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DR. DREW

Obsessed with Breasts?; `Bombshell` Suzanne Somers

Aired May 15, 2012 - 21:00:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


DR. DREW PINSKY, HOST: Here we go.

Obsessions with breasts. That`s right. Has any other body part generated so much controversy, envy, shame, adoration, distortion, attention, or money? Is bigger always better?

Plus, Ann Summers is here to talk aging. Get your questions ready. We`re answering them live.

So let`s get started.

(MUSIC)

PINSKY: So here`s this latest book on breasts. It opens with just a series of words. Fun, bags, boobsters, chumbawumbas -- not comfortable reading about them. They are the first line of a new book that is about women`s breasts and why men and women are so obsessed with them.

We`re going to talk about the evolution of the breast and our attitudes about them.

Joining me, the author, Florence Williams. The book is called "Breast: A Natural and Unnatural History."

So, Florence, what it is about breasts that motivated you to write this book? What`s so unnatural about them?

FLORENCE WILLIAMS, AUTHOR: What motivated me to write this book was I was nursing my second child, and as a science journalist I saw some research that toxic chemicals were showing up in breast milk. So I was really concerned about this. I kind of freaked out.

And I went down this path to find out what that meant for our health and for our children. And I also wanted to find out how else modern life was affecting our breasts. And it turns out breasts are really changing a lot.

PINSKY: So we`ve got to be careful here. We`re not wanting to discourage people from breast-feeding, right? I mean, most of the chemicals, indeed, are inert. They`re troubling but inert, right?

WILLIAMS: Most of these chemicals exist in small amounts in our bodies and also in our breasts and our breast milk. In fact, I did continue breast-feeding after I found out because the benefits of breast milk are still so much better and outweigh the risks of it.

So, but, still, it was disconcerting to me to find out -- you know, as a mother I was trying so hard to be pure and to be healthy. I wasn`t smoking. I wasn`t drinking. I was exercising. I was eating organic food. Despite this, I had so little control of these substances entering my body and then entering my baby`s body.

PINSKY: Well, it`s good to know, Florence, that you weren`t smoking, drinking, or doing drugs like you normally do. But, anyway, I`m more interested at this point, we`re going to take calls just in a second.

But before we go to a call, I want to know about the anthropology of the breast. Whether -- this is obviously something men and women have focused on quite a bit as the whole industry built around it. I`ve got my stage manager going, yes, yes, we`re focused on this.

Let me tell you something before you talk about the societal, let`s say, and the more recent societal impressions or the way we revere them, I`ve heard transgender individuals say -- that is women going to man who get on the testosterone, say when they get on testosterone, they find themselves looking at breasts. So, there`s some biological basis to all this. No, there is. I mean, that`s a fact.

And so -- there`s that. So, what is the current thing on the anthropology/sociology of this?

WILLIAMS: Well, it`s really interesting. You know, in humans, breasts are totally different from what they look like in other mammals. We all have mammary glands but no other mammals have breasts the way we have them which are sort of this rounded, fleshy, you know, wonderful organs.

And so the question is, why? And there`s a lot of debate about this. But certainly a lot of anthropologists think that breasts must have evolved as a signal to men, and that they`re sexually powerful and they must be sexually designed to appeal to men.

And, of course, a lot of men like this idea and they agree with it also. But there are a lot of women anthropologists and other anthropologists who challenge this idea, say, yes, of course men like breasts, but that doesn`t mean that`s why they evolved. Maybe we should look at what`s actually inside breasts, what they`re made out of. They`re fatty. Let`s look at how they work and see if there`s maybe something about this wonderful, round, fatty orb that really helped the woman survive and helped her infant survive.

There`s really actually a big debate about how universal and how much across time this male interest really existed.

PINSKY: So I prefer the men`s point of view to thinking of it more as a fatty reservoir, like a camel`s hump, fat as opposed to water. I`m just saying.

WILLIAMS: Right.

PINKSY: Let`s go to calls. Let`s get to Kathy in Texas.

Kathy, you had a question there?

KATHY, CALLER FROM TEXAS: Hi there, Dr. Drew. I`m following your Facebook page. Just had a story about a mother who gave breast implants to a high school graduate. Her daughter?

PINSKY: Yes, I do. Hang on, Kathy. Let me introduce her -- let`s put her up on the screen here. And if somebody would also -- let`s put her up there -- did we get her? I love live television.

There she is. This is Bonnie Blossman. She is a star of "Big Rich Texas" on the Style Network.

And, Bonnie, my understanding is, there was -- I don`t know all the details. Your own daughter as it pertains to getting good grades and then getting implants. Tell me about this.

BONNIE "BON" BLOSSMAN, STAR, "BIG RICH TEXAS": Absolutely. My daughter is a pre-med student, and I gave her a deal that I would get her breast implants if she had all A`s in undergraduate.

PINSKY: And, Kathy, did you have --

BLOSSMAN: I thought it was a really good present.

PINSKY: Kathy, do you have a comment about that?

KATHY: Absolutely. I think it`s ludicrous. I`m sorry.

As a breast cancer survivor, I am appalled and offended. I can`t believe that you would do this to a child. The number one leading causes of death in women along with heart disease. It`s getting harder and harder to diagnose it. And you`re doing this to your child.

PINSKY: Well, hold on, you`re confusing topics here.

BLOSSMAN: She is an adult.

PINSKY: How old is she? She`s how old?

BLOSSMAN: She`s 24 now.

PINSKY: OK. She`s a 24-year-old. You`re trying to entice her to get good grades.

