Our hormones affect our most basic to advanced functions in our body, therefore, it is important to test for any imbalances!
Here are some possible symptoms that you may experience with imbalanced hormones:
- Bloating
- Fatigue
- Mood swings
- Weight gain
- Trouble concentrating
- Imbalanced blood sugar levels
- Infertility
- Night sweats
- Low libido
Over the course of your life, you will experience normal hormonal shifts. For instance, during your monthly menstrual cycle or ovulation, during pregnancy or in menopause. However, when your hormones fluctuate due to possible medications or in relation to other medical conditions such as Hashimotos Disease, then it may be time to get the hormones in check.
Key Hormonal Testing to Consider:
It is important to get a full assessment to test for PCOS, estrogen/progesterone, cortisol imbalances, thyroid, iodine and vitamin D.
LH and FSH are pituitary hormones that will communicate to grow the egg follicles in the ovaries. During the menstrual cycle, the LH and FSH levels will be lower at a 1:1 ratio. However, if LH levels are two to three times higher than FSH, then this may point towards the possibility of PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome). If higher the level of FSH and LH then it may signal for a lower egg count.
Estradoil is one type of estrogen that plays a role in the development of breast and uterine lining. Therefore, inadequate estradiol may mean low ovarian health.
Progesterone is a sex hormone that works closely with estrogen, therefore it’s function is to create a well working uterine lining. A low level will indicate that ovulation is not occurring.
Testosterone is another sex hormone that both men and women produce. Testosterone will be converted into estradiol in the ovaries. If testosterone levels are much higher, then that may indicate signs of PCOS that cause irregular menstrual cycles.
DHEA-S is one important adrenal hormone that is a precursor to testosterone and estradiol. If your DHEA-S levels are higher than normal, that may be a possible sign of increase testosterone levels, PCOS and high insulin levels. On the other hand, low levels indicate low estrogen levels.
Cortisol is a hormone released during stressful situations. Low levels of cortisol will hinder your thyroid function, whereas high levels will inhibit thyroid functions and ovulation.
TSH is thyroid stimulating hormone produced by the pituitary gland and play a role in signaling the thyroid to create more thyroid hormones. Hence, low levels of TSH results in low thyroid production and high TSH results in high thyroid production. TSH is important to test for how efficiently your body is able to produce thyroid.
Free T4 and Free T3 are hormone produced by the thyroid. Testing for Free T3 and Free T4 will reveal how well the thyroid is responding to the TSH
TPO that also stands for thyroid peroxidase antibody is an antibody. The importance is that TPO is that it is a sign of immune reactions occurring causing hypothyroidism or Hashimotos disease. Some women’s labs that have found TPO has been correlated with Celiac disease as well.
Vit D3 is important to test as well because it is converted into a hormone that is similar to estradiol or thyroid. Vit D3 is important to the immune system and regulating insulin levels.
If you are curious about your hormonal health and would like to further investigate, contact Health Optimizing Langley by contacting us or get in touch using our phone number (604)-716-4530 or through email: info@healthoptimizinglangley.com
