Does Testosterone Replacement Therapy Help Improve Sperm Production?

Testosterone replacement can offer great assistance to the male reproductive cycle, from boosting the sex drive to help treating erectile dysfunction, but one of the most common misconceptions about it is that it can boost sperm production. Introducing testosterone into the body by artificial means causes the body to stop producing its own, and there is a possibility that infertility can result, especially if the treatment is not done professionally. A lot of men are able to treat other testosterone-related problems with hormone replacement therapy and have great success, and only find out later that the process may have caused infertility. Being aware of the side effects and ensuring you understand what the long term consequences for your body are, is essential for you to have a positive testosterone replacement experience. What it really comes down to is why you need testosterone replacement therapy. Do you need it because your T levels are low and have a negative effective on your body's ability to produce sperm, or is it solely due to other reasons?

One of the biggest reasons that testosterone replacement is so popular with older men is that most of them have already had children, and they do not have plans to conceive again. In younger men who need help boosting their testosterone levels, they need to weigh up the benefits or relief from low testosterone side effects against the chances of them not being able to have a family.

One of the most obvious areas we see the effects of long term anabolic steroid use is in the bodybuilding world. Men who have been supplementing testosterone, and often in cases where they have been supplementing it without the right kind of medical assistance, for an extended period of time, experience fertility problems. The problems may only show up a few years later, or they may be immediate. In some cases, infertility may be temporary and stop when the person stops taking the supplements, and in other cases the effects may be permanent and irreversible.

When you start bringing testosterone into the body, you send a message to your body that it does not need to make its own, or it should be making substantially less of its own. Your body is hardwired to maintain homeostasis, or constant levels throughout each system and cell, and to conserve energy and supplementing with testosterone sends it the message that the body does not need as much. Artificial testosterone signals the pituitary gland to stop producing the hormones that stimulate the testicles to generate sperm. In some people, it can reduce sperm production substantially, while in others it can stop it completely. In some cases the testes actually shrink in size, because of their reduced functionality in the body.

In older men who experience hypogonadism as a natural response to ageing, this is not cause for concern, but in younger men whose conditions may be hereditary or caused by a trauma to the body, this is not always the best option. If you are thinking of having a family and need to have testosterone replacement, you should approach it in an informed manner and find out as much as possible about the treatment procedure and what it means for you.

Some men can take reverse hormones and other forms of treatment to encourage sperm production later on, but the process is not always successful for all men. Other men may decide to wait a little longer before having testosterone supplements and have their family first.

While testosterone therapy can improve your quality of life and relieve uncomfortable symptoms, it is a powerful process that will have effects on your body, which need to be discussed with your doctor. It can help your sex life in terms of boosting your libido and even helping with premature ejaculation, but if you want to conceive a child, you might need to investigate it further before making a decision.

DHEA - The Most Underrated Supplement For Women?

Have you ever noticed if a supplement, drug, etc is tried in men, and fails to work, it's written off as being ineffective? Although improving, it's well known that men have been the standard subjects in research, with the results often being applied to women as an afterthought. In recent years, that situation has improved and women are viewed as the physiologically distinct people they are from men, and studies looking at specific effects in women - using women as the test subjects - has grown dramatically. That's the good news at least. The bad news is, there's still plenty of research out there done on men, being applied to women, sometimes to the detriment of women. Obviously, men and women are not so different that a great deal of research fails to be perfectly applicable to both sexes, but the fact remains a great deal of prior research was done looking at men, and the results, good or bad, applied to women more as an after thought.

Such is the case with DHEA in my view...

What is it?

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) has been around as a supplement for a long time, so I'm not going to go into great depth on in this article as there's a ton of info out there already on DHEA and it's fully covered in my ebooks. To quickly summarize: DHEA is a hormone produced primarily in the adrenal glands with minor amounts produced by the testes. It is found in both men and women. DHEA is the most abundant steroid hormone in the human body, and like all steroid hormones, ultimately comes from cholesterol. Most DHEA in the body is found as DHEA-sulphate (DHEA-S). DHEA is a major precursor to other steroid hormones. That's the basic run down of DHEA.

