Think of your hormones as chemical messengers throughout your body. They continually communicate information to every area of your body, responding and adapting constantly to its complex needs. Your endocrine glands produce hormones: pancreas, thyroid, adrenals, and ovaries or testes. Hormones perform essential functions, communicate, and relay key warnings thereby ensuring that your systems run smoothly. However, a number of factors can disrupt hormone levels resulting in an imbalance with an impact on:
- Disease
- Prescription drugs
- Diet
- Stress
- Changes in health
- Age
- Environmental factors
Many people attribute their symptoms to stress or just a part of life. Over time, chronic stress can cause an imbalance in your hormone, which becomes the underlying cause of many symptoms. In this case, you will need the appropriate testing, evaluation, and treatment to return your hormones to normal levels.
Finding and correcting a hormone imbalance early helps maintain health, longevity, and energy while helping to prevent chronic disease.
Most common signs of hormonal imbalances
Skin and hair changes
The quality and health of your skin and hair are directly related to your hormones. Your hormones must work together to produce a glowing complexion. When even one hormone is off-balance, you may develop skin problems such as dryness, acne, fine lines, wrinkles, and rosacea. For instance, thyroid abnormalities may cause dry hair or skin, thinning hair, hair loss, and brittle nails.
Weight gain and weight fluctuations
Research shows that hypothyroidism, or low thyroid function, affects one in five women and one in ten men. Unfortunately, doctors fail to diagnose the condition in over 50% of the cases. The thyroid hormone impacts nearly every cell in the body and regulates our entire metabolic rate. Therefore, excess weight can often point to a slow and underactive thyroid gland, which in turn has caused metabolic processes to slow down.
In addition, if cortisol is chronically elevated, it will directly impact your blood sugar levels by signaling your body to consume more calories and store more fat. Insulin, another weight hormone influencer, regulates your blood sugar levels by being secreted in response to glucose. Having too much estrogen or not enough progesterone can also be the driving force behind weight gain. These are just a few examples of how hormones change the body which as you can see becomes pretty complex.
Many women struggle with weight gain even though they diet or exercise twice as hard. If you experience this, you may want to see your functional medicine doctor and ask for a thorough evaluation and treatment options.
Anxiety
Chronic stress has become an epidemic in our modern world. Excess adrenal stimulation is the result of this constant overload of stress. Neuroendocrinology is the study of the close relationship between neurotransmitters and hormones, including those produced by the adrenal glands. Scientists are discovering more information about the interplay between cortisol and norepinephrine, which are produced and released by the adrenal glands. Frequently, they underlie the feeling of anxiety. Anxiety may be an endocrine imbalance rather than excessive worry.
You may want a pharmacological solution with anti-anxiety medication. However, you should also consider exploring the potential underlying problem that may be producing the anxiety. It’s not always a hormone imbalance, but it may be prudent to have it ruled out. Check with your functional medicine doctor and seek an evaluation.
Insomnia, persisting fatigue, or both
Insomnia can have many causes. If it’s persistent, it may be associated with your hormones. People with hormonal imbalances often experience extreme fatigue. Everyone is tired sometimes, but with adequate rest, hydration, and a balanced diet, the fatigue should subside.
If you are sleeping adequate amounts or maybe even sleeping too much and can’t seem to shake the constant feeling of exhaustion, you may consider having a comprehensive evaluation of your hormone levels. The fatigue could be associated with your hormones. Adrenal fatigue and hypothyroidism are more prevalent in our fast-paced society than you may think.
Low sex drive
Your levels of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone naturally decline with age, especially during and after menopause. However, an imbalance can occur at any age. Low estrogen levels can significantly impact your sex drive. Women may experience vaginal dryness that can lead to painful intercourse and unstable mood and sleep patterns. Testosterone also is a big factor in libido. Primarily thought of as a male hormone, it is also made by and just as important to women. Testosterone levels naturally decline in women after menopause, low levels can contribute to the reduction of arousal and sexual response. Progesterone can also have a big impact on your sex drive.
If you experience any of these issues on a continual basis, seek out a full evaluation from a functional medicine doctor. Hormone management is a complex issue. Get tested, evaluated, and treated by a doctor who seeks out the underlying causes of your symptoms rather than automatically prescribing a drug to mask symptoms. A hormone imbalance is multifaceted and needs a thorough evaluation.