You know, some data shows women with breast implants have lower incidents of breast cancer. As a way, Kathy --

BLOSSMAN: That is true.

PINSKY: Yes, as a way, Kathy, I`m not sure those kinds of concerns are the issues. If this were a 14-year-old or 17-year-old, I would be completely with you. But let me ask --

BLOSSMAN: Me, too.

PINSKY: Florence, do you have a question for Bonnie about the motivations to do this even though she`s a grown adult, do you think it perpetrates some of these issues you explore in the book?

WILLIAMS: Yes. I think it does. I think young girls grows up today are under pressure, despite academic achievements, despite their professional gains to look a certain way, to look beautiful, to look young. And as a parent, it sort of distresses me.

My question to her would be: what were your breasts like before? Were they really a problem?

BLOSSMAN: Mine or my daughter`s?

PINSKY: Your daughter`s. Your daughter`s.

BLOSSMAN: My daughter has perfect breasts. I don`t think she needs them in any way, but this is something that has been in her head since she was 13 when she saw a picture of Pam Anderson. That`s just not going away no matter how many times I tell her how beautiful and perfect she is.

She`s an adult now, and she`s going to get it, anyway. So why not use something positive and try to make a deal with her to get good grades and get her through college, when the inevitable is going to happen nonetheless?

PINSKY: Now, it`s bonnie, right? Bonnie? That`s your name?

BLOSSMAN: Yes.

PINSKY: Bonnie, you`re clearly a beautiful woman, but it`s interesting that you kind of look like Pam Anderson. And so your daughter may be -- your daughter, maybe she`s just modeling your behavior. I imagine you may have done some of these things, too.

Do you think -- to you maybe give her messages that you regret now?

BLOSSMAN: No. Because I didn`t have any plastic surgery while she was in the house or while she was a minor.

PINSKY: All right.

BLOSSMAN: So --

PINSKY: All right. Well, thank you. I appreciate you sharing that story.

Kathy, thank you for that question.

Let`s keep going with calls.

Christine in Georgia, what do you have for us?

CHRISTINE, CALLER FROM GEORGIA: Hi. I was one of those ladies that breast-fed my baby for a long time. I had to because he was very traumatized by hurricane Andrew when he was 3 and he stopped eating and he became (INAUDIBLE).

PINSKY: Wow.

CHRISTINE: And the doctor recommended that I do that. And it actually brought him back.

PINSKY: Wow.

CHRISTINE: And we kept doing it for a while. It was only once a day. I`m a big proponent of the continuum concept. I read that book.

And my son turned out to be a spectacular individual. I`m a bragging mother. But I think breast-feeding had a lot to do with it. He was never sick. He`s been to the doctor maybe six times in his life.

I just think that "TIME" magazine cover was a little over the top, because it made the child look too large and too old.

PINSKY: Yes. Weird, right? There it is. There`s that cover.

CHRISTINE: It just kind of was shocking.

PINSKY: Christine, by the way, my producers, I didn`t know if they were going to show a full screen of that cover. But they couldn`t resist an opportunity to show that picture. I mean --

CHRISTINE: I understand that.

But it`s a good thing because it`s calling attention to the issue. Whatever calls attention to the issue --

PINSKY: All right. Fair enough, fair enough.

CHRISTINE: Breasts, breast implants. The whole thing with me, I have different perspectives on it. I was a cabaret entertainer, I was part of a dance team. My agent was always wanting me to get implants. And I refused. It didn`t affect me that much. I`m glad I didn`t do it.

And now, as a senior citizen, my breasts have become enormous, for whatever reason, very disproportionate to the rest of my body and it makes me terribly uncomfortable that I`m old enough to be a grandmother and I still get stares from young boys in particular and it really makes me so uncomfortable.

And this brings up the issue of objectifying breasts and how much they are objectified and --

PINSKY: OK.

CHRISTINE: The real function is what I did with my son. It`s all about that.

PINSKY: Yes, you were bringing up -- listen, you`re bringing up layer and layers of very interesting issues here.

So let me start with just a simple one. Florence, we`ll get more into some of the other ones as we get to more calls later. The issue of what was brought up in that "TIME" magazine article, attachment and breast- feeding. Did you stud y any of that?

Now, in this particular caller`s case, that attachment through breast-feeding actually worked. An attachment is a very complicated topic. Much more than I can get to into a show like this.

But do you have thoughts about that particular issue? By the way, getting breast implants can interfere with breast-feeding. So you might lose the opportunity for this kind of attachment.

Go ahead, Florence.

WILLIAMS: That`s right. I would say a lot of the medical literature actually bears out what your caller is saying. We know breast-feeding is really great for child`s development. It`s great for issues of psychological bonding.

It`s great for their immune system. You said your son doesn`t get sick. We know that breast milk is not just a food. It`s actually a medicine.

So I think it`s wonderful you tried that and it seemed to work. I support it.

As far as the attachment parenting issue --

PINSKY: Yes.

WILLIAMS: I think it`s so rare. It is so rare that toddlers, 3 years old, are breast-fed in this country. To me the question shouldn`t be what age does it become inappropriate? The question should be: why are we as a society still uncomfortable with breast-feeding when it really is the primary purpose of breasts?

PINSKY: All right. And then she also brought up the issue of the obsession with breasts. We`re going to sort of address that in the next segment, we`re going to talk whether men are breast obsessed, how females are breast obsessed. I`m going to bring in a male perspective other than my own in this conversation.

And later, Suzanne Somers is here with her experience with breast cancer. There she is in her makeup room. Suzanne will be with us in just a couple seconds. Hi there.

