Do You Have a Hormone Imbalance?

Your Hormones, Your Healthwomen-looking-into-mirror

Feeling bloated, irritable, or just not your best? A hormone imbalance could be to blame. Hormones are chemical “messengers” that impact the way your cells and organs function. It’s normal for your levels to shift at different times of your life, such as before and during your period or a pregnancy, or during menopause. But some medications and health issues can cause them to go up or down, too.

Irregular Periods

Most women’s periods come every 21 to 35 days. If yours doesn’t arrive around the same time every month, or you skip some months, it might mean that you have too much or too little of certain hormones (estrogen and progesterone). If you’re in your 40s or early 50s — the reason can be perimenopause — the time before menopause. But irregular periods can be a symptom of health problems like polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).

Sleep Problems

If you aren’t getting enough shut-eye, or if the sleep you get isn’t good, your hormones could be at play. Progesterone, a hormone released by your ovaries, helps you catch Zzz’s. If your levels are lower than usual, that can make it hard to fall and stay asleep. Low estrogen can trigger hot flashes and night sweats, both of which can make it tough to get the rest you need.

Memory Fog

Experts aren’t sure exactly how hormones impact your brain. What they do know is that changes in estrogen and progesterone can make your head feel “foggy” and make it harder for you to remember things. Some experts think estrogen might impact brain chemicals called neurotransmitters. Attention and memory problems are especially common during perimenopause and menopause. But they can also be a symptom of other hormone-related conditions, like thyroid disease. Let your doctor know if you’re having trouble thinking clearly.

Belly Problems

Your gut is lined with tiny cells called receptors that respond to estrogen and progesterone. When these hormones are higher or lower than usual, you might notice changes in how you’re digesting food. That’s why diarrhea, stomach pain, bloating, and nausea can crop up or get worse before and during your period. If you’re having digestive woes as well as issues like acne and fatigue, your hormone levels might be off.

Ongoing Fatigue

Are you tired all the time? Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of a hormone imbalance. Excess progesterone can make you sleepy. And if your thyroid — the butterfly-shaped gland in your neck — makes too little thyroid hormone, it can sap your energy. A simple blood test called a thyroid panel can tell you if your levels are too low. If they are, you can get treated for that.

Mood Swings and Depression

Researchers think drops in hormones or fast changes in their levels can cause moodiness and the blues. Estrogen affects key brain chemicals like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. But other hormones, that travel the same paths as neurotransmitters, also play a part in how you feel.

Appetite and Weight Gain

When you’re feeling blue or irritated, as you can be when your estrogen levels dip, you may want to eat more. That might be why drops in the hormone are linked to weight gain. The estrogen dip can also impact your body’s levels of leptin, a hunger-revving hormone.

Headaches

Lots of things can trigger these. But for some women, drops in estrogen bring them on. That’s why it’s common for headaches to strike right before or during your period, when estrogen is on the decline. Regular headaches or ones that often surface around the same time each month can be a clue that your levels of this hormone might be shifting.

Vaginal Dryness

It’s normal to have this occasionally. But if you often notice that you’re dry or irritated down there, low estrogen may be the reason. The hormone helps vaginal tissue stay moist and comfortable. If your estrogen drops because of an imbalance, it can reduce vaginal fluids and cause tightness.

Loss of Libido

Most people think of testosterone as a male hormone, but women’s bodies make it, too. If your testosterone levels are lower than usual, you might have less of an interest in sex than you usually do.

Breast Changes

A drop in estrogen can make your breast tissue less dense. And an increase in the hormone can thicken this tissue, even causing new lumps or cysts. Talk to your doctor if you notice breast changes, even if you don’t have any other symptoms that concern you.

Source:  WOMEN’S HEALTH WebMD

 

3 Things You Need to Know Before Choosing Hormone Replacement

If you’re contemplating hormone replacement therapy, did you know that there’s a big difference in the safety and effectiveness of different methods? Here are 3 things you need to know about hormone replacement before you select a path.

1. Bioidentical hormones are the healthier choice as evidenced by both physiological data and clinical outcomes.1,2  Bioidenticals, when properly administered, have been associated with a reduced risk for cancer and other serious diseases. Because they have the same molecular structure as those made in the body, they are employed in the same way and easily metabolized and excreted from the body. On the other hand, research has shown that FDA-approved synthetic and animal derived hormone replacement drugs actually increase your risk for cardiovascular disease, cancer, stroke, blood clots and other serious conditions.3,4

2. The delivery method determines the effectiveness of HRT. Patches, pills, gels, cream, sublingual tablets, injections and suppositories all have significant drawbacks.
• Most of these methods create ups and downs in hormone levels that can cause a recurrence of symptoms.
• They do nothing to support around-the-clock hormonal balance.
• There are no bioidentical injections.
• Estrogen or testosterone in pill form must first pass through the gastrointestinal system and liver, metabolizing these hormones into risky byproducts.
• Patches, gels, and creams are messy and inaccurate when it comes to dosing.