From a strictly health perspective...

From a strictly health perspective - for those deficient due to aging or other causes - DHEA appears beneficial when used as a supplement for general health and well being in both sexes. It's well established that DHEA levels fall off as we age, and the research on health uses of DHEA justifies using small amounts to counter this age related drop off or deficiencies from other causes. DHEA levels rise slowly till they peak at around 30 years of age, and decline steadily after age 35, with levels reduced by 70-80% by age 75. This effect is one of the most consistent and predictable changes in aging known with lower endogenous levels of DHEA/DHEA-sulfate found in advancing age strongly correlated with a myriad of health conditions best avoided.(1) For example, levels of DHEA and or DHEA-s in older men is strongly predictive of death by cardio vascular disease.(2)

Only blood tests will tell a person what their DHEA/DHEA-s levels are and where they are compared to others in their age group. As this is not an article focused on the potential health benefits of DHEA in deficient populations, that's all I'm going to say on the matter here.

What about DHEA as a "muscle builder" in healthy young men?

DHEA often gets marketed as a "muscle builder" to men. As a muscle building supplement in young healthy men, DHEA is essentially worthless, and high intakes may in fact be counter-productive to gaining muscle as high doses also cause an increase in estrogen and the effects on testosterone are minimal. Studies have been conflicting in this area at best, and most "real world" users report no improvements in strength, muscle mass, etc from using DHEA. So, for healthy young men with normal DHEA levels, it's a bust as a "muscle builder" due to the fact it converts to testosterone poorly and raises estrogens levels when used at high doses.

"What About Us Women Will?!"

OK, this finally brings us to women and DHEA after the long winded intro above, but finally, here we are! Although the research in men using DHEA has been unimpressive and contradictory, such is not the case with women. In women, research using DHEA is much more consistent and compelling and there appears to be some gender specific responses to DHEA use.(3)

As a supplement that can improve mood, libido, memory, and possibly alter body composition (i.e., increase muscle, improve bone density, and reduce body fat), DHEA appears to be a winner for women. Most of the research has been done in DHEA deficient populations, but data - and real world experience- suggests it's also a benefit to women not medically deficient in this hormone. Although the benefits of this hormone to women comes predominantly from its conversion to testosterone, it also appears some of the effects may be due to other mechanisms.(4). One recent study concluded:

"The use of DHEA therapy may also be discussed in women of any age when a trial of androgen supplementation seems justified because of the existence of an inhibited sexual desire or a sexual arousal disorder associated with documented androgen deficiency. The rather weak conversion of DHEA into testosterone protects from the risk of overdosing associated with testosterone preparations."

Side Bar: Testosterone myths. Testosterone is often viewed as a "male" hormone. Although testosterone is the dominant androgen in men, it's a hormone essential to the health and well being of both sexes, just as men produce and require some estrogen. How important can this hormone be to women? Karlis Ullis, MD, a faculty member of the UCLA School of Medicine, who treats women with hormone imbalances states:

"It is clear to me, both from my clinical practice and from research, that testosterone is vital for women to preserve their lean mass and to prevent obesity. Not only will testosterone help mobilize body fat and negate some of the fat storing effects of estrogen, it is also extremely effective in building lean mass in women - even at small doses. Hormone replacement therapy that only includes estrogen and progesterone but leaves out testosterone is a curse of many a women's fat loss program. This is not only a concern for postmenopausal women. Young women should think twice about using birth control pills. Birth control pills elevate estrogen and progesterone levels while drastically lowering testosterone levels. This is reason why many women experience large gains in fat as well as a decreased libido when using birth control pills."