Stay with us. More calls.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PINSKY: All right. Welcome back. Reminder, we are live and we`re taking your calls.

And we`re talking about a part of female anatomy that is oftentimes a man`s favorite subject. So, why are men so fascinated?

Back with me is Florence Williams, author of the new book "Breasts: A Natural and Unnatural History." There it is and I`m clutching it all the time now. I don`t know why.

Maybe Jason Ellis can tell me. He`s the host of his own self-titled radio show on Sirius XM satellite radio, and the author of a new autobiography called "I`m Awesome."

And I`ve known Jason for a little while, and he is awesome. And I appreciate you being here.

JASON ELLIS, RADIO HOST: Thanks, man.

PINSKY: I asked for a male perspective, and I got you.

So why, men, do you think are obsessed with breasts? Florence is still with us, too, the author of the book.

ELLIS: Well, they keep babies alive. You didn`t think I was going to say that, did you?

PINSKY: I knew you`d be respectful.

ELLIS: I`m very respectful.

Also, I knew they`d make you want to work harder and get a faster car. And I believe that that works for everybody around the world, so that men work more, get faster cars, have better jobs, and smarter, therefore the world being a better place just for the sake of boobs.

PINSKY: So, the breast is the source of male motivation?

ELLIS: It drives me. It`s a driving force in my life.

PINSKY: I notice -- I hope she`s there.

Bonnie Blossman, are you there with us? There you are --

ELLIS: I want her phone number, Dr. Drew.

BLOSSMAN: I`m here.

PINSKY: She`s the star of "Big Rich Texas" on the Style network.

And, Bonnie, thank you for coming back. I know you`re trying to get away.

But Jason came in here, I guess, we should say motivated by your appearance.

ELLIS: I have a Porsche, if that helps.

(LAUGHTER)

PINSKY: And so --

BLOSSMAN: I like Porsches.

PINSKY: We`re seeing firsthand how this sort of works. Are we operating from such a primitive level now that that`s -- you know, we can respond to people across a Skype and across a satellite?

ELLIS: I just think -- she`s a very beautiful woman and the breast area is sort of -- it`s telling me that I should tell her that I have a Porsche, and not only do I have a Porsche but I`m also a very nice guy. I`ll get to that later. Right now, I want her to know that I have a Porsche.

But she looks great. It fits her face, matches her chest. Everybody`s having fun.

PINSKY: How about the fact she got her daughter --

ELLIS: It`s like a big party. Look, she`s laughing.

BLOSSMAN: I think --

PINSKY: Go ahead, Bonnie. Go.

BLOSSMAN: I think there`s a biological reason for this. I`m a biologist. I think it`s a form of natural selection. I think that big breasts are a sign of fitness.

PINSKY: Hang on a second, bonnie. I want to back you up. I actually looked up Bonnie`s C.V. before -- she`s a well-trained biologist with a graduate degree in biology. She`s no kidding.

ELLIS: I`m a boobologist. We`re almost the same.

PINSKY: Seriously, I`m a biologist by training, too. Natural selection is how we think. We think, what are the purpose of these things? There`s got to be an evolutionary reason.

BLOSSMAN: That`s right.

PINSKY: But, Bonnie, I`m going to interrupt you and just say, Florence, you perhaps disagree and say there`s an anthropological and sociological reason, right?

WILLIAMS: Well, the argument is really sexual selection versus natural selection. And I think Bonnie is saying we have these organs because they`ve been sexually selected.

But, actually, there`s just no evidence for it. In fact, natural selection would indicate it somehow helped the fitness of the woman because it stored extra fat. And early in our evolutionary past, women need to have more fat in order to even reach puberty and then to gestate a pregnancy.

So actually men may have nothing to do with the reason we have breasts. And it`s wonderful that they appreciate them, but that doesn`t mean that`s why we have them.

PINSKY: I would say for everybody out there who`s interested, do look out the difference between sexual selection and natural selection. They`re quite different.

Let`s take some calls. I`m sorry, you`re not relevant anymore, Jason.

ELLIS: It`s OK.

PINSKY: Tim in Nevada. Let`s go, Tim. What`s your point of view? Tim?

If I can`t get to Tim, I`m going to go to the next caller who is Vlad in South Carolina. Vlad? People don`t seem -- there you are.

LISA, CALLER FROM WASHINGTON: I`d like to make a comment.

PINSKY: Please, go right away.

LISA: My name is Lisa from Washington state.

PINSKY: OK. Go right ahead.

LISA: I think it depends on the person. I mean, I think breasts are breasts. I think they are breastfeeding.

PINSKY: OK. Fair enough. Lisa had an opinion about the breast- feeding in the "TIME" magazine article.

You know, "TIME" magazine --

ELLIS: You know what`s crazy, I did see that. My radio show, somebody showed me that. I have two children. If my son was 4 and he was on my ex-wife`s breast, I would not be a fan of that, each to their own. I think there`s way more dangerous things that are happening in the world to try to stop. But personally, I think it`s a weird thing to try and -- I mean, you need to grow up. You need to become your own person and get off the boob.

PINSKY: Right, you need -- you have such a way with words, Jason.

ELLIS: Boob`s OK for TV, right?

PINSKY: It`s fine. I`m not hearing any complaints. I`m going to try to go back to Tim.

Tim, what`s the deal there? Got a comment? We`re having technical problems here.

Tim, are you there? I seem to get callers that aren`t whom I think they are. All right. So, anybody? No. All right.

