Maintaining Healthy Hormone Levels

At some level, we all understand the importance of healthy hormones. Hormones are key to regulating body weight, mood and energy. When these “chemical messengers” are even slightly off, they can have a significant impact on your health.

Although testosterone is a hormone that is generally associated with masculinity in men, women’s bodies need testosterone, too. In fact, the body makes all the intracellular estrogen it needs from testosterone in both men and women.

Low levels of testosterone are associated with a number of common symptoms including: 

Physical

• Fatigue
• Insomnia and sleep problems
• Poor exercise tolerance
• Reduced muscle mass, power, and strength
• Cold body temperature, hands or feet
• Muscle and joint aches
• Increase in body fat not related to change in diet or exercise
• Enlarged, swollen or tender breasts
• Reduced facial, body and/or pubic hair
• Dry skin
• Decreased bone density, bone fractures or osteoporosis
• Night sweats or hot flushes

Psychological

• Mood swings
• Feeling irritable, sad or depressed
• Trouble with concentration or memory

Sexual

• Reduced sex drive
• Difficulty obtaining an erection
• Delayed orgasm
• Vaginal dryness

If you do have low testosterone, today’s technology allows physicians to place a time-release “pellet” of approved bio-identical hormones (hormones with the exact same chemical structure as hormones that are made by the human body) in the fat under the skin to deliver more optimal and consistent hormone levels directly into the bloodstream.

Your doctor may perform a blood test to find out if you have low testosterone or relative androgen deficiency, and how you may benefit from testosterone therapy. Hundreds of recent scientific studies have shown that treating testosterone deficiency can dramatically improve the quality of life and health of men and women in measurable ways.

For more information about Principal Medical Group and testosterone replacement therapy, visit www.principalmedicalgroup.com.