In women with established adrenal insufficiency, studies find 50mg DHEA corrects low serum concentrations of DHEA/DHEA-S, and brings testosterone into the "normal" range. With one recent study finding "DHEA treatment significantly improved overall well being as well as scores for depression, anxiety, and their physical correlates. Furthermore, DHEA significantly increased both sexual interest and the level of satisfaction with sex."(5)

Side Effects

Are there any side effects to DHEA use for women? Generally, they are easily dealt with by lowering the dose and "... are mostly mild and related to androgenic activity of DHEA in women and include increased sebum production, facial acne, and changes in hair status." (6)

In my experience, the above is related to dose. The low-normal dose recommended (see below) rarely if ever causes side effects, but there's no free lunch in biology, and adjusting any hormone up or down, comes with potential for side effects along with the benefits. The issue - as in the case with any drug, supplement, etc - is whether the benefits outweigh the risks/side effects. As the (potential) benefits of DHEA high, and the side effects at best mild to non existent, my opinion is the risk/benefit ratio is very much in favor of using DHEA, but everyone has to decide for themselves on that score.

Conclusions and Recommendations

Believe me, there's a lot more research I could cover, but I hope the above covers the essential points regarding DHEA and it's potential value to women specifically. So, let's sum it all up: For women over 40, or those with diagnosed adrenal insufficiency (AI), DHEA could be of considerable value to general well being as well as libido, mood, etc. Typical doses are 25 - 50mg and working with a medical professional to fine tune dosages is recommended.

For "normal" women under 40, and or have not been diagnosed with AI, 25 - 50mg seems to do the trick, and starting at the lower dose and assessing over a few months is recommended. Most women will notice improvements in mood, libido, and possibly muscle mass and or bodyfat, at lower doses. The effect is increased at higher doses, but possible side effects mentioned above also become more common. At 50-100mg+, DHEA does act as a mild anabolic agent in women in my experience, and I have seen some fairly impressive results of increased muscle mass and decreased bodyfat at the higher doses, but it's not dramatic compared to other anabolic hormones used by some female athletes. High doses of DHEA will also elevate estrogen levels, so that too should be kept in mind. Clearly DHEA is Underrated For Women

See you in the gym ladies!

Citations:

(1,3) Cameron DR, Braunstein GD. The use of dehydroepiandrosterone therapy in clinical practice. Treat Endocrinol. 2005;4(2):95-114.

(2) XV International Symposium on Atherosclerosis.

(4) Buvat J. Androgen therapy with dehydroepiandrosterone..World J Urol. Nov;21(5):346-55. - 2003

(5) Arlt W, et al. DHEA replacement in women with adrenal insufficiency-pharmacokinetics, bioconversion and clinical effects on well-being, sexuality and cognition. Endocr Res. 2000 Nov;26(4):505-11.

(6) DHEA: why, when, and how much-DHEA replacement in adrenal insufficiency.Ann Endocrinol (Paris). 2007 Sep;68(4):268-73. Epub 2007 Aug 8

Is Stress The Reason That You're Feeling Tired?

Are you tired of feeling tired? Like so many of my Personal Program patients, Tom came to me suffering from fatigue and sleep problems. It had been a tough year and a half for him.

Tom explained, "I think it all started when my wife and I finally had to tell our daughter to move out. She had been quite the problem child for a few years: drugs, drinking, non-stop fighting with the rest of us, and a few other things I'd rather not go into."

"All the energy that went into dealing with her got me distracted from my business. It wasn't long before I started developing some serious financial problems. Then, I began waking up in the middle of the night worrying about my daughter and my finances. I couldn't do anything to get back to sleep. And I'm still having that problem, so I get about 4-5 hours of sleep a night, and I know that's not enough."

"So I drink coffee throughout the day. At first, it helped keep me going, and I felt a little better. But now it seems like I'm exhausted by lunchtime. I've been a weight lifter my whole life, and these days I have a really hard time finding the energy to get to the gym. Sometimes I'll grab a double espresso on the way over there, but even that doesn't always do the trick."