ELLIS: If I was the last caller, I would get --

Got to break. Be back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PINSKY: All right. We`ve been talking about the breasts. In fact, we`ve been talking about it. Joining me now is plastic surgeon, Dr. Linda Li.

Dr. Li, let me ask you one quick question. How does one going about finding a plastic surgeon that they know is highest quality?

DR. LINDA LI, PLASTIC SURGEON: What`s really important is to find somebody certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.

PINSKY: Not cosmetic surgery.

LI: Not cosmetic surgery. The American Board of Plastic Surgery only recognized board by the Medical Board of Medical Specialties.

PINSKY: Jason, when you get your plastics worked on, you look for that, all right?

ELLIS: Good.

PINSKY: Let`s take quick calls. Hallie in Virginia? Hallie? I think my mike is not feeding out to the callers.

Hallie, can you hear me?

HALLIE, CALLER FROM VIRGINIA: I can.

PINSKY: There you go. What`s the question you have for the surgeon?

HALLIE: I`ve always heard that larger breasts cause a lot of back pain, and if that`s true, if you have a breast reduction, will that help? Or is the damage already done?

PINSKY: Hallie, before she answers, may I ask you, are you suffering from a problem like that?

HALLIE: I do have lower back pain.

PINSKY: OK.

HALLIE: I do have natural --

ELLIS: I want her phone number as well, Drew.

PINSKY: Thank you, Jason. This is why I kept you here. Just to make sure you could call -- Bonnie`s here, too, by the way. I can put you together afterwards for a Skype if you want. Hold your horses.

ELLIS: Tell me when, Doc.

PINSKY: Deep bra strap groove, back pain, a neck pain, all that signs they have a medical -- many times insurance will cover in that situation.

LI: Absolutely. When you have extremely large breasts it can be very painful. They get neck pain, back pain, rashes underneath their breast. If we can reduce them enough, insurance will cover it and make a difference in lifestyle.

PINSKY: My understanding is that of all the procedures women get on the breast, that`s the one that tends to have the highest level of satisfaction.

LI: Absolutely.

PINSKY: Sorry, Jason. That`s why I kept you here to torture you.

ELLIS: I just heard breast and satisfaction.

PINSKY: OK. Let`s go to more calls.

Maria in Rhode Island. Let`s keep going on -- Maria.

MARIA, CALLER FROM RHODE ISLAND: Oh, yes. Hi, Dr. Drew.

PINSKY: Hi there. Go right ahead.

MARIA: Yes, calling all this breast --

PINSKY: Stuff.

MARIA: -- stuff that`s going on. I believe that the Good Lord gave women breasts to breast-feed our baby, not to put in front of "Playboy" magazine.

PINSKY: OK. So you object to the objectification of women, particularly that built around the breast, right?

MARIA: Definitely.

PINSKY: It`s the reason I kept Jason here.

MARIA: I love the "TIME" magazine. I breast-fed my son for four years and one month. And we have the closest relationship out of all of my children.

PINSKY: OK. So, interesting. She went until 4 years of age.

ELLIS: It`s a free country.

MARIA: I loved it.

PINSKY: Good. Good. I`m going to let -- anything from your standpoint, Dr. Li?

LI: I think that when the majority of the patients that come to see me are not doing their breasts because their husbands or boyfriends want it. They`re doing it to feel better about themselves. They feel that if they have breasts that match the rest of their body, they`re more self- confident.

PINSKY: Also, isn`t it also common that the involutional changes of pregnancy, the sort of deflation --

ELLIS: No, no, I`ve seen deflated boobs as well.

PINSKY: OK. Good. That`s the very common reason why women go for that surgery.

LI: Very common reason. After pregnancy, we lose breast tissue, they look saggy, they look empty.

And we want them to be young and perky again.

ELLIS: I agree. I`m with you. I saw the same thing. Then I got them fixed. I paid for them to get fixed. And they looked great. They looked so good that she left me for somebody else.

PINSKY: Jason, thank you very much. We`ll hear that story later on Sirius XM. Appreciate it.

Dr. Li, also, Florence, I do appreciate. I`m going to read this book. It`s very interesting.

Coming up, actress and author Suzanne Somers. She calls her breast cancer diagnosis -- we`re having the breast theme going on tonight -- she calls it a unique gift. She`ll tell us why. She`ll join us live.

Taking your calls after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. DREW PINSKY, HOST (voice-over): Coming up, Suzanne Somers, the actress and author is known for her controversial health regimens. Now, she`s weighing in on aging. Suzanne talks about some of her routines and treatments. Are they right for you? Ask her yourself at 1-855-DrDrew5. We are taking your calls.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PINSKY (on-camera): All right. Suzanne Somers played sexy Chrissy Snow in the hit sitcom, "Three`s Company," and that was a couple years ago, 35 years ago. Today, "Bombshell" takes on a whole new meaning for Suzanne Somers. It is the title of her 23rd book. I can`t believe 23 books. Here it is right here.

That`s it. "Medical secrets that will redefine aging," so the book says. Now, first, of all, Suzanne, we`ve been talking -- there`s been a breast theme.

SUZANNE SOMERS, ACTRESS: Breast? My, gosh. Well, I`ve been known for my breasts over the years.

PINSKY: Congratulations.

(LAUGHTER)

PINSKY: And I`m surprised Jason Ellis (ph) let you come in the room without tackling you. Be that as it may. You said that it was some sort of blessing or good thing -- not good thing, but ended up working to your favor having had breast cancer.

SOMERS: Well, you know, I mean, it`s not anything anybody desires.

PINSKY: Wants. Yes. You don`t want it.

