Hormones regulate many basic body functions, including your mood. If your hormone levels become imbalanced, symptoms such as hot flashes and insomnia could emerge.
Hormone therapy can provide relief and also protect bones. Therefore, it’s important to discuss this option with your physician as there could be risks and benefits involved.
Bioidentical hormones
Hormones are chemical messengers produced by your body that provide signals on when and how different parts should work, from digestive processes to sexual desires. Hormone imbalance can result in fatigue, weight gain and decreased sexual desire – symptoms which could indicate imbalance are fatigue, weight gain or low libido. Bioidentical hormones may help you feel like your younger self again. Produced in a laboratory, bioidentical hormones have the same molecular structure as what exists naturally within your body – making them easy for use! You can find bioidentical hormones available as creams, gels, implants or pellets. There is no proof that BHRT is more effective than HRT; however, it may help lower the risk of health conditions like heart disease, diabetes and tooth loss. Furthermore, BHRT may improve skin thickness, hydration and elasticity which could also potentially decrease wrinkles.
Compounded bioidentical hormones do not go through FDA testing or quality control, unlike FDA-approved products. Instead, these products contain multiple different hormones which are typically mixed by a pharmacist according to clinician specifications, usually through nonstandard routes such as topical creams, subdermal implants or pellets, injections or lozenges. As per their labelling recommendations from the FDA, such medications should only be used when their benefits outweigh risks such as an allergy reaction or in cases when traditional hormone therapy will no longer provide sufficient relief from symptoms associated with traditional hormone therapy treatments.
Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy has a 30-year track record of relieving fatigue, mood swings, weight gain and other troubling symptoms of menopause and andropause. While its long-term impacts are still being examined, BHRT has proven safe and effective for most of those who use it.
Menopause and other hormone-related issues can make life feel like an uphill struggle, but hormone replacement therapy can make a real difference in how you feel. Whether suffering from menopause itself or just seeking youthful energy back again, hormone therapy treatment could make a substantial difference to how much enjoyment and joy life brings you back.
Your doctor will carefully monitor you once you begin a hormone replacement regimen to make sure it’s safe and effective for you. Blood, urine and saliva samples will be collected regularly from you so they can adjust dosage based on individual needs. Dependent upon your symptoms, you should experience relief within several weeks. Asking your doctor to add progesterone may further relieve symptoms quickly – but only do so after other forms of hormone therapy have failed; long-term use could increase breast cancer risks as well as heart conditions like cardiovascular disease; in addition, progestins could potentially lead to irregular periods so this form of therapy should only be utilized if absolutely necessary.
Combination therapy
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can be one solution to help relieve symptoms associated with perimenopause and menopause, replacing hormones lost due to natural decline during these phases with estrogen and progesterone tablets. While HRT may provide relief for hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, etc. it has potential risks that should be considered. Luckily there are alternatives to traditional HRT that provide relief without the health concerns.
Alternative hormone replacement therapy relies on bioidentical hormones produced naturally by your body to restore your hormonal equilibrium. These bioidentical hormones do not increase cancer or heart disease risks and should be safe. Treatment options can include taking oral doses or cream applications directly onto the skin or inserting an IUD (intrauterine device) inside of the uterus for best results.
Combination therapy is an alternative hormone replacement therapy using estrogen and progestin to prevent or treat symptoms associated with menopause, including hot flashes, spotting between periods, vaginal dryness or thinning and vaginal dryness or thinning. Combination therapy also lowers osteoporosis risks by helping maintain bone density with estrogen; additionally it may be used to treat symptoms associated with ovarian cancer.
Recent research indicates that combination therapy significantly increased hip bone mass more than hormone replacement alone or alendronate (a drug to treat or prevent osteoporosis) alone. Unfortunately, this increase did not translate to reduced fracture rates; nor was its increase affected by other factors like age, BMI, hysterectomy, diet (specifically calcium and vitamin D intake) or usage of NSAIDs/aspirin. These findings support the hypothesis that estrogen/progestin therapy works together synergistically on bone mass; it should also be remembered that this study did not measure fractures directly and therefore may not apply universally.
Risks of taking hormones
At menopause and perimenopause, your body loses natural estrogen and progestin supplies. Supplementing these hormones through HRT or alternative treatments such as bioidentical hormones might restore this balance to reduce symptoms like hot flashes and vaginal dryness; however, traditional HRT does have risks that may not suit everyone; alternatives like bioidentical or all-natural hormones might offer appealing solutions – but their safety or efficacy have yet to be proven against conventional pharmaceutical medications.
As soon as you begin hormone therapy, your doctor will recommend a specific dosage of estrogen and progestin. Most patients start at the lowest possible dose to avoid serious side effects like breast cancer or stroke; if these problems run in your family it is wise to discuss this approach before starting hormone therapy.
Your doctor will regularly monitor your blood pressure, cholesterol and liver function while you take hormones. They’ll also look out for any signs that indicate increased risk for heart disease or diabetes – it’s important that if this occurs you inform them so they can adjust treatment plans or dosage as soon as possible.
As we age, our ovaries stop producing estrogen and progestin naturally, leading to menopausal symptoms like hot flashes, vaginal dryness and night sweats. Replacing naturally produced hormones with hormonal replacement therapy (HRT) may alleviate these symptoms while helping prevent osteoporosis or postmenopausal problems such as osteoporosis; however some studies indicate it increases heart disease risk; scientists continue to explore this relationship but women starting HRT near menopause (around age 40) have greater risk for heart disease development than women starting HRT later in life.
Hormone replacement therapy may cause your body to redistribute fat throughout your body and lead to weight gain, as well as decrease muscle mass and decrease physical strength. Therefore, it is crucial that you follow a healthy diet and exercise regularly while on this treatment plan.
While taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT), some may experience joint pain. This usually passes once your body adjusts to the new levels of hormones in its system. Depending on your level of discomfort, your physician may need to alter your dosage or add different forms of medication into your treatment plan. Be sure to inform them if you have other health conditions like heart disease or high blood pressure as this could require them to modify it accordingly. As soon as you discover you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, inform your healthcare provider immediately as estrogen and progestin may pose risk to fetuses. Furthermore, do not use this medication if you have undiagnosed liver, gallbladder or kidney diseases, are allergic to its components, or if your symptoms do not improve after three to six months of therapy.