It was pretty obvious that Tom had run himself into the ground. Between the family problems, the financial problems, the over-training at the gym, and the all-day caffeine consumption, it was no wonder that he was feeling fatigued. That was just an early symptom of what could be more serious health problems. Since Tom had recently had a complete physical with his medical doctor, he was confident he didn't have any life threatening conditions.

I agreed to work with Tom, and he went on to complete the 13-page Starting Point assessment that I use with my patients. I sent him a Functional Adrenal Stress Profile lab kit so we could see what kind of shape his adrenal glands were in.

The Functional Adrenal Stress Profile is a saliva test that measures stress hormone levels throughout the day. It's an inexpensive and non-invasive way to get a picture of how the adrenal glands are functioning.

The adrenal glands are responsible for making your stress hormones - the chemicals your body naturally produces to help you meet the physical and mental demands of your daily life. Prolonged or poorly managed stresses can start to burn out your adrenal glands, and you can start having trouble getting through your days.

Some of the symptoms can include:

• Fatigue - from mild to severe. Poor sports performance (feeling like you've lost your edge).
  
  
  
  


• Inability to lose weight.
  
  
  
  
  


• Trouble falling asleep or staying asleep.
  
  
  
  
  


• Digestive problems like bloating or gas.
  
  
  
  
  


• Depression, anxiety or irritability.
  
  
  

Those are just a few common symptoms that can be associated with adrenal gland burnout. There are generally 3 stages of adrenal burnout:

• Stage 1 (early adrenal burnout). In the early stages of adrenal burnout, your stress hormone levels (cortisol and DHEA) will be high. Your adrenals are still able to keep up with your high-stress lifestyle.
  
  
  

• Stage 2 (mid-stage adrenal burnout). In stage 2, one of the stress hormone levels will drop. This indicates that you've dug yourself a "hole" and you need to take steps to let your adrenals recover, including sleeping more, eating right, and taking supplements to support your adrenal glands.
  
  
  

• Stage 3 (late-stage adrenal burnout). In the later stages of adrenal gland burnout, but stress hormones bottom out. When lab testing reveals such severe burnout, bio-identical (natural) hormone replacement may be necessary to help your adrenals recover. I often work with my patients' primary care doctors in these situations. Fortunately, most of the patients I treat are in Stage 1 or Stage 2. Tom's test results showed that he was solidly in stage 2 of adrenal gland burnout. His cortisol was low, but his DHEA was normal.
  
  
  

The information I was able to gather from his 13-page Starting Point assessment pointed to many different changes we could make. These changes included:

• Cleaning up Tom's diet, and helping him kick his fast food habit. Low-quality food can prevent your adrenals from recovering.
  
  
  
  
  


• Tapering his coffee consumption down. I'm not against a couple of cups of coffee in the early part of the day, but drinking it all day long will burnout the adrenals. Improving Tom's sleep. Help Tom work on managing his stresses.
  
  
  
  
  


• Creating an exercise program that allows him to work out without burning out, including kettlebell interval training.
  
  
  
  
  


• Helping him avoid foods that he's allergic to or intolerant of. Tom had a pre-diagnosed gluten intolerance, but was not avoiding foods that he should have been staying away from. This is common.
  
  
  
  
  


• Putting Tom on an appropriate adrenal support supplementation protocol, so his adrenals could heal and his body could start naturally producing more cortisol. Tom was eager to start his program, and accepted all the changes that he needed to make. We worked on his exercise program together for 6 weeks. He learned to use kettlebells, and we integrated them into his gym workout.
  
  
  

We cut his workouts from 6 days a week to 3 days a week. After 6 weeks, we moved him back to working out 4 days a week. We met in the office for his bi-weekly coaching sessions, and that really helped him stick to the program.

After about a month, he really started noticing that he felt better. The exercise was helping him get rid of some of the anger he was feeling, and that helped him deal with his stress. It also helped him start sleeping better.

He cut down to two cups of coffee in the morning, and occasionally broke the rules and had a cup after lunch. He took his supplements and faithfully stuck to his nutrition program.