SOMERS: But, it forced me to say, what have I been doing in my life to play host to this disease? And as a result of that, I changed my life. I decided I would eat as though my life depended upon it. I changed my sleeping habits. I started managing my stress, eliminating toxins. You know, the things that turn off the cancer protective genetic switches. I was turning them back on, so I`d have that protection.

PINSKY: Let`s explain that to people. One of the theories is that we all form little tiny cellular level cancers in our body throughout our life and our immune system takes those out when they`re healthy.

SOMERS: Right.

PINSKY: But sometimes, they get away from us if we`re not healthy.

SOMERS: Right. And --

PINSKY: Or there`s too many of them happening because of chemicals in our body.

SOMERS: Right. And one of the doctors I interviewed in this book is Dr. Stanislaw Burzynski (ph) out of Houston who, I think one day, he will be the Louis Pasteur of our times. I mean, (INAUDIBLE), you know, first it`s ridiculed, then it`s violently opposed, and then, finally, it`s accepted as self-evident.

He`s got a lot of violent opposition. But anyway, I said, how do we not get cancer? And he said, you have to keep your cancer protective genetic switches turned on.

PINSKY: Makes sense.

SOMERS: How do they get turned off? He said, by toxins, by eating food that sprayed with poison, by not sleeping, by not managing your stress, and by not having balanced hormones, which I thought was very interesting. And innately, that`s what I did 11 years ago. I just focused on. I will never get cancer again if I do these things for my body.

PINSKY: I`ve got more questions for you, but let`s go right to some calls.

SOMERS: OK.

PINSKY: We`ve got Susan in Texas. Susan, go right ahead.

SUSAN, TEXAS: Hi.

PINSKY: Hi, Susan.

SUSAN: This is in reference to your stem cell breast reconstruction that you had done.

SOMERS: Yes. Yes.

PINSKY: OK. We`ll explain that in a second, so go ahead.

SUSAN: OK. OK. So, I lost 50 pounds and I`m about to lose, I hope, about 50 more.

SOMERS: Good.

SUSAN: And I don`t want to have my breasts look like fruit rollups. I`ll have the skin for stem cell breast reconstruction. And I`m excited about it because I was looking at the breast reduction and implant before, and then, you were on Dr. Oz, and I got so excited and I thought, wow, this is great. But what I`m wondering is, though, is when is it going to be throughout the whole nation?

PINSKY: It`s being studied right now, my understanding. It may not be long, right?

SOMERS: I think it`s a real game changer, and I think that opening this clinical trial -- see, I could have done this in Japan three years ago with Dr. Kotaro Yoshimura (ph), and he kept inviting me over there.

I said, no, I want this to be an American achievement with an American doctor on an American woman with an American opening this clinical trial, because right now, to utilize stem cells, you have to go offshore, and people spend their life savings --

PINSKY: Well, that`s a different kind of stem cell. These are adipose stem cells.

SOMERS: Right.

PINSKY: FAT stem cells. These are not pluripotential stem cells which are very different.

SOMERS: Very good. You must be a doctor.

(LAUGHTER)

PINSKY: But let me ask this --

SOMERS: We use my --

PINSKY: Right. Your autologous stem cells from the adipose tissue.

SOMERS: Right.

PINSKY: But let me ask this is that my understanding is -- this may or may not be true -- is that the certain -- well, for sure it`s the case a certain amount of the fat that they implant breaks down and they can calcify and look like cancer and make it difficult to then do screening for cancer in these women. What do we do with that --

SOMERS: Yes, I`ve heard that. I`m not experiencing that.

PINSKY: You didn`t have any calcification or breakdown?

SOMERS: No. No, not at all.

PINSKY: Interesting. So, we need to perfect the procedure is what we need to do.

SOMERS: Yes. And they are tweaking it. I know at Hollywood Presbyterian here, they are -- they stopped their study for just, you know, a momentary period of time to start tweaking. There`ve been 110 women who have done this on the clinical trial that I opened since.

And I haven`t heard of any negatives. And with doctor, you have to be very careful. If you do lose breast tissue, you need to wait a year to do a second --

PINSKY: A repeat.

SOMERS: -- fill.

PINSKY: Yes. Let`s not way down the details.

SOMERS: OK. All right. All I know is I have two breasts. No --

PINSKY: It`s good procedure.

SOMERS: Good procedure.

PINSKY: It`s got some questions that people are worried about, but it`s safe, it`s good, and it works, and people are happy with the outcome.

SOMERS: Right. And no scars, no foreign implants. Foreign objects.

PINSKY: And I want to talk about hormones -- how much time do I have left in the segment? I`ve got four minutes. OK. I want to take some calls. Linda, go right ahead, Linda.

LINDA: Yes. Hello, Dr. Drew.

PINSKY: Hi, Linda. You`re here with Suzanne Somers. There`s Suzanne.

LINDA: I got to tell you, and Suzanne will agree with me. Sixty is the new 40.

(LAUGHTER)

SOMERS: It is. It is.

PINSKY: Sixty is the new 40. I think you`re right. But there`s a way to really make it -- sort of a way to make it the new 20s. I think we haven`t talked about this yet, but I think I know --

LINDA: If anybody can do it, Suzanne Somers can make us look like 20.

PINSKY: There you go.

SOMERS: I got your back.

LINDA: -- I`m getting away from the breast stuff, but you can go back to it.

PINSKY: No, no. You can take us away from it. Thank you.

LINDA: OK. You`re welcome.

