Replacement therapies for women suffering with hormone imbalances have been prescribed for decades. The unpleasant symptoms of an imbalace may include hot flashes, weight gain or loss, fatigue or low sex drive. If these symptoms present, it is time to visit a doctor to discuss if hormone imbalance therapy is right for you.
Conditions Requiring Treatment
Menopause causes a woman's estrogen level to drop, causing an imbalance that may require hormone imbalance therapy.
The woman's health site WomenToWomen.com reports that menopause can also cause hormone imbalances in women by affecting the way the thyroid works. The thyroid begins to under-produce thyroxine, which is one of the thyroid's main hormones. It is estimated that over 20 percent of women in menopause have this disorder.
Thyroid issues in women, independent of menopause, can also cause hormone imbalance and require therapy.
Treatments
Hormone.org reports that taking estrogen is a popular treatment for hormone imbalance for women because it is often the quickest way to relieve the symptoms. Estrogen helps to reduce many unpleasant symptoms including hot flashes and vaginal dryness. It may also protect bones from weakening with age.
Sometimes diet and nutrition are enough to treat the hormone imbalance.
Warnings
Estrogen may increase the risk of uterine cancer, if taken by itself. This danger can be reduced by taking estrogen with progestin, which is a form of progesterone. This combination of drugs is known as hormone therapy. For women who no longer have a uterus, estrogen can be taken alone. This is known as estrogen therapy.
For those women who have a family history of breast cancer or who are breast cancer survivors, estrogen and hormone therapy should be avoided. Estrogen therapy is also not recommended for women who have liver disease, have had blood clots, or heart disease.
During the 1980s and 1990s, hormone imbalance therapy for women was commonplace. However, the Mayo Clinic reports that in 2002 the practice changed when it was discovered that hormone replacement therapy could increase a woman's risk of heart disease. This risk varies from patient to patient depending upon their individual circumstances. Patients are advised to discuss the treatment with their doctor to determine if the benefits outweigh the risks.
The Woman's Health Initiative says that while the instances of stroke and blood clots in the legs were slightly higher for women taking hormone therapy the numbers were not significant enough to discourage all patients from using the treatment.
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