Symptoms of hormone imbalance in women may begin as early as the late 20′s to the 40′s. These symptoms tend to increase as a woman ages, especially if ignored in the earlier years. However, we are seeing more and more teenage girls with major hormone imbalance symptoms. These symptoms can be any one or more of the following:
• Allergy symptoms
• Depression, fatigue and anxiety
• Endometriosis
• Fibrocystic breasts
• Hair loss and facial hair growth
• Headaches, dizziness and foggy thinking
• Low sex drive
• Osteoporosis
• PMS
• Urinary tract infections and incontinence
• Uterine fibroids
• Weight gain, water retention and bloating
• Wrinkly skin
Symptoms of hormone imbalance are caused primarily by the incorrect relationship between the hormone levels in the body, specifically progesterone and estrogen. These two female hormones exist in a delicate balance. Variations in that balance can have a dramatic effect on your health, resulting in very unpleasant symptoms. The amounts of these hormones that the woman’s body produces from month to month can vary, depending on factors such as stress, nutrition, exercise and most importantly — ovulation or the lack of ovulation.
In the first 10-12 days of the menstrual cycle, only estrogen is produced in the female body. If ovulation occurs, then progesterone is produced by the ovaries. On day 28 or so, levels of both hormones drop, resulting in menstruation. However, if ovulation did not occur, you can still have the menstrual period, but the estrogen is never “balanced” by progesterone, which needed ovulation to trigger its production. And this results in symptoms of hormone imbalance appearing — you have estrogen but progesterone production drops to very low levels.
What is causing these hormone imbalances? In the industrialized countries, women are using synthetic estrogen in the form of HRT or birth control pills. They are exposed to a variety of xenoestrogens from household chemicals to car exhaust fumes. In addition, women often have stressful lives where they are balancing work, family and household responsibilities. They are eating processed foods on the run or are skipping meals completely. All these factors can add more estrogen to the female body, resulting in excess estrogen (estrogen dominance) which will cause hormone imbalance symptoms.
How can a woman tell if she is experiencing a hormone imbalance? Most women know when they are out of balance. Most can check off the above symptoms as if they were checking off a grocery list. However, we don’t rely on just symptoms. We utilize a comprehensive 24 hour hormone test that measures the levels of your progesterone, estrogen, cortisol, DHEA, Testosterone, and Electrolytes. This information allows us to formulate a bio-identical hormone replacement cream based on what your body actually needs to re-balance itself. We will also address the underlying causes of the imbalance through lifestyle modification, nutritional counseling and appropriate supplementation.