PINSKY: Oh, she`s --

LINDA: Back in the 1970s, I had a side ponytail, like Suzanne, and today, I`m going to the hairdresser, I go, I want a Suzanne Somers` haircut.

(LAUGHTER)

PINSKY: Good for you. Good for you.

Linda, we`re going to talk about how this hormone replacement issue. Now, it`s complicated.

SOMERS: Yes.

PINSKY: And you`re talking about bioidentical hormone replacement, right?

SOMERS: Correct.

PINSKY: Now, bioidentical, right there in the name, identical, and so, this concern that any kind of hormone replacement in women, particularly, a woman with breast cancer, might lead to more trouble such as breast cancer. I believe that that`s been overstated those risks. I believe that testosterone has been missed and women need testosterone. Where are you at in this anti-aging process and hormone replacement?

SOMERS: I take a full complement of hormone replacement. I do estrogen --

PINSKY: Feels pretty good, doesn`t it?

SOMERS: Yes. I`m loving life. I take estrogen --

PINSKY: It`s a good anti-depressant, too, by the way, if you have any mood issues.

SOMERS: Absolutely.

PINSKY: Yes.

SOMERS: Well, if you look at women in particular, but men also, because you lose your hormones, too.

PINSKY: Yes, we do.

SOMERS: If you look at women from middle age on, that`s when all the problems start. Isn`t it interesting that`s when you decline in hormones, so --

PINSKY: I believe not enough has been made of that. I`m not saying - - talk to your doctor, of course, out there, guys, but I`m telling you something, testosterone, estrogen replacement, if appropriate --

SOMERS: Right.

PINSKY: -- can really make you feel better and look and feel --

SOMERS: It`s a game changer in terms of life. I think it saves marriages, because we have such a difficult time controlling our moods when our chemicals are --

PINSKY: And when you`re no testosterone, there`s no sex drive, either.

SOMERS: And if your estrogen progesterone dips, it`s a symphony, the whole thing gets off. On SuzanneSomers.com, I have put on the blog all the studies so that the 700,000 Danish woman, 250,000 women at the Mayo Clinic, there have been a lot of studies --

PINSKY: A bioidentical study.

SOMERS: Bioidentical.

PINSKY: So, people can choose for themselves. Take a quick call.

SOMERS: All right.

PINSKY: Linda in Massachusetts. Linda, go right ahead.

LINDA, MASSACHUSETTS: Hi, Dr. Drew.

PINSKY: Hi, Linda.

LINDA: This is Linda.

PINSKY: Got you.

LINDA: And I have a question for Suzanne. I`ve been watching her for years, and I would love to know what she does and how she gets her skin so absolutely gorgeous?

PINSKY: Fair enough.

LINDA: She has the most perfect skin I have ever seen. And I would - - I know she`s been talking about stem cells and breast replacements. I wasn`t concerned with that even though I was almost a candidate, but luckily, everything was OK. But I was really concerned with how she keeps herself looking so absolutely gorgeous.

PINSKY: Thank you, Linda. We`ve got about a minute or so.

SOMERS: I`m flattered. I try to do this whole thing, this whole aging thing natural.

PINSKY: So, you don`t do Retin-A?

SOMERS: I do not do Retin-A.

PINSKY: That helps. That`s a good thing. Retin-A works.

SOMERS: Yes, but it`s a chemical --

PINSKY: It`s just a vitamin A. That`s all it is.

SOMERS: -- for me. I find with bioidentical hormones, I also find sleeping -- what I`m a component of is so simple that it doesn`t seem like it`s possible. But I do drink a lot of water. I don`t -- I don`t eat any chemicals or drink any chemicals. I do eat a lot of vegetables. I do take my bioidentical hormones.

I do have love in my life. I do manage my stress. I think all these things, if you`re not stressed -- one of the great things I find about being 65, great things, is that I have a perspective and a wisdom now that, of course, you can`t have. It`s the one thing young people can`t even buy.

PINSKY: You can`t, but you said something very fascinating. You put, you know,on your list of things that are anti-aging, love in my life.

SOMERS: Oh, yes.

PINSKY: The people rarely stick that in there, and that`s part of that wisdom of perspective, right?

SOMERS: How fortunate, how unbelievably fortunate to wake up every day and be grateful for who you`re with. So, I think all those things -- my face isn`t stressed. And also, I find at 65 that I finally feel like I deserve a little spot I occupy on the planet. Like I have a reason for being here. Takes a long time --

PINSKY: Of course. (INAUDIBLE). That`s what you`re here.

(LAUGHTER)

PINSKY: Let`s take one last call.

SOMERS: No. That`s how I cut my house.

PINSKY: Stacey, go right ahead. Stacey, last call, real quick.

STACEY: Dr. Drew and Suzanne. I feel a little cheated. The other night I was watching Dolly Parton play a sweet and saucy southern grandma choir singer and she didn`t look like a grandma. And she didn`t even have some a human quality to her face anymore. And she is a loved person in my life.

I know that stars, it`s a persona that we know, but I felt like we`re being cheated as seeing her golden years being able to play the grandma because of plastic surgery.

PINSKY: OK. How old are you?

STACEY: I am 35.

PINSKY: Thirty-five. OK. Well, it`s a little off topic here. You want to address that?

SOMERS: Right. Well, I`m a grandmother. I have six grandchildren. And I think that --

PINSKY: Maybe we`re redefining grandma.

SOMERS: I think -- well, I was just going to say that I think this is what it looks like now. It`s different. I mean, whatever Dolly Parton wants to do, that woman has brought so much pleasure and joy to so many people for so many years. It`s fine with me.

