How to Measure Menopause Hormone Balance
Menopause is usually marked by symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, weight gain, low libido and mood swings. Harsh symptoms indicate a hormonal imbalance of estrogen and progesterone. Though these symptoms are common, they do not have to be endured. With proper exercise, nutrition, stress relief and supplementation, you can make your "change of life" transition a lot more smooth. Follow the easy steps here to measure your own hormonal balance.
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Instructions
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Pay attention to your body. Keep a notebook to record how you feel and how your body changes over the course of a month.
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Fill out a hormonal profile questionnaire. These are available online, such as the Personal Hormone Portrait at the Virginia Hopkins Health Watch website. This will give you a basic look at your hormone levels. Note that the more aware you are of your body, the more detailed and accurate this test will be.
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Take a saliva hormone test. Saliva hormone testing is a more precise assessment of specific hormone levels. It is quick and painless--all you do is spit into a container--and you can use an at-home Saliva Test Kit (see Resources). After mailing in your sample, the lab mails the results either to you or your doctor in about three weeks.
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Consider testing your blood. Blood testing for hormone levels is also available and only requires a spot of blood from a finger prick, which you can do at home and then mail in your sample (see Resources), or at your doctor's office. The at-home test kit is a convenient and inexpensive alternative for those without health insurance.
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Follow the advice for your results. Read the suggested articles and books and explore other hormone-related websites and reading material (see Resources). For further explanation or exploration, take your results to your doctor to discuss.
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Tips & Warnings
It is a good idea to test your hormones again in three to six months to monitor how they have changed in response to hormone supplementation and/or making lifestyle changes (diet, exercise).
Some healthcare insurance companies may not cover the saliva hormone test without a doctor's prescription.
The saliva hormone test does not require a prescription except in the state of California.
New York State health law prohibits the testing of specimens collected in or mailed from New York, so mail-order testing for NY residents is not possible.
