In this article we share our answers to 9 of your most frequently asked questions about hormones.
We will cover what hormones are, what can cause a hormonal imbalance, the different types of hormones including sex and stress hormones, estrogen and testosterone, as well as touching on hormone replacement therapy (HRT).
Traveling in your bloodstream to tissues or organs, hormones are the body's chemical messengers. Hormones affect many different processes, including:
The endocrine system is made up of all the different hormones in the body. The main endocrine glands are the pituitary, pineal, thymus, thyroid, adrenal glands and pancreas.
Additionally, men produce hormones in their testicles and women in their ovaries.
Many factors can trigger a hormonal imbalance, including:
There are many signs and indicators that you may have a potential hormonal imbalance, which may include:
In addition to a potential hormonal imbalance, these symptoms can be found in more serious medical conditions (e.g. PCOS), so it would be recommended to speak to your GP if you experience any of these signs.
Hormones and neurotransmitters share mutual pathways and receptor sites in mood-related areas of the brain.
Studies have suggested that there is a higher risk of major depressive disorder (MDD) in women compared to men; These risks appear to become more evident after puberty and continue throughout the reproductive life cycle.
Yes, hormonal imbalance can cause dizziness.
Used to help with the symptoms of menopause, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is a treatment that replaces the hormones estrogen and progesterone. This is because as you approach menopause, these hormones decline to low levels.
The effects of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) vary depending on a few factors. It may differ depending on the types of hormones used, whether they are given in pills, patches and gels, as well as the time of first use, for example around menopause or later.
The NHS states that the benefits of HRT often outweigh the risks. And recent evidence suggests that the risks of serious side effects from HRT are very low.
Cortisol is widely known as the body's stress hormone. It is produced and released naturally by your adrenal glands. When you are stressed, increased cortisol is released into your bloodstream.
Sex hormones are also known as sex steroids, gonadal steroids, and gonadocorticoids. Sex steroid hormones (SSHs) play various roles in regulating various processes in the cardiovascular, immune, muscular, and neural systems.
The main reproductive hormones are estrogen, testosterone and progesterone. These are fundamental in sexuality and fertility, responsible for pregnancy, puberty, menstruation, menopause, sexual desire, sperm production and more.
Testosterone is the main male hormone responsible for regulating sexual differentiation, producing male sexual characteristics, spermatogenesis (the process by which the production of sperm cells occurs) and fertility.
In men, it is believed to regulate:
Estrogen is one of the main female sex hormones, produced predominantly by the ovaries.
In the female body, estrogen is necessary for:
We hope this has clarified some of your questions about hormones. If you feel you may be experiencing a hormonal imbalance and would like some individual advice, we recommend speaking to your GP.