PINSKY: We cheated Stacey, but we let Dolly be Dolly.

SOMERS: We let Dolly be Dolly. I think there`s just a way to age gracefully and also embrace it and enjoy it. I find that I celebrate my age because I don`t -- I have never felt this good. I don`t even think I`ve ever looked this good. I don`t mean that in an egotistical way.

It`s just my woman has come, and I like her a lot. I`m more comfortable as the woman that I was as the girl. Do you know what I mean?

PINSKY: Yes, ma`am. Thank you so much for joining me. Appreciate it. Suzanne Somers, everybody. The book is called "Bombshell." And I think she sold a few books tonight. I`m just saying.

So, when we come back, it is your turn. I`m answering questions on any topics about anything. We`re going to get off all the breast stuff and just to your calls, medical, psychiatric, whatever it might be. Stay with us. It`s 855-373-7395. Again, we are live and we`re taking calls now. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PINSKY: Now, I think many of you have heard about Aimee Copeland. She`s a 24-year-old with what`s being called a flesh-eating bacteria. She apparently fell from a zipline outside -- I think she was -- it says outside of Atlanta. I think she was actually out of the country. She suffered a gash in her calf.

And within days, her leg and part of her abdomen were removed. Here`s how this works. This is called necrotizing fasciitis. It`s a fancy name for basically a bacteria. And by the way, strep being the most common. Plain old strep causes this. In this woman`s case, it was something called aeromonas which is relatively something called pseudomonas which a very resistant, nasty bacteria.

But any of these bacteria that get into the fascia plain (ph), fascia sort of the sheathe around your muscles, let`s say. You know, muscles are kind of held together by a sheathe. If the bacteria gets in there, the infection can suddenly and rapidly move right up the limb or wherever it might be. I`ve seen it actually from piercings.

And use your imagination. Various parts. It`s nasty when that happens. And unfortunately, when it happens, the only thing you can really do is surgically remove first the skin on the fascia, and ultimately, if keeps going, the limb, because it kills the tissue as it moves. Let me take some calls on this. Robin, in Florida. Robin, what do you got?

ROBIN, FLORIDA: Hi, Dr. Drew.

PINSKY: Hi, Robin.

ROBIN: I smell a lawsuit here.

PINSKY: Yes.

ROBIN: I think the doctors and the hospital staff sent her home many times after she kept coming back complaining of severe pain.

PINSKY: Oh, is that true? Then, that will be for sure. But here`s the deal. Let me just say, Robin. Most people when I talk about this topic, they go, how do we protect ourselves? Well, it`s kind of just one of those things, but usually, if it happens, you get pain, as you say, and then a rapidly progressing sort of bluish dark heap that moves fast like almost like an advancing sort of front. I`m using the arm just because it`s convenient for me here.

ROBIN: Right.

PINSKY: You know, and you got to get on antibiotics immediately if there`s anything like that and often needs surgery immediately. So, it`s about getting help fast. And in this case, it sounds like there was a delay in treatment, and that`s bad times. You`re right, Robin.

ROBIN: I think there was definitely a red flag, because she got the gash in the creek. And I think it could have cost her her life.

PINSKY: Thank God it did not, and you`re right. And again, the water -- it`s a weird bacteria. It`s not the usual one. I`ve even seen necrotizing fasciitis from a hangnail. The bacteria gets in the right spot and that`s it. Martha in Georgia, you got a question. Same topic, yes?

MARTHA, GEORGIA: Yes.

PINSKY: OK.

MARTHA: Actually, that was -- pretty much, that was one of my questions, was how did she get the bacteria? Is it in the water --

PINSKY: It`s in the water. It`s in the water.

MARTHA: OK.

PINSKY: Obviously, you want to cleanse wounds and in this case --

MARTHA: Well, that`s what I was going to ask.

PINSKY: Yes. Getting water out of the lake or creek or whatever she was in kind of works against it in this case because it was a deep wound. I think the real lesson here is, when things don`t seem to be going right with a wound or on your tissue, you know, you feel heat and if there`s fluid exuding or there`s pain, get medical help fast.

I guess, in this case, it maybe didn`t quite -- medical teams didn`t respond the way they should have. The crazy thing about necrotizing fasciitis is you very quickly go into kidney failure and coma and respiratory failure. It`s an overwhelming infection, and it is -- boy, it`s partially treated surgically and partially with antibiotics. Did you have another follow-on?

MARTHA: Well, that was one of the questions I was going to say. Immediately, after exposure, was there anything she could have done to treat it, to help it in any way?

PINSKY: Probably not other than get on some antibiotics fast. Somebody, you know, a pretty enlightened combination would have been required. Thank you for your question.

Eric in Ohio. Go right ahead, Eric. Eric, what do you got? Are you there, Eric? Are we going to continue these technical problems? Eric, can you hear me? Lyn in Rhode Island. What do you got there, Lyn?

LYN, RHODE ISLAND: Hi, Dr. Drew. I have a 29-year-old son who is addicted to Adderall.

PINSKY: OK.

LYN: He`s in denial.

PINSKY: Yes, of course.

LYN: He`s definitely -- he definitely has issues with it.

PINSKY: He`s 29, is on Adderall. Has he been previously addicted to anything?

LYN: No.

PINSKY: No. Well, here`s the thing about the Adderall. A couple things. Kids are using it in college campuses for studying. They more often than not get it from their peers, and there is a little market for it. It`s a psychostimulant. So, for some people, it can be highly addictive.

It does work for them in terms of their studying and performance and whatnot. So, you can really talk amount of it that way except to say that it can cause manias, it`s highly addictive, it needs careful monitoring by a doctor if somebody is going to use this medication.

