Hormone Optimization
The Problem
Mood changes, anxiety, sore muscles, hair thinning, weight gain, difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, hot flashes, irregular periods, decreased concentration, fertility challenges and irritability are all signs of hormone imbalance in people of all ages. Both men and women can experience hormonal fluctuation and imbalance, yet they are tested at indiscriminate times of the month and then told either that their levels are "in normal range" or "normal for your age." Conventional medical education simply does not teach providers about the need for balancing hormones and how to appropriately. test for hormone balance in different age groups .
We now see "hormone replacement therapy" options available everywhere from online services to your local gym, but truly balancing hormones safely is much more complicated than taking a weekly shot or compounded pill. Bio-identical hormone balancing should be done with respect to your age, gender, nutritional balance, diet, lifestyle and ability to safely breakdown and eliminate hormones.
Many individuals have come to this clinic being over medicated, inappropriately medicated or ignored with respect to their hormone balance.
The Solution
Whether you are male or female, young or aging there is always hope to restore biologically appropriate hormone balance to your body.
We know that balancing hormones can improve and maintain health markers including thyroid, blood sugar and cholesterol. Balanced hormones improve brain health, heart health, maintains strong bones and muscle mass, helps optimize fat burning and weight management, improves the appearance of skin, optimizes libido and helps with both falling asleep and staying asleep.
Hormone optimization at any age can help restore balance and vitality.
A new way of thinking
A new way of thinking about hormone optimization is to truly tailor a personalized plan to each individual's specific health status, age and health goals.
I think of hormone optimization as the "icing on a cake," meaning that hormone balancing is part of an overall lifestyle plan. While we know that all hormones work in harmony with each other, we also know that hormones act as signaling molecules in many tissues. If a body is still out of balance, then trying to balance hormones may not only be ineffective but also increase risk.
When it comes to hormone optimization, remember that any plan should be tailored to YOU.
Functional lab testing
Conventional medicine tests hormones in the blood stream, often indiscriminately at any time of the month, and the "normal ranges" include levels that cover the lifespan - from teen to older adult. Hormones are carried in the blood on a transport protein (sex hormone binding globulin). This means that the amount of hormones seen may not reflect the amount of "available" or "unbound" hormones which can act on receptor sites.
Advanced or functional lab tests can examine both bound and unbound hormone levels as well as hormonal byproducts. This can give you and your healthcare provider significantly more information to tailor a plan to both optimize your hormones AND to keep you safe.
To learn more about advanced lab testing for hormones, click on the link below.
15 min