What Causes Hormonal Imbalance And How To Fix It?

A person must maintain hormonal balance to live a healthy, disease-free lifestyle. Your hormones are responsible for playing multiple functions in your body. If, for some reason, hormonal imbalance occurs, you can face multiple health conditions and symptoms. In comparison, hormonal imbalance is more common in females compared to males. Also, these changes can occur naturally, especially in females during puberty, pregnancy, menstruation, and menopause.

However, worry not, as hormonal imbalances are treatable with the right medications and lifestyle changes. So, let's see what causes hormonal imbalance and how to fix it.

What Is A Hormonal Imbalance?

Hormonal imbalance is defined as the state when you have too little or too much of one or more than one hormone. This is a broad term used to cover various hormone-related conditions.

You should not take hormonal imbalance lightly as, in some cases, it can bring some major changes in your body. Due to this, you can suffer from various health conditions that may require treatment.

In addition, hormonal imbalances are both temporary and long-term (chronic). Out of this, some imbalances will need treatment to stay healthy. Meanwhile, other hormonal imbalances may not require any treatment but can negatively impact the quality of life.

Some common examples of conditions that hormonal imbalances lead to include:

• Diabetes
• Infertility
• Amenorrhea (missing the period)
• Acne
• PCOS (Polycystic ovary syndrome)
• Thyroid disease (such as hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism)
• Irregular periods
• Obesity

What Are The Signs And Symptoms Of Hormonal Imbalance?

The average human body creates more than 50 different hormones. Every hormone that your body makes comes in to help facilitate bodily functions. So, if you experience hormonal imbalance, your symptoms will depend on that specific hormone that experienced changes. Generally, if you experience any persistent symptoms that affect your daily activities, it ‘sit’s suggested to contact your healthcare provider.

In the case of common hormonal balances, a person can experience any of the following signs or symptoms:

• Rapid or slow heartbeat
• Unexpected weight loss or weight gain
• Dry hair and coarse hair
• Skin tags
• Anxiety or depression
• Irregular distribution of body fat
• Dark spots in your armpit and on your neck
• Extreme thirst and too much urination
• Abnormal cholesterol levels
• Facing difficulty tolerating warm or cold temperatures
• Tingling and numbness in your hands
• Moist, thin, and warm skin
• Constipation
• Frequent bowel movements or Diarrhea
• Fatigue

Hormone Imbalance Symptoms In Females

Sex hormone imbalances such as estrogen and progesterone are quite common in females or people assigned female at birth (AFAB). These sex hormones are produced by 'females' ovaries. Furthermore, females can also suffer from excess androgens and testosterone. So, for individuals with AFAB, here are symptoms that can occur due to hormone imbalances:

• Hair loss
• Irregular periods
• Acne on the upper back, face, or around the chest area.
• Vaginal dryness
• Heavy periods
• Low interest in sex
• Hot flashes
• Hirsutism (too much body hair)
• Vaginal atrophy
• Infertility

Hormone Imbalance Symptoms in Males

Males or individuals assigned male at birth (AMAB) can also face sex hormone imbalances, such as testosterone. Males' testes produce these sex hormones. As a male, if you're suffering from hormone imbalance, you can face the following symptoms:

• Erectile dysfunction (ED)
• Low interest in sex
• Loss of body hair
• Infertility
• Decreased muscle mass
• Gynecomastia

Also Read: How Does Nutrition Affect Athletic Performance In Sports?

What Causes A Hormonal Imbalance?

Now, if we talk about what causes a hormone imbalance, there can be many possible reasons, out of which each can differ based on which hormones are affected. In addition, your hormone levels never stay the same, and they naturally rise and fall throughout the day and life.

So, first, see the common causes of hormone imbalances in people:

• Stress
• Trauma or injury
• Medications
• Eating disorders
• Cancer treatments like chemotherapy
• Steroid use
• Pituitary tumors
• Tumors, whether benign or cancerous
• Hormone therapy

Such hormonal imbalances are usually temporary, and you can fix them with lifestyle changes, such as managing stress and medication changes.

However, certain causes of hormonal imbalances are unique to females or people with AFAB. These include:

• Pregnancy
• Puberty
• Breastfeeding
• Menopause
• PCOS
• Hormone medication, like birth control pills

Now, as we mentioned, a hormonal imbalance can lead to multiple health conditions. These health conditions can sometimes cause further hormonal imbalances in individuals. So examples of these conditions are:

• Hypothyroidism
• Type 1 & type 2 diabetes
• Thyroiditis
• Diabetes insipidus
• Hyperthyroidism
• Cushing syndrome
• Hyperfunctioning thyroid nodules
• Addison's disease
• Hypogonadism
• Congenital adrenal hyperplasia

How to Fix Hormonal Imbalances in Females and Males?

If you have a hormonal imbalance, you may look for the answer to how to cure hormonal imbalance in females or males. Well, there are surely treatment options that can help you optimize your hormone levels. However, remember that these treatments are usually specific to your hormonal imbalance.

Depending on the type of hormone imbalance you have, your healthcare provider may suggest you the three following treatments:

Medications for Hormone Imbalances

Taking medicines is one of the best ways to optimize or fix your hormonal imbalances. Also, the primary reason your doctor will suggest medication is that it helps stimulate or replace hormonal chemicals in your body. This treatment is also known as hormone therapy.

Medications that help balance female sex hormones, such as progestin and estrogen, can relieve symptoms such as hot flashes and enhance fertility. On the other hand, females having high androgen can take the help of medications to suppress these male hormone levels. In addition, testosterone supplements are known to help men relieve symptoms such as muscle loss, fatigue, etc.

Now, you can also use other medications that help with hormone imbalances, such as insulin, that help treat Type I and Type II diabetes. You can contact Apprize Medical to know more about medications for hormone imbalances.

Lifestyle Changes

While medications can help you manage your hormone levels, you should also work toward making some lifestyle changes to treat hormonal imbalances. A healthier lifestyle will help you achieve optimized hormone levels naturally.

Some lifestyle changes which can help fix hormonal imbalances naturally include:

• Lose weight
• Eat healthy in a sufficient amount
• Remove unnecessary hair
• Lower vaginal discomfort
• Avoid triggers for hot flash

While doing exercise, don't push yourself too much. Because, in some cases, doing too much exercise can worsen hormone imbalance, especially for women. Other than that, try activities that give you joy to manage your anxiety and stress. Your healthcare provider can brief you more on these lifestyle changes.

Surgical Treatments

Surgery is your last resort to treat hormonal imbalances if medications don't offer you any relief. Generally, this treatment is not recommended unless it is absolutely necessary.

Conclusion

Your hormones are responsible for playing many functions in your body. Even if your one hormone starts acting abnormally, it can lead to numerous symptoms and conditions. If you've never faced hormonal imbalances before, talking to your healthcare provider is necessary.

We at Apprize Medical offer advanced, comprehensive hormone tests to identify your hormonal imbalance symptoms. Our professional can collect these samples at your home so you don't experience any discomfort. From there, these samples will be sent to our levels, where they will be processed. Once the test results come, our healthcare provider will prescribe you medications and lifestyle changes to optimize your hormonal function. For more details, contact us at +1-305-851-2132 or fill out our contact us form.