The toughest change we made was keeping him away from the gluten. Since gluten is a part of most baked goods, it's tough for people to stay off of it. Tom did his best but wasn't perfect. I made Tom aware of the relationship between the gluten intolerance and stressed adrenals. This made it easier for him to see the "big picture" and that helped avoid gluten.

At 3 months, we took Tom off of his adrenal support supplements and re-tested him. His cortisol levels had come up nicely, so we kept him on a high-quality multi vitamin / multi mineral. He's doing much better these days.

If you think you're been suffering from the symptoms of adrenal fatigue, you may enroll in one of Dr. Hyman's programs, or schedule a 45-minute initial consultation to discuss your situation.

The information contained in this article is for educational purposes only. Do not use this information for self-diagnosis or self-treatment. Have any symptoms evaluated by a licensed doctor in your state. Never start this or any other exercise, nutrition, supplementation, or stress-management program without consulting a licensed medical doctor. Working out can cause injury and / or death. The author is in no way trying to do anything other than share information with you. He accepts absolutely no liability for any damages you may incur in relationship to anything you read or saw on this website.

Do You Know What the Most Important Female Hormones Are?

In this age of informational "revolution" every woman somewhat knows about hormones and their importance in our bodies. If we put it in simple words then Hormones are fuel of our bodies.Our body needs hormones to function properly.

Hormones tell our body what to do, how to react, and what we need, thats why natural hormonal growth is much important to regulate our inner system. We all face hormonal problems in our lives some less or some more. So practically we need to clear our understandings about essential and natural growth female hormones.

Here are some important hormones and their functions in our body. (Because as we aged our bodies reduce and further stop to producing hormones and thus we entered in menopausal stage.)

Adrenalin
This hormone warns our body to possibly danger, it means some 'Bad things' happening in our body. And besides that it is also regulates some hormones as well to cure those malfunctions. These are two adrenal glands and they sit on top of each kidney
• Aldosterone -It regulates salt and water balance in our bodies.
• Cortisol -control our metabolic processes.

Natural Growth Hormone
This hormone regulates our growth and our metabolism. The conversion of food into energy, to control the absorption of water into our kidneys, breast milk production, and blood presser control, Some aspects of pregnancy and childbirth,Sexuality functions in both men and women, and thyroid gland function all are come under this hormonal functionality.

Estrogen
This hormone basically regulates our menstrual system, and further our pregnancy. Our ovaries produce this hormone and as we go mature our ovaries reduce this production which affects us in number of ways.
Estrogen further divides in three forms -

• Estradiol: use to treat menopausal symptoms.
• Estriol: a weak hormone secreted by the placenta during pregnancy.
• Estone: Our ovaries secreted this hormone to treat estrogen deficiency in our body.

Insulin
This hormone regulates sugar levels in our bodies. Diabetes one of the most common problem occurs when this hormone got imbalance.

Progesterone
Progesterone called pregnancy hormone. It is an important for pregnancy and it produced in our ovaries, during pregnancy. Progesterone is sometimes referred to as "the pregnancy hormone." It is essential for successful pregnancies, and brings about lactation after pregnancy. When ovaries stop working, progesterone levels get drop.

Testosterone
Testosterone is the hormone of desire as testosterone is responsible to deal with our sex drive. When women enter their menopause stage, testosterone gradually decrease and our sex drive as well, In result we get old.Testosterone also responsible to maintain our muscles and bones, when its production decreases we also lost our muscles and weaken our bone structures.

These are some very important naturally occurring hormones that make our bodies function at its full. Naturally at certain stages of life our hormone levels change or some situations affect their levels before that certain age. The main problem is that changes bring some other changes in our lives, and when these changes not regulated correctly, things gets complicated and we face further health problems, problems lead to hormonal imbalance.