LYN: He got this from a doctor.

PINSKY: Well, then you need to talk to that doctor, because you know, dealing with someone who you know to be an addict who`s getting prescriptions from a doctor that`s feeding that addiction, you got to start with that doctor and you got to get treatment for the identified patient, and it`s not as simple as just getting them to stop using the drugs. You got to get a comprehensive treatment.

I`m finishing right now another season of "Rehab" without celebrities. We`re doing regular people. And it`s a reminder of how intensive and difficult it is to get through the disease of addiction. You might want to go to a program called Al-Anon.

I`ve got to take a break. I got more calls coming up. Again, whatever your questions might be, 855-373-7395. Give us a call.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PINSKY: We`re back and taking your calls. I`ve got up here Lisa in Nova Scotia, Canada. What`s up, Lisa?

LISA, NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA: Hi, Dr. Drew.

PINSKY: Hi, Lisa.

LISA: Thank you for taking my call.

PINSKY: My pleasure.

LISA: I have a question about the lack or lack, thereof, of help for families of a recovery of a gambling addict.

PINSKY: Oh, yes. That`s interesting.

LISA: See, my husband is one, and I need advice on how to build that trust again.

PINSKY: Yes.

LISA: I`m afraid to put him on my lease, because I can`t trust him yet to pay the rent on time.

PINSKY: Yes, yes, listen --

LISA: Or actually ever. And I`m disabled and can`t work.

PINSKY: OK, so listen, just listen.

LISA: And I`m afraid to go off my disability. Yes.

PINSKY: Just listen. Don`t go off your disability and do not trust him until you have a, first of all, a long track record of evidence that he is in his recovery.

LISA: How long?

PINSKY: Like a year or two. A year or two.

LISA: OK.

PINSKY: And then with a sponsor, so you can talk to somebody who`s been working with him or a therapist who can reassure you or create structure around how you ease him back into those responsibilities. But it`s just like an addict. You don`t want to give an addict drugs. You don`t want to give a gambling addict money.

You got to help contain that. He should be interested in you containing that. If he`s interested in getting the money, then there`s a problem. You know what I`m saying?

LISA: Right.

PINSKY: So, lisa, you need all the support you can get. It`s very challenging to deal with a gambling --

LISA: Well, that`s it. They have Al-Anon for alcoholics, but nothing, you know, for --

PINSKY: I don`t know about nothing. And you can, of course, go to a Al-Anon program or something like that and get support there. I don`t know if there`s a --

LISA: OK.

PINSKY: I don`t know to tell you the truth.

LISA: No, there isn`t.

PINSKY: Yes, I didn`t think so. But listen, even just having friends around you that care about you deeply and genuinely, that would do a great deal to help withstand what is a very, very difficult problem.

OK. Now, Eric in Ohio. Eric, what do you got for me?

ERIC, OHIO: Yes, good afternoon, Dr. Drew.

PINSKY: Hi, Eric.

ERIC: I appreciate this opportunity. I`ve been trying to get some help here in Cleveland, Ohio without insurance. Some drug treatment.

PINSKY: Listen, Eric, it`s almost impossible in many cities. In California, it`s just incredibly frustrating. But here`s what you do. Go to a 12-step meeting. Raise your hand and say, I need help. And see what kind of resources are available.

ERIC: OK.

PINSKY: Many places, there are -- I work for a program in Denver called Arapahoe House. It was excellent, and they were sort of independently funding, were helping their committee. So, different cities have things like that in them. And it`s the recovering community that knows where they are.

So, go to a 12-step meeting, raise your hand, I need help, I want to get better. See what comes your way. Let`s go to -- you know what, I`d like to go to Courtney. Is she available? Courtney, are you out there in Canada. Courtney.

COURTNEY, CANADA: Hi.

PINSKY: Hey, Courtney.

COURTNEY: OK.

PINSKY: Go right ahead.

COURTNEY: My question is, on March 12th, my boyfriend suffered a traumatic brain injury.

PINSKY: Courtney, I`m going to ask you to stop. Somebody`s got their microphone on. So, I can`t hear a thing you`re saying.

COURTNEY: Oh.

PINSKY: So, there you are, go right ahead.

COURTNEY: OK. On March 12th, my boyfriend suffered a traumatic brain injury.

PINSKY: Oh, boy. Yes.

COURTNEY: Since then, he`s had three surgeries where they placed a shunt to drain --

PINSKY: The fluid. Right. He`s got clogging in the cerebral spinal --

COURTNEY: Right. And --

(CROSSTALK)

COURTNEY: -- he went into a coma.

PINSKY: OK. Courtney, I got like 20 seconds. What is the specific question?

COURTNEY: OK. He`s been saying weird things when he wakes up from it --

PINSKY: He`s in a coma. Sure. He`s in a coma. He`s still -- he`s altered in (INAUDIBLE) altered to the relationship to the outside world is altered and will be for a long, long time.

COURTNEY: OK.

PINSKY: So, he becomes out to something like that. Don`t put any credence in any saying, feeling, thinking for quite some time. And then, talk to his doctors about the sort of level of coma he`s in, and then, once he`s out of the coma states, what is likely to happen as a result of this change in his brain that might leave him with residual kinds of impulse control problems, mood instability, perceptual problems.

I got to take a break, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for watching tonight. It`s been very interesting. Thanks for the questions. Thank you for the calls. I will continue right here to answer your questions and take your calls tomorrow. Thank you for watching. I`ll see you next time.

END