Men, Women and Aging

Men & Aging - Andropause Primary cause - Decline in the hormone testosterone Secondary cause - Decline in growth hormone and DHEA.

Hormone decline in men produce aging symptoms such as the following:

• Decreased energy and strength
• Increased body fat especially the abdomen
• Inability to maintain muscle
• Depression and irritability
• Decreased mental sharpness and memory
• Loss of eagerness and enthusiasm for daily life (mild to moderate depression)
• Increased risk of cancer (yes lower levels increase risk)
• Decrease in sex drive
• Decreased erectile function
• Increased cardiovascular and diabetes risk

The Good News!

This problem can be easily diagnosed through laboratory testing and resolved through natural hormone replacement. Hormone levels are restored to what they were at age 25 to 30. This is both safe and effective.
NOTE: It is unwise to restore sex drive and performance with medications that are presently on the market when hormonal imbalance has not first been treated.

What about prostate cancer?
Older men with lower testosterone levels are more likely to have prostate cancer than younger men with high testosterone levels. Current thinking is... an increase in estrogen levels in the aging male that predispose to prostate cancer.

Women & Aging - Menopause Menopause - Generally occurs between age 40-55 after the ceasing of mentstrual cycles. Peri-menopause - The years preceding menopause when hormone levels decline.

Peri-menopause and Menopause
During peri-menopause there is a decline in the estrogens, progesterone, and testosterone. Declining levels of thyroid hormone and DHEA also have significant effects on the aging of women. Hormonal changes can begin as early as the mid to late thirties such as the following:

• Decline in the hormone progesterone - This can lead to migraine headaches, water retention, insomnia, weight gain, and depression. This leaves a woman with estrogen dominance and places her at an increased risk for female cancers.
  
  
• Decline in the hormone estradiol - leads to menopause symptoms, such as night sweats, hot flashes, memory lapses, thinning skin and hair, reduced sex drive, and an increased risk for heart disease and bone loss occurs.
  
  

Menopause also leads to a decline in a woman's testosterone, which causes a decrease in lean body mass and libido. Testosterone levels should also be measured and replacement testosterone given, if indicated.

OUR RECOMMENDATION:
Women listen to your bodies and gain knowledge to "understand what you hear". Then partner with your physician in making informed decisions on your health. For example, the decision to use bio-identical hormones (identical in molecular structure to those produced in the human body) rather than the patented synthetics from non-humans such as Premarin and Provera.

REMEMBER — Progesterone is only called progesterone. Synthetic preparations such as Provera, progestins, medroxyprogesterone, etc. are not the same. Evidence shows that progestins are harmful to women and should be avoided. They can lead to increase risk of heart attack and stroke.

The Importance of Hormonal Supplementation - YOUR MEMORY!
Once a woman is fully in menopause, she may no longer experience the symptoms, but the absence of the proper hormonal levels will continue to age the body at a faster rate. One important reason for hormonal supplementation is to protect a woman's memory. There is a much higher incidence of Alzheimer's Disease and senile dementia in those women who do not receive hormonal therapy.

The Estrogen Family

There are three different estrogens produced in the human body: Estradiol, Estriol, and Estrone.

Estradiol: The strongest; often cited as contributing to breast and uterine cancer. Produced by the ovaries, declines at menopause.

Estriol: The weakest estrogen; called the "forgotten estrogen"; felt to protect a woman from female cancers; rises to high levels during pregnancy and is a wonderful anti-inflammatory.

Estrone: The only estrogen that continues to be produced after menopause; produced in the body fat; felt to be associated with breast and uterine cancer, since there is a high associated between body fat and breast cancer and because the risk increases after menopause.

Bio-Identical Hormone replacement is usually with estriol (80%) and estradiol (20%) and NO ESTRONE.