I hope you now have some basic knowledge of our most important hormones and their functions in our bodies as I tried to make them simple and to the point. Our hormone levels fluctuate throughout our life. We need to know how we can combat with hormonal imbalance how to lessen their effects to lead a healthy life.

Anxiety Disorders And The Menopause Link

In today's society women struggle to survive and do more than they are able to, at work and at home. The demands, especially at work, are increasing and more is being demanded of you. Maybe you are also experiencing relationship issues or coping with other persistent problems (children, aging parents, etc).

Many women will experience extreme nervousness, generalized anxiety and sometimes full-blown panic attacks during menopause. For millions, these feelings are overwhelming and can interfere with their daily activities. Anxiety attacks refer to a combination of negative emotions including extreme fear and worry, often accompanied by physical sensations such as palpitations, chest pain, dizziness and shortness of breath. If you have not been correctly informed, anxiety attacks can indeed be terrifying. It is important that you know about and understand the hormone-based causes.

What causes Anxiety attacks during menopause?

The causes for anxiety attacks are divided into psychological and physical. However, physical causes (hormone imbalances) are primarily responsible for this issue in menopausal women.

o Psychological causes for Anxiety attacks

Here we have the ones related to uncommon disorders- rare hereditary diseases provoked by chemical imbalance in the brain, and those related to life stresses, fatigue, etc. If these cannot be controlled, your emotional stability is lost, culminating in anxiety attacks. However, these cases are temporary and anxiety attacks usually stop when the stressful event is over.

o Physical causes for Anxiety attacks

Hormonal imbalance is the main cause for anxiety attacks during menopause. Sometimes a trigger is something external, such as very loud noise. At other times, the feelings will seem to appear out of nowhere, without explanation or warning.

Estrogen hormones have a great effect on your mental state, as they regulate the levels of cortisol- the hormone that produces stress and anxiety. Thus, if your estrogen drops, cortisol cannot be controlled, leading to producing more stress and anxiety. Also key is the health of your adrenal system. The adrenals can normally assist with hormone production; however if your adrenals have become severely fatigued, you may not be properly manufacturing enough estrogen, DHEA and progesterone. Without proper levels of these hormones, even a small stress event can rapidly escalate into an anxiety attack.

What do I do about Anxiety attacks during menopause?

The most important step in relieving your anxiety is to find out whether your problem has a psychological or physical nature. If there is an extreme psychological disorder, you may need to be treated by a psychologist or other trained mental health professional. There may be a legitimate need for prescription medications to control the symptoms.

You may ask yourself "Why is this happening to me?" because maybe you have never experienced an anxiety disorder before and taking antidepressants or anxiety medication is a concern to you. There are alternative treatments available in many cases. Work with your doctor to explore all possible health issues. Hormone testing should reveal any imbalances, which can usually be corrected with bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, medical massage therapy, acupuncture -- or a combination of these therapies. It will take weeks or many months to fine-tune the treatment, but you have a great chance of full recovery.

Bioidentical Hormones: What You Should Know About The Natural and Holistic Approach To Inner Balance

All too often, the term "hormone treatment" immediately conjures up negative medical imagery. Patients immediately associate the words with phrases like "increased chance of heart disease," "blood clot causing" and a whole slew of other unfortunate conditions and diagnoses. For years, the type of adverse backlash has caused women suffering from menopausal symptoms to completely avoid this type of internal balance management simply due to fear of potential side effects - until now.

The onset of bioidentical hormones has completely revamped the hormonal treatment playing field, particularly for patients seeking a natural approach to their holistic health and well-being. Trying to decide if this latest hormonal breakthrough makes sense for your current care routine? Understanding how bioidentical hormones are created and the host of benefits they offer can help you determine if this natural medical innovation makes sense in your health regime as a critical cornerstone in your quest for comprehensive, holistic health.

Understanding The Basics And Benefits of Bioidentical Hormones

Former hormonal health practices often relied on synthetic chemical components that, while organic in nature, do not completely complement a patient's inherent makeup. This is a major differentiator in bioidentical hormones. Unlike their synthetic counterparts, these hormonal replacements are perfect replications of already produced secretions found in women's chemical makeup, making them an ideal alternative for patients seeking a natural approach to internal balance.