Only the pellet implant method has been shown to provide hormones in a way the body can recognize and work with. The bioavailability of natural hormone, around-the-clock, when it’s needed, make pellets the most effective and safest method available. Compared to other methods, studies show that bioidentical pellets are superior for relieving symptoms, supporting bone mass and sleep patterns, and improving sex drive, libido, response and performance.5 Because pellets can last several months at a time, they are also the most convenient delivery method for bioidentical hormones.

3. Not all pellet therapies are alike. Many men and women begin their hormone replacement quest with their primary care physicians, urologists or gynecologists. Most physicians, however, do not have the expert training or knowledge needed to accurately administer pellet implant therapy. For that, you need a specialist who understands the procedure and can properly diagnose, prescribe and administer the precise amount of low dose hormone needed to achieve hormonal balance.

When all is said and done, reestablishing hormonal balance should be the focus of your hormone replacement. With the pellet implant method, key hormones can be restored to beneficial levels in proper ratio to one another. This return to internal balance is needed to support health and well-being as you age.

Experience the renewed sense of well-being that thousands of others before you have. You won’t believe the difference.

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1Holtorf K. The bioidentical hormone debate: are bioidentical hormones (estradiol, estriol, and progesterone) safer or more efficacious than commonly used synthetic versions in hormone replacement therapy? Postgrad Med. 2009 Jan;121(1):73-85. doi: 10.3810/pgm.2009.01.1949. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19179815
2 Schwartz E, Holtorf K. Hormones in wellness and disease prevention: common practices, current state of the evidence, and questions for the future. Prim Care Clin Office Pract 2008; 35 (4): 669–705. http://www.holtorfmed.com/pdf/04-Hormones-in-Wellness.pdf
3 Writing Group for the Women’s Health Initiative Investigators: Risks and benefits of estrogen plus progestin in healthy menopausal women. Principle results from the Women’s Health Initiative randomized controlled trial. JAMA 2002; 288:321-333
4 http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/whi/whi_faq.htm
5 Schwartz E, Holtorf K. Hormones in wellness and disease prevention: common practices, current state of the evidence, and questions for the future. Prim Care Clin Office Pract 2008; 35 (4): 669–705. http://www.holtorfmed.com/pdf/04-Hormones-in-Wellness.pdf

Early Menopause Linked With Heart Risk

Recent studies show that women are experiencing menopause at earlier ages than expected. By the mid-40s, most women are depleted of normal levels of estrogen and have lost nearly all their progesterone and more than half of their testosterone. The average woman can expect her periods to stop when she is just 46.

Here is an interesting article recently published by the NY Times that all women  should read.  It supports our belief that restoring a women’s hormone levels to those of earlier years are associated with optimum brain function, emotional and physical well-being, cardiovascular and bone health, breast and prostate health, cell growth regulation, beneficial blood sugar levels, better sexual function and satisfaction, and more.

Properly restoring testosterone and estrogen (specifically estradiol) to the levels of younger years replenishes your body and gives it what it needs. Hundreds of body functions depend on the presence of these key hormones in order to work properly. This is true whether you’re male or female, 19 or 91. Your need for hormonal balance never goes away.

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Menopause before the age of 45 is associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular disease and death, a review of studies has found.

The average age at onset of menopause is 51, but some women start much earlier. Premature menopause is defined as onset before age 40, while early-onset menopause occurs before the age of 45.

Researchers in the Netherlands pooled data from 32 studies of premature menopause and early-onset menopause that included more than 310,000 women.

Compared with women who reached menopause after 45, those who reached menopause earlier had a 50 percent increased risk of coronary heart disease and a 23 percent increased risk of stroke. They had no increased risk of stroke mortality, but did have a 19 percent increased risk for death from cardiovascular disease and a 12 percent increased risk for overall mortality.

The study, online in JAMA Cardiology, also found that compared with women who were younger than 50 at menopause, those who experienced menopause at 50 to 54 had a 13 percent lower risk of fatal cardiovascular disease, but no difference in risk of stroke.

The reason early menopause is associated with more health risks is not clear, but earlier loss of ovarian function may cause hormonal changes that lead to inflammation and vascular damage.

“Women who reach menopause early should be screened for medical conditions such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia and diabetes,” said the lead author, Dr. Taulant Muka, a physician and postdoctoral researcher at Erasmus University. “Treating these disorders early reduces the risk.”

 

How Bio-Identical Hormone Replacement Therapy Can Help You Feel Younger

female-feeling-goodBHRT therapy, Bio-Identical Hormone Replacement Therapy, is commonly used among men and women who develop symptoms of Andropause or Menopause. Accordingly, these life phases usually occur when individuals reach their forties or fifties causing one to dread middle-aged life. That’s where BHRT therapy comes in; it can help you feel younger in several different ways.

With age, the body naturally begins to function differently. As hormone levels decline, it becomes more difficult to enjoy life as you once did when you were younger. BHRT slows down the aging process utilizing the correct HRT modality.

