generic teva instead of prometrium. I did well with prometrium and am now worried about the side effects of using something of potentially lesser quality. I've read that synthetic progesterone can have more side effects. can someone tell me more about teva?
Progesterone - does generic teva come from natural sources?
Question posted by fhjdf on 21 Aug 2012
Last updated on 16 September 2016
The information on this page reflects personal experiences shared by our community members. It is not reviewed for medical accuracy and should not replace professional medical advice.
7 Answers
LJE01
10 Dec 2014
Sorry for the long response -- hope it might help some women, especially with hot flashes. :-) I posted this below the "Prometrium vs. Progesterone - what are your experiences?" string. It's relevant here so I thought I'd copy/paste and edit where necessary.
I first tried the very expensive Prometrium, 200 mg at night right before bed, and paid out of pocket about $100+/month, which I ordered online from the UK without an Rx. I thought my doc might be resistant to bio-identical (plant based) progesterone so I decided to try it myself first. I had been having 50 or so severe hot flashes per day and within a couple of weeks I noticed a big change - but it took another month to really get them under control. An added benefit was it helps me sleep like a baby.
My doc wrote a script for me and Walgreens filled it with generic progesterone made by WATSON. This continued working great. I switched my Rx to King Soopers (owned by Kroger) and within a week I started getting 1-2 flushes a day. Within two months this had slowly increased to at least 10-20 flushes per day which were also increasing in intensity. I finally began to wonder if it was due to changing brands since I noticed the new pill from Kroger was beige and not yellow, like both Watson and Prometrium. I learned the Kroger Rx was filled from a manufacturer called AKORN, so you might want to beware of this manufacturer in addition to TEVA.
I have switched back to Watson and I'll report back if this changes things.
BTW - as one poster pointed out (on the previous thread) transdermal progesterone absorption is supposed to be superior. Not always. I used cream for years when I was peri and pre-menopausal but no matter how much I used in a given day (and no matter which manufacturer) it didn't work for my hot flashes. (Which makes me wonder if it ever worked at all since I never really noticed any changes -- I only used it to make sure my estrogen was well balanced since I'd already experienced hormonal cancer in 1998.) Only the micronized oral natural progesterone made by Prometrium or Watson seems to work for me. And I have absolutely no side effects.
As a side note: I find I must also take 2-3 caps of plant-based estrogen per day or I'll experience a few daily flushes, even with the Prometrium/Watson.
I'm a nutritionist and I researched this carefully since soy is estrogenic which, if unopposed by progesterone, can lead to hormonal cancers. The key here is to be sure to also take natural progesterone to balance it correctly ("oppose" it). If 200 mg of Prometrium or Watson isn't working for you then you might want to give this a try. Also eating fermented soy daily, like Miso soup, is helpful. I add a little green onions and "sprouted" tofu to the miso. Sprouted is closest to fermented tofu (which I've never been able to find but have heard about). All forms of fermented soy are safe and healthy.
After checking and trying many brands I settled on 'Life Extension' Soy Isoflavones, and 'Nature's Answer' Red Clover. Neither contain any harmful fillers or lubricating agents, and as such they are priced the best. I found the best price for Life Extension on Amazon. I have it on auto-ship and get a small discount and do not pay shipping. (If you're not an Amazon Prime member then consider ordering a 2-month supply at a time so you don't pay any shipping.) It costs about $19/bottle as opposed to nearly $30 at the health food stores. I get the red clover from VitaCost dot com (and the isoflavones run about $22 there).
LJE01
16 Sep 2016
Update:
My hot flashes vanished after going back on Watson generic progesterone (still taking the added phytoestrogen mentioned above).
After some time, I was able to reduce my 200 mg to every-other day. I did this instead of switching to the 100 mg becasue it is cheaper this way. Progesterone seems to having a lasting effect.
Eventually, I only needed the 200 mg 2-3 times per week, which has helped the pocket book! (This generic is still expensive at about $50/mos for 30 gel caps using the GoodRx.com discount.) I use trans-dermal progesterone cream during in-between days.