Because bioidentical hormones exactly match already existing estrogen and progesterone, side effects are effectively minimized. Additionally, this treatment offers a litany of other critical features and benefits. Bioidentical hormones demonstrate a lasting and more efficient system absorption rate and allow for physicians to easily pinpoint treatment progression and quickly identify practice modifications as needed. Most importantly, these hormonal substances, while primarily used for perimenopausal and menopausal relief, can also help balance several other internal systems, helping to create pinnacle inner equilibrium.

Partner With A Reputable Practice For A Safe Treatment Approach

As with any medicinal management procedure, it's imperative to always partner with a reputable practice to ensure that your use of bioidentical hormones remains structured, monitored and as safe as possible. It's not surprising that identifying the right facility to team with during this critical holistic well-being journal can feel daunting. However, understanding a few key factors to focus on during the selection phase can truly help streamline the process.

Always look for a facility that not only specializes in this type of treatment plan, but also demonstrates the knowledge, and experience necessary to help make your journey to self-healing a happy and healthy one along with treatment plan options for both inpatient and outpatient. Beyond specializing in this innovative hormonal replacement practice, your chosen clinic should also exhibit an understanding in a wide breadth of holistic health treatments. Alternative cancer treatment, internal system balance and treatment for conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome and even high blood pressure will help reinforce that your chosen healthcare facilitator has all the necessary capabilities to quickly diagnose any other peripheral conditions that may require attention during the course of your care.

Hormone Wars: How Stress and Cortisol Excess Destroy The Republic of Hormone Harmony

Diane was a middle-aged financial consultant who had been in relatively good health. She had undergone a hysterectomy 24 months prior and used only bio-identical hormones. She ate a healthy diet, worked out regularly, took the proper supplements, and slept well. You may picture Diane as a fit, happy, and healthy person. However, Diane was forty-five pounds overweight, losing her hair, exhausted all day, depressed, perpetually cold, and having digestive problems. She was doing all the right things, so why did she still feel like gum on the bottom of a shoe? The important missing tidbit was that Diane and her spouse of twenty years divorced one year prior. How is it possible for just one stressful circumstance to wreak such havoc? The answer is cortisol induced hormonal chaos.

Hormones are chemical messengers released by our bodily organs is response to orders received from two key areas in the brain, the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland. These two 'parental figures' tightly regulate the functions and behaviors of the body's 'hormone children' so the family lives harmoniously. The sibling hormone cortisol is the most disruptive of them all, and because it is the most influential bodily hormone, it alone can dictate the whole hormone family dynamic in a detrimental way. Cortisol is the body's main stress hormone and is released by the adrenal glands in response to stress. As the primary 'fight or flight' hormone, cortisol is the only hormone we could not survive without. We are designed to mount a 'healthy' fight or flight response for short periods of time. However, if we defy the rules of nature and subject ourselves to persistent stress in its many forms, the body does what it can to protect your life but not your health, peace of mind, and longevity.

Cortisol is the body's primary 'wear and tear' hormone. Its task is to provide cells with the fuel necessary to mount a stress response. Various other hormones including estrogen, testosterone, progesterone, and growth hormone are 'growth and repair' hormones. In order for your body to function optimally, there must be balance between all of these hormones. If chronic stress tips the balance in cortisol's favor, 'non-essential' functions (i.e. digestion, sleep, and reproduction) take a back seat on the long trip to poor health. Exploring the influence cortisol exerts on other hormones may provide a better understanding for why so many bodily functions go awry when we are 'stressed out'.

