The hormonal symphony: Men have a large amount of the powerful androgen hormone testosterone. This is what determines if a baby is to become a male or not. Testosterone maintains not only sex drive and virility but also muscle mass and fitness. Men also have small amounts of estrogen and progesterone that perform certain crucial functions in their bodies as well. There must be balance among these and the other hormones in the body so that their symphony is a beautiful harmonious sound and everything functions as it should.

Testosterone declines with age: With age testosterone levels decline and estrogen levels increase. Classic symptoms of testosterone decline include receding hairline and central balding, decreased energy, drive and initiative, decreased muscle mass and weight gain. One of the later symptoms and the hallmark that gets most men to stand up and pay attention is a decrease in sex drive or erectile dysfunction. Once it gets below the belt it often becomes a top priority above the neck! However, once it gets to this stage it is more difficult to reverse. Therefore, this issue needs to be addressed at the earliest point possible for optimal outcome.

Estrogen increases with age: As testosterone decreases it is associated with an equally devastating increase in estrogen levels. This results in belly fat accumulation, an increase in breast size, weight gain and prostate cancer. Yes, men need estrogen, but the high levels that can occur with aging are dangerous and should be addressed.

Other hormones also change with age: Like women, many men also suffer ill effects from other hormonal imbalances such as thyroid, pancreas, adrenal and growth hormone. The hallmark of thyroid imbalance is weight gain or inability to lose weight. Fatigue, feeling cold and constipation are other common signs. Many people say that their doctor checked their thyroid and said that it was fine. However, at True Balance MD we check special thyroid tests on these same people that often tell us otherwise.

Stress does affect our health and its effects can be measured: The adrenal glands make cortisol, the stress hormone. This vital hormone controls how the body adapts to stressors in the environment. By midlife most men have encountered enough stress that it has altered adrenal functional and decreased their ability to handle current stressors. Symptoms include fatigue, lack of lust for life, insomnia, a decrease in immune system function (frequently getting ill, cancers and all chronic diseases are increased with decreased adrenal function). Most men with decreased libido and erectile dysfunction have some degree of adrenal dysfunction. This is easily identified with appropriate salivary testing and corrected using natural measures that address the underlying cause of the issue.

Insulin, problems here cause symptoms as well: Insulin is the hormone of pancreatic endocrine function and, like cortisol, is vital to our immediate survival. Imbalances here results in wide swings in blood sugar levels that affect all cells and tissues in the body negatively. Symptoms include excess feelings of hunger, fatigue, excess energy after eating, dizziness, lightheadedness and difficulty thinking clearly. Over the long term insulin dysfunction allows too much sugar to stay in the blood after eating. This excess sugar sticks to all the cells in the body and damages their normal way of functioning. Long term problems resulting from this include blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, increased risk of all cancers and ultimately, death. Appropriate evaluation of insulin function using special testing and the comparison of your results to optimal values allow us to identify and correct early stages of dysfunction in this area and prevent the harmful long term consequences of insulin regulation issues.

The master regulator, growth hormone: Growth hormone is a master regulating hormone that promotes the health and growth of all cells in the body. It is primarily produced while we sleep. This is why 7 to 8 hours of deep, uninterrupted sleep is so crucial to our health and vitality. As we age growth hormone levels declines and our overall health declines because of this. Symptoms include decreased vitality, strength, muscle mass, bone density, weight gain, cognitive dysfunction and many others. Identification and correction of deficiency in this area optimizes health and vitality.

In order to counteract these imbalances, True Balance MD offers a variety of solutions. The most inexpensive, accurate, and simple way to test the levels of hormones is saliva testing. These results allow us to correctly diagnose imbalances in the steroidal hormones, including testosterone, progesterone, and estradiol and treat them appropriately. There is no guessing involved. Depending on the outcome, bio-identical hormone treatment may be prescribed. This involves replacing your body with the biologically identical, naturally occurring hormone that it usually makes. Not synthetic hormones, which increase your risk for cancers and other diseases. True Balance MD also uses hormone metabolism testing to check for increased risk of hormonally related diseases such as prostate cancer.

Hormone optimization can be the answer for a variety of problems men face as they age. Although some men have not heard of hormone optimization before, the ones who are benefitting from it are all glad they did. This is your opportunity to turn back the clock. Right now. Contact us today for more information!

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Hormone Optimization for Men - True Balance MD