During puberty and menopause, the body undergoes a series of changes due to changes in hormone production in the body. Hormones such as estrogen and testosterone signal to a number of cells throughout the body and promote fertility and...
Bioidentical hormones, similar to the body's natural hormones, can play a useful role in treating patients with hormone deficiencies. Men with low levels of masculine hormones can take bioidentical testosterone to enhance physical strength and...
The endocrine system releases hormones that control physiological processes throughout the body. Disease and aging break down this system, creating hormonal deficiencies. Prescription medications and nutritional supplements can help rectify these...
A 2006 report published in the journal "Alternative Medicine Review" describes the positive role bioidentical hormones can play in the lives of women. These drugs, similar to the body's natural hormones, can effectively and safely replace hormone...
People experiencing an age-related decline in endogenous hormones may show a reduction in physiological and psychological performance. Natural hormone therapy using bioidentical hormones remains a popular treatment option for such changes. These...
In her 2006 book titled "Ageless," Suzanne Somers promotes the use of bioidentical drugs. Doctors typically prescribe these natural hormones for patients as part of a replacement therapy. Men, women, and children can safely take these substances,...
Bioidentical hormones are used to treat the symptoms of menopause, such as hot flashes, sweating and vaginal dryness due to the low production estrogen. Hormone treatments such as estrogen are used to offset low levels during menopause. However,...
Although medications containing phytoestrogens have been used for centuries, natural hormones, plant-based hormones and bioidentical hormones are relative newcomers to hormone replacement therapy, or HRT, in modern Western medicine. Phytoestrogens...
Menopause adversely affects the lives of many older women. This change, beginning around age 45, causes decreases in estrogen and progesterone. It also causes memory loss and mood swings. Taking prescription medications and nutritional supplements...
Women experience migraine headaches more often than men. This difference may relate to fluctuations in sex steroids like estrogen and progesterone. A 2002 investigation published in the medical journal "Headache" showed that during times of...
Bioidentical hormones, available by prescription or over the counter, contain both active and inactive ingredients. The active ingredients, chemicals similar to natural hormones, replace substances lost because of disease or aging. The inactive...
Bioidentical hormones continue to gain popularity among people seeking an alternative to traditional medications, according to a 2006 paper in the "Harvard Women's Health Watch." Many commercial products contain these synthetic drugs that are...
Hormone deficiency syndromes cause unwanted symptoms and signs. These deficiencies affect both physical and mental health, and they adversely affect millions of people. Natural hormone supplements remain available to treat such conditions despite...
Many health care providers will cover replacement therapy using bioindentical substances, according to Employers Resource. These drugs, similar to the body's natural hormones, can help postmenopausal women cope with age-related changes. Menopause...
Soy is the world's oldest crop, dating back 5,000 years in China. Soy is higher in protein than other plant foods, and also is rich in estrogenic isoflavones called phytoestrogens. Isoflavones act in the body in similar ways as estrogen. In the...
Atropic vaginitis is a condition of inflammation that occurs along the skin and mucosal layer of the vagina and vulva. The inflammation develops most commonly in women going through menopause. The diminishing estrogen levels of the menopausal...
Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy is finding increasing research, use and support as a viable alternative to conventional hormone replacement therapy. In part, the move away from synthetic hormone replacement has increased as a result of...
Natural hormone replacement therapy (NHRT), also known as bioidentical hormone therapy, is a natural way of replacing estrogen, progesterone and testosterone within the body, typically during menopause. Natural hormones are manufactured by...
Prempro is a brand name hormone replacement therapy doctors prescribe to treat menopause, a condition characterized by a decrease in hormone production in women. Prempro consists of conjugated estrogens with medroxyprogesterone acetate; synthetic...
Maca is a root vegetable related to the potato family and grows in the mountains of Peru. It is the highest altitude growing plant in the world and is packed full of vitamins, minerals and amino acids, according to the HealthGuidance website. Maca...
It's not uncommon to forget a few items at the grocery store or misplace your car keys. It is more unsettling when memory lapses occur more frequently or when they are accompanied by confusion or disorientation. Forgetfulness and changes in mental...
Over-the-counter estrogen creams typically contain bio-identical, or plant-based estrogen called phytoestrogen. As with prescription creams, they are supposed to relieve common symptoms of menopause, such as hot flashes, vaginal dryness and mood...
The hormone progesterone plays an important role in the health of all women. This sex steroid affects reproduction, cognition and emotions across the entire lifespan. Released mainly from the ovaries, natural progesterone quickly circulates...
Progesterone is a hormone that increases in the second half of a woman's menstrual cycle. This portion of the cycle is known as the luteal phase. It is stimulated by an orchestrated series of events that leads to a surge in the pituitary hormone,...
As women age their bodies produce less estrogen, and the effects can include mood swings, hot flashes, memory problems and other undesirable conditions. There has been some controversy over whether or not to artificially replace the estrogen in a...
Bioidentical hormone therapy utilizes custom-made medications that are meant to perfectly mimic hormones that are depleted in the body. Women lose hormones during menopause and often look for alternatives to help relieve them of many annoying...