Facts about Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy

Hormone replacement therapy is used to help both men and women replace deficient hormones in the body. Hormone replacement therapy is most commonly used by women to relieve symptoms during menopause, but men can also benefit from hormone replacement therapy during and following andropause.

Menopause and Andropause

Both menopause in women and andropause in men are marked by hormonal changes that can result in a variety of unpleasant symptoms, including the potential of heart disease, low libido, and increased body mass index.

Many hormone replacement therapies use synthetic prescription medications to mimic the hormones lost to menopause and andropause, but bio-identical hormone replacement therapy, or BHRT, may be a better solution for many men and women. BHRT uses plant-based ingredients to balance hormones.

What Hormones Are Replaced?

In women, it’s typical to see a drop in estrogen levels during menopause. Low estrogen can increase the chance of depression and anxiety as well as the risk of stroke, osteoporosis, and heart disease. Limited progesterone allows estrogen to work unopposed. Meanwhile, a woman’s testosterone levels also drop off. Testosterone is responsible for energy, libido, and healthy bones and muscles.

As men age, hormones that assist in physical, sexual, and cognitive function decrease during andropause, or male menopause. This dip in testosterone and other hormones often leads to increased abdominal fat, muscle shrinkage, depression or grumpiness, and erectile dysfunction.

Bio-identical hormone therapies replace some of these vital hormones in men and women, helping increase muscle mass and improve mental clarity. The goal of BHRT is to ensure a correct balance of all hormones so that they will work properly together.

Where Do Bioidentical Hormones Come from?

Bioidentical hormones are derived from plants or plant-based materials or animals. They’re not created synthetically and have a molecular structure identical to the natural hormones in the human body. These substances are used in a compounding pharmacy to make the medication specific to an individual’s need. This is often done using a saliva or blood test to more accurately produce the correct hormone therapy for each individual.

How Are Hormones Delivered?

Bioidentical hormones aren’t usually taken by mouth, as are most synthetic hormone replacement therapies. Hormone pellet therapy is a very common way to administer bioidentical hormones because it allows the hormones to be released more gradually and steadily over a period of time as the body needs it. The hormone pellet is painlessly inserted under the skin and will last 3 to 4 months or more for women, and 6-12 months for men.

What Are the Benefits of Bioidentical Pellets?

Of course, one of the major benefits of BHRT is that symptoms of hormone deficiencies are alleviated. For women, these often include hot flashes, vaginal dryness, mental confusion, thinning of the bones, anxiety, fatigue, and low libido. Similarly, in men, issues such as erectile dysfunction, cognitive decline, mood, and exercise capacity are improved. Furthermore, studies show that men with BHRT have reduced heart disease such as heart failure, prostate cancer, and inflammation. BHRT pellets are even more beneficial because users won’t have to worry about taking a medication every day. Once the pellet has been inserted you won’t have to worry about it for a few months. There is virtually no downtime after the pellet is inserted, and users will begin to notice improvements quickly, usually within the first week after the pellet is inserted.