Cortisol and Estrogen
Estrogen has in excess of four hundred functions within the body which include maintaining a healthy cardiovascular system, building bone tissue, protecting brain function, and promoting reproduction. When cortisol is elevated, the release of estrogen declines. Furthermore, the sensitivity of tissues to estrogen is absent even if it is present. As a result, delayed puberty, infertility, absence of menses, and miscarriage may occur. In aging women, cortisol frequently rises, and it is believed this could be responsible for postmenopausal women's propensity towards developing weight gain, mood problems, inflammation and autoimmune disease, insulin resistance, and greater risk for heart disease.

Cortisol and Progesterone
Not only is progesterone a reproductive hormone, it also functions as an anti-inflammatory, anti-muscle spasm, anti-anxiety, and anti-uterine cancer and anti- breast cancer hormone. Its capacity to also serve as a neuroprotective hormone (preserving and sustaining the brain) enhances thought processes, focus, and recall. Since the body normally uses progesterone to make cortisol, during times of acute and chronic stress, a unique phenomenon identified as "the progesterone steal syndrome" may occur. The result is a decrease in levels of progesterone as it funnels into cortisol production to meet the body's increased cortisol requirement. This can cause premenopausal females to have PMS symptoms and postmenopausal women to suffer from worsening signs and symptoms of estrogen dominance (i.e. irritability, sleep disturbances, an increase in weight, bowel disturbances, breast cancer, and uterine cancer)

Cortisol and Testosterone
Testosterone plays as essential a role in men as estrogen does in women. Studies have revealed testosterone to be crucial in instrumental in maintaining heart health, optimizing blood glucose control, improving sexual function, and improving bone health. Testosterone is essential in women too serving to maintain energy levels, sex drive, mood, bone strength, and mental function. As is the case with other 'feel good' hormones, levels of testosterone plummet in the face of cortisol dominance.

Cortisol and DHEA
DHEA is the other primary adrenal gland hormone and it rises with cortisol during an acute stress response. Just as progesterone is the body's natural 'anti-estrogen' hormone, DHEA is the body's natural 'anti-cortisol' hormone. Its appearance during acute stress helps prevent cortisol from causing extensive injury to otherwise healthy tissues. Chronic stress leads to a decrease in DHEA. Since DHEA is essential for immune system function, heart health, bone building, and brain function, cortisol induced reductions in DHEA can bring about a myriad of signs and symptoms involving many different bodily systems. One unique hint that DHEA could be low is loss of hair in the armpits, on the legs, and in the pubic area.

Cortisol and Thyroid Hormone
Thyroid hormone is a key player in the metabolism of protein, carbohydrates, and fats, advising cells how to handle each type of energy form. Thyroid hormone is also crucial in maintaining the health of tissues, stimulating bone growth, and boosting brain cell development. Like cortisol, thyroid hormone is actually a 'wear and tear' hormone. To protect itself from stress induced spontaneous combustion, the body can put the brakes on thyroid hormone production and action. Common symptoms of low thyroid hormone levels include lethargy, cold intolerance, constipation, depression symptoms, memory problems, and an increase in weight. Considering that stress induced alterations in thyroid hormone occur in an indirect manner, test results may fall 'within the normal range', and therein lies the challenge.

Reestablishing Hormone Family Harmony It may be more obvious why Diane's hormone balance was disturbed soon after she experienced a tremendously stressful ordeal. Since cortisol effectively negates the beneficial effects of other hormones, every organ system can be harmed by perpetual cortisol excess. It is important for your health care provider to check the integrity of your stress response system, including cortisol levels, before initiating any kind of hormone replacement therapies. Bear in mind, sibling rivalry is intense between cortisol and all the other hormones. Just as a cortisol lowers other hormones, replacing other hormones in the presence of low cortisol can cause and equal and opposite problem. Estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, DHEA, and thyroid hormone, especially when given simultaneously, can lead to signs and symptoms of worsening fatigue, weight gain, depression, and chronic pain since these hormones will tip the balance out of cortisol's favor (remember hypocortisolism?)

I call stress 'The Great Equalizer' for good reason. Only in the company of a happy stress response system will the body function at optimal levels.