Location 248:
Even with their ovaries removed, women make estrogen in body fat. Women with plenty of body fat may make more estrogen after menopause than slim women make before menopause.
Location 348:
In saliva hormone testing, when your estrogen is at its optimal level, your progesterone should be about 200 times higher. In other words, the ratio of progesterone to estrogen for hormone balance would be about 200:1.
Location 357:
For example, excess estrogen can block thyroid function.
Location 559:
When you get the results of a saliva test, the normal range of estradiol in a premenopausal woman is 1.5 to 3 picograms per milliliter (pg/ml), and in a menopausal woman is usually about half that, 1 to 1.5 pg/ml of estradiol. The healthy ratio of progesterone to estradiol is at least 200 to 1 and can go up to 1,000 to 1 in women using transdermal (delivered through the skin with cream, gels, oils) progesterone. Therefore, you would want the saliva progesterone level to be at least 200 pg/ml in a menopausal woman with an estradiol level of about 1 to 1.5 and even higher in a premenopausal woman with an estradiol level of 1.5 to 3 pg/ml.
Location 569:
When your doctor orders a standard blood test to measure your hormone levels, it’s a test of the serum (the watery part of the blood). Serum levels of progesterone will rise to about 2 to 4 nanograms per milliliter (ng/ml) in most women using 20 to 30 mg of progesterone cream. If your doctor measures your serum progesterone levels, here are some guidelines: * Normal, untreated (not on HRT) menopausal women will show an initial serum progesterone level that is less than 0.5 ng/ml. * After using progesterone cream, progesterone levels usually rise to 2 to 4 ng/ml. * In normal premenopausal women, luteal (mid-cycle) phase serum progesterone levels are 4 to 20 ng/ml.
Location 797:
Estriol has great benefit to the cells of the vagina, but has little effect on breasts or the uterine lining when used conservatively. The good news is that it doesn’t seem to promote breast cancer and may even be protective against it. The bad news is that it doesn’t help retain bone as well as its more potent sister estrogen, estradiol. However, if a woman has vaginal dryness and/or vaginal cell atrophy, estriol is the best and safest estrogen to use. The recommended dose is just 0.5 mg twice weekly in a cream, applied vaginally.
Location 816:
Dosages • Estradiol (pill): Start with 0.5 or 0.25 mg daily • Estradiol (cream, gel, patch): Start with 0.025 mg daily • Estriol (pill): Start with 1.5 mg daily (usually combined with estradiol) • Estriol (cream, gel): For vaginal dryness, start with 0.5 mg twice weekly
Location 839:
When I researched this I found that oral hormones stimulate the liver to make proteins, including SBHG [serum binding hormone globulin], which binds to hormones and makes them inactive. When I tested hormone levels in my patients I found that when they were put on oral hormones their SBHG went way up and their free testosterone went way down, which accounts for the low libido. I found this to be true with oral hormone replacement hormones and with birth control pills. When I switched these women to the birth control patches their libido came back.”
Location 844:
He points out that the liver proteins created by oral estrogens also raise blood pressure, raise triglyceride levels, and suppress thyroid function. The verdict in
Location 924:
Excessive estrogen or excessive natural progesterone replacement therapy can also suppress libido, so if you are taking these hormones check the levels of estradiol and progesterone to make sure you are not using too much.
Location 929:
Transdermal testosterone, in doses of 0.15 mg/day, raised their “free” testosterone levels fivefold and effectively relieved their symptoms. Clinicians report that they successfully use transdermal doses (creams, gels) of 0.15 to 1 mg per day, with the average dose for a menopausal woman being 0.5 mg daily.
Location 1058:
Transdermal progesterone cream is very easily and quickly absorbed into the body, so you can apply it almost anywhere with success. However, it’s wise to rotate the areas to which you apply it, to avoid saturating any one area. It is best absorbed where the skin is relatively thin and well supplied with capillary blood flow, such as the face, neck, upper chest, breasts, inner arms, and the palms of the hands and soles of the feet.
Location 1152:
Most premenopausal women need only 15 to 20 mg of progesterone daily during the middle phase of their cycle, which is about what the body would make if it was making its own progesterone. Some women have better results using up to 30 mg, and others with closer to 10 mg.
Location 1162:
In a menopausal woman, I have found that 10 to 12 mg of progesterone per day for 24 to 25 days of the calendar month works well. That is 1/8 teaspoonful. A two-ounce container will easily last for at least three months.
Location 1202:
Use 15 to 30 mg of progesterone during the two weeks prior to your period, stopping a day or two before the expected period. For most women, 20 mg is the optimal dose, but you can experiment to find out what is optimal for you. If you have an average length cycle of 28 to 30 days you can begin using progesterone on day 12 of your cycle, counting the first day of your period as day 1. If your cycle is longer or shorter than 28 to 30 days, you can start two weeks before day 1 of your next period is due (see sidebar on page 129 for details). Anovulatory Cycles and Luteal Insufficiency
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