Rather than accepting the symptoms that come with age, it is now possible to actually feel younger as you grow older. Bio Identical Hormone Replacement Therapy, used with the correct modality can help maintain testosterone and estrogen levels for each person to live an optimal life.

Feel Rested
In our forties and fifties, life starts to show us how easy it is to feel more fatigued and tired. Remember your younger days when you could work an entire shift, go to the gym, run errands, and still feel energized. With age, however, this isn’t as simple. BHRT therapy helps maintain hormone levels for your body to stay in sync. This ensures better sleep, stronger muscles, and ability to burn fat, better memory and concentration to name a few benefits.

Healthy Sexual Drive
When testosterone and estrogen levels begin to decline, it can drastically affect one’s sexual life. This might include vaginal dryness or discomfort, and erectile dysfunction. Pellet therapy helps prevent this. Both men and women regain their sexual drive when they invest in SottoPelle?.

Weight Management
Your metabolism naturally slows down with age. Accordingly, it might become more difficult to manage weight gain and maintain muscle mass. Hormone therapy helps an individual with their weight management by utilizing testosterone. Aging does not have to mean that you lose control of your body. Rather, it gives a man or woman the feeling of being more energized and the ability to want to exercise. Hormone therapy can help with weight-loss and promotes healthy living.

As you approach middle-age, one comes to a realization that this is a beautiful part of life. However, the symptoms that come with it are not as welcoming. With BHRT therapy, the stress of fatigue, decreased sexual performance, and weight gain can be put to rest. Age gracefully with SottoPelle®.

Can Hormone Replacement Alleviate Migraines in Menopausal Women?

According to the Migraine Research Foundation, migraine is the 3rd most prevalent and 6th most disabling disease in the world.1 More women than men suffer from these headaches. In fact, the ratio of female to male is 3:1. It is known that a variety of triggers can lead to migraines, but the causes are not clearly understood. Even so, it is commonly accepted that both genetics and environmental influences play important roles in who is predisposed to getting migraines.

The Connection between Women’s Hormones and Migraine Headaches
Hormonal changes in women are a frequent trigger for those susceptible to migraine attacks. This happens when estrogen levels drop during the menstrual cycle and menopause, or when they fluctuate wildly as they do in perimenopause. Women have been voicing this to doctors for many years, saying their migraines coincide with their menstrual cycles and that they seem to get worse during perimenopause and menopause. Research simply wasn’t abundant enough to back them up. Science is finally catching up. A review of current literature published in 2014 found that: 1) women were more likely than men to suffer from migraines; 2) that considerable evidence supports an important role for sex hormones, and 3) that women’s migraines tended to be precipitated by drops in estrogen concentrations, and minimizing this decline may prevent these headaches.2 In fact, proper hormone treatment has been found to help reduce the incidence of migraines for women both before and during menopause.3

The Right HRT Can Reduce or Eliminate Hormone-related Migraines
Another study reported in 2009 showed that maintaining stable estrogen levels in menopausal women with a history of migraines markedly reduced the incidence of these headaches.4 In this and other studies, the use of non-oral bioidentical forms of estradiol delivery helped achieve maximum results. This was due to the ability of those methods to deliver a steady, consistent dose of hormone. It’s been found that synthetic estrogen and oral forms of the hormone can actually worsen migraines. They simply can’t produce stable, dependable hormone levels around the clock.

Estradiol Pellets Are the Best Option for Hormone Related Migraines
Even better results have been achieved using estradiol pellets,5 which provide steady, 24/7 doses of hormone for months at a time. Early research (1974) by Greenblatt demonstrated that both menstrual and postmenopausal migraine could be controlled with subcutaneous hormone pellets.6 He concluded that estrogen pellets alleviated all symptoms in the majority of his menopausal patients, and that maintenance of stable estrogen levels would control menopausal migraine.

For years, Dr. Gino Tutera, pioneer and founder of SottoPelle®, used bioidentical estradiol pellets to treat hormone deficient women of all ages who suffered from migraines. A 90 percent success rate was achieved with this approach. Estrogen levels were restored for these patients within three to seven days and their headaches were either reduced significantly or eliminated.

If you are suffering from hormone-related migraines, schedule a consultation with Dr. Matos at 201-225-2525 or email us at Appointments@AHSclinics.com.

1 https://migraineresearchfoundation.org/about-migraine/
2 Chai NC, Peterlin BL, Calhoun AH. Migraine and estrogen. Curr Opin Neurol. 2014 Jun;27(3):315-24. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24792340
3 https://www.clinicalresearch.com/healthday-news/2014/06/24/migraines-may-worsen-during-menopause#sthash.3RGqmC1a.dpuf
4 MacGregor, EA. Estrogen replacement and migraine. Maturitas. 2009 May: 63 (1); 51–55
5 Lichten, EM. Migraine & Estradiol Pellets. Cepahalgia 1999;19(4):332. http://www.usdoctor.com/article5.htm
6 Greenblatt RB (ed). Menopausal Syndrome. New York: Medcom Press; 1974:102-110