Can Exercise Help With Hormone Imbalances?

Hormone imbalances can reduce your quality of life. They also place you at risk for cardiovascular disease and stroke, according to a February 2011 report in "Seminars in Thrombosis and Hemostasis." Prescription medications and invasive surgeries can rectify these problems, but such treatments often cause side effects. Natural treatments such as exercise have become increasingly popular. Anaerobic and aerobic exercise can safely balance your hormones. Talk to your doctor before starting an exercise regimen.

Exercise Increases Testosterone

Many older men experience hypogonadism -- the age-related loss of testosterone. This deficiency can increase your risk of injury, according to a March 2009 review in "Osteoporosis International." Exercise might reduce this risk by increasing testosterone production. An experiment published in the April 2011 issue of "Biological Trace Element Research" explored this possibility in healthy athletes. Participants performed martial arts for at least an hour and half a day. Four weeks of this exercise regimen increased their testosterone levels relative to sedentary controls.

Studies testing female athletes have produced similar results. A July 2011 report in the "Journal of Sports Sciences" showed that female soccer players had elevated levels of testosterone 18 hours after a match. Interestingly, exercise does not seem to affect estrogen, according to a May 2011 article in the "European Journal of Applied Physiology."

Exercise Increases Growth Hormone

Short-stature children often have reduced levels of human growth hormone, or HGH. Being small can affect your mental health, according to a February 2007 report in the "Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases." Exercise increases growth hormone in animals, suggesting that it might prove useful in treating growth hormone deficiency. A study described in the January 2008 edition of "Clinica Chimica Acta" evaluated whether exercise has similar effects in humans. Healthy athletes performed both anaerobic and aerobic exercise on a stationary bicycle during a single testing session. Both forms of physical activity increased growth hormone relative to baseline.

Exercise Increases Insulin

People with type 1 diabetes usually have low levels of insulin. This deficiency may place you at risk for depression, according to a July 2011 article in "Diabetologia." Exercise might increase insulin and thereby reduce diabetics' reliance on insulin injections and dietary restrictions. An investigation published in the May 1990 issue of the "Journal of Applied Physiology" tested this hypothesis in diabetic subjects. The participants performed anaerobic exercise on a stationary bicycle during a single session. This exercise protocol increased insulin levels relative to baseline. It also allowed the patients to better control their sugar levels for the next 24 hours.

Exercise Decreases Cortisol

Depressed patients often have high levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Extended periods of hypercortisolemia can cause you to misunderstand emotions in others and in yourself, according to a July 2011 review in "Neuropharmacology." Exercise reduces the cortisol response to stress in animals. A study presented in the February 2011 edition of the "Chinese Journal of Physiology" determined whether similar effects appear in humans. Volunteers performed intense bouts of exercise each day for 10 weeks. This increase in physical activity decreased cortisol relative to baseline.

Can Exercise Help With Hormone Imbalances?

Exercise Increases Testosterone

Exercise Increases Growth Hormone

Exercise Increases Insulin

Exercise Decreases Cortisol

References

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