Recently, Watson was bought out by Actavis, who is owned by Allergan. If this were not confusing enough, a websearch says "Teva has aquired Actavis generics". (Teva generic progesterone was a complete waste of money for me.)
I called Actavis (800-271-5525) and was able to learn they make the "a generic progesterone" but couldn't say if it was the original Prometrium formula. (Watson was the only company licensed to duplicate the Prometrium formula which is why it works for most of us.) The folks who could answer this were not in, so I'm still researching this.
I can no longer get the Actavis generic anywhere in my area (Boulder/Denver) so I can't even talk to a pharmacist to see if it's the same as prometrium/Watson. One way to tell if it's the original formula is to ask your pharmacist if the pill ID number is SV2.
I hope this information helps you locate the right generic progesterone for your needs. Good luck! :-)
magaret
2 Dec 2014
Teva should contain the same amount of Progesterone but NOT the same "inactive" ingredients (fillers). I add problems when switching to Teva generic and a friend just spent time in urgent care for bleeding issues. She insisted on Watson generic (same ingr incl fillers... its identical to Prometrium) started taking that and her symptoms stopped and she started feeling "normal" again. I would recommend requesting Watson
millermm
7 Feb 2013
Just found this:
Availability of Generic Prometrium
Generic Prometrium capsules come in the following strengths:
Progesterone 100 mg
Progesterone 200 mg.
They are made by various manufacturers, such as:
Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc.
Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
The version sold by Watson is actually an "authorized generic." This means that it is actually the real, brand-name capsules that have been sold to the generic supplier, relabeled, and sold as a generic.
Hardwarelady
30 Dec 2012
I was on name brand Prometrium for 8 years aloing with the vivelle dot patch for HRT. Becasue the cost has gone up my doctor asked me if I wanted to try the Teva generic. After 4 days on it I had cramps and after three more days I was spotting. I never had any trouble with the name brand. The Teva generic is very weak and NOT the same as the name brand.
SSBV
24 Nov 2012
(this is copied from another post, but totally appropriate) My experience is that Prometrium is natural, plant-based and "bioidentical" to human progesterone. And it is expensive. The "generic equivalent of Prometrium" that my insurance company filled my prescriptions with synthetic (synthetic hormones are designed by drug companies and are foreign to the human body, unique in ways so they can be patented. The formula has been altered in a small way, an H or OH or C has been switched on the basic steroid ring). The insurance companies might love the savings, but my body HATED synthetic (originally marketed as Provera among others). My doctor now writes my prescription for Prometrium with the 'dispense as written' box checked so I do not get the generic synthetic substitution that saves the insurance company money and increases their profit. It isn't a quality issue, it is a chemical composition issue.
It didn't work and within three months I was in the same condition as I'd been without the medication at all. Prometrium is my magic pill (I am not peri-, post- or menopausal yet, it was given originally after a reproductive endocrinologist identified a lower-than-appropriate in comparison to the other hormones, level of progesterone and I credit it with 'curing' migraines and carry a child to term). I am currently researching whether or not Progestan is bioidentical or synthetic.
suzanne66
22 Aug 2012
The starting material is from a plant source. When it is synthesized it is chemically identical to progesterone in humans.
kaismama
21 Aug 2012
Teva is the name of the company. The generic should be the same medication that is in the brand name. You should be ok with it, however the pill may have different fillers, and its those that some people react to.
Hardwarelady
10 Dec 2014
I was on 100 mg of Prometrium for HRT used in coinjucntion with Vivelle dot and was asked to try the Teva generic. It is very weak compared to the name brand.. I started spotting and cramping 4 days after beginning it and had break thru bleeding--a lot of bleeding. it was so bad it was like taking a placebo. I was told to give it a couple months but nothing improved. It did not work for me so I went back to the name brand. It is expensive but worth it in my case. The cramping and bleeding stopped when I went back on the name brand.
Related topics
prometrium, progesterone, side effect, generic, doctor
Further information
Similar questions
Search for questions
Still looking for answers? Try searching for what you seek or ask your own question.