Testing It Up

More and more women are now suffering from symptoms of hormonal imbalances.  The problem in dealing with this abnormality in the body is that most doctors would look into the symptoms and find treatment for them without thoroughly examining the causes why such changes happen. Hormonal imbalances can be caused by the following:

1. Stress – There’s no question that stress is a cause for such a condition. Cortisol level increases due to stress and our system reacts by producing other hormones to cancel out the cortisol. This will ultimately lead to an imbalance in the hormones of the body.

2. Hormonal Supplements – Examples are birth control pills or other types of hormone supplements that causes abnormality in the otherwise normal levels of the body, thus an imbalance may take place.

3. Environmental Toxins – Food contaminants and pesticides are also factors for hormonal imbalance. The chemicals can signal the production of more estrogen which disrupts the normal procedures in the body.

4. Diet – The type and amount of food that you eat can have an effect on your hormones. A specific case for such is when you eat too much food that increase or decrease the levels of progesterone in the body. It is recommended that you eat healthy portions of fruits, vegetables, and protein like chicken or lean meat that maintain the balance of the body. Avoid processed foods as they can be harmful and may result to damaging conditions.

Progesterone is one of the many hormones that regulate a woman’s bodily functions such as menstruation, blood clotting, the production of collagen, strengthening the immune system and building up bone and muscle. But if there is too much progesterone in a woman’s body, it could lead to problems with her health.

There are many reasons that could lead to high levels of progesterone in women. Multiple pregnancies can raise the levels of progesterone in her body, as do health conditions like uterine cancer and adrenal hyperplasia. Menopause and pre-menstrual syndrome are also reasons for a woman to have too much progesterone in her body.

Symptoms of high progesterone levels include mood swings, breast sensitivity, bloating, restlessness and tiredness even after sleeping, vaginal dryness and lack of sex drive. Hormonal imbalance due to too much progesterone should be treated immediately. Eating certain foods, getting enough exercise and managing stress also help greatly in inducing a balanced production of hormones in the body.

For full version of this article, please visit “Reasons for High Levels of Progesterone in Women“.

Hormone replacement therapy is again being called to task for increased health risks for women. Already blamed for increased risk for stroke, heart problems and breast cancer it’s recently been found to as much as double the risk of a woman’s likelihood of developing lung cancer.

This recent finding could sound the death knell for hormone therapy which has been facing several problems in the last few years which have already made it a decreasingly used form of treatment.  Trust in this form of treatment began to wane when a study started in 1991 to investigate the merits of the treatment in preventing heart problems and menopause symptoms for women. The study was stopped just 5 and ½ year into its course because the researchers soon realized that the risks were beginning to overtake the benefits, risking the 16,000 member study group’s health.  The rate of breast cancer rose by as much as 15% during the time that hormone therapy was being most heavily used.

Studies into the effects of hormone therapy on women who had lung cancer resulted in the startling discovery that it increased a women’s chance of not only getting lung cancer but also of dying from it once they’d contracted the disease.

Hormonal imbalance is becoming more and more common in younger women. Doctors are still unsure as to how to deal with it and misdiagnosis can lead to various problems with a woman’s overall health, such as heart ailments, infertility and cancer.

There are many possible causes of hormonal imbalance. One such cause is stress, where the body produces too much cortisol and other hormones are secreted to cancel it out. Another cause is an imbalanced diet. Improper exercise also leads to hormonal imbalance, as too much or too little can impede with the production of hormones. Taking hormonal supplements such as birth control pills also puts the body’s hormone balance out of whack.

Certain diseases like cancer and PCOS also create hormonal imbalance in a woman’s body. Some forms of cancer affecting females feed on the body’s hormones. PCOS causes the body to secrete too much androgen. Lastly, environmental toxins can also lead to hormonal imbalance.

For full version of this article, please visit “7 Most Common Causes of Hormonal Imbalance“.

Anabolic steroids are hormones that help induce growth through an increased rate in cell division. The use of anabolic steroids is surprisingly popular among the athletes of ancient Greece. Though the practice was forgotten for most of ancient history after the fall of Greece, the use of anabolic steroids was rediscovered accidentally in Germany in the 1930s. Twenty years later, usage of anabolic steroids gained popularity when it was approved by the FDA.

From the 1960s to the 1980s, there were doubts about whether or not there are any benefits to using anabolic steroids. Tests conducted in 1972 showed that people who took anabolic steroids did not really show any significant changes in their bodies. This, however, was disproved in the 1990s through more controlled tests. At the same time, the US Congress put into place the Anabolic Steroid Control Act of 1990, which classified anabolic steroids as a controlled substance. The Act was modified in 2004.

For full version of this article, please visit “History of Anabolic Steroids – How It Started?“.

There are a number of horror stories out there about athletes abusing steroids and the health complications that can arise from steroid abuse. Indeed, steroids can be dangerous if used improperly and without the right knowledge.

There are many possible side effects associated with the wrong use of steroids. One common side effect is the natural balance of hormones in the body being inhibited. This can impair some functions of the body and can lead to breast development in men and developing masculine characteristics in women. It can also worsen problems with acne as well as cause sterility in both men and women.

Steroid abuse can also create problems with how the liver breaks down the nutrients that we ingest. It can also play havoc with our body’s cholesterol levels and accelerate hereditary balding. Other side effects associated with steroid abuse include enlarged prostate glands, stunted growth in children and problems with kidney functions.

For full version of this article, please visit “What Happens When You Use Steroids?“.

Steroids, known for their various street names, come in several types and can have several effects on the body. The steroid types the public would be most familiar with are the female sex hormones in birth control pills, the male sex hormones in androgen-anabolic steroids, and corticosteroids in drugs used to treat diseases.

The steroids used in body building are androgen-anabolic steroids. They can be taken orally or can be injected. Their anabolic effects promote cell growth while their androgenic effects lead to the development and maintenance of masculine characteristics. However, they can also cause a number of harmful side effects such as elevated blood pressure, increase in bad cholesterol, premature baldness and liver damage.

As thus, if you want to use steroids in body building, you must make sure that you do your research first. Consult with your doctor and have your doctor monitor your steroid use so that it does not harm your health.

For full version of this article, please visit “Common Steroid Pills (Types & Side Effects & Symptoms of Use)“.

Laparoscopic testing has long been used to test for endometriosis, but a new less invasive and nonsurgical test has been proven to be just as effective. If the method is approved by the FDA after further study into its effectiveness it may in fact replace laparoscopy. This could be good news for women facing endometriosis as the sooner the disorder is diagnosed the sooner treatment can begin. Normally it takes about 6-10 years to verify if the disorder is present in sufferers, delaying treatment and allowing the effects of the disorder to take root, deteriorating quality of life.

There are some negative aspects to this method however as women who are receiving hormone treatment can’t use it since the endometrial tissue fibers the test looks for may not be present in those who have been using hormones. Biopsy technique is also terribly important to getting the correct results in the method. Overall however the testing could help many women to diagnose and treat the disorder before it can begin to do damage to the body by progressing.