Guest guest Posted February 3, 2004 Report Share Posted February 3, 2004 After attending many lectures I have amassed some symptom profiles to be a guideline to fine tune which hormone tests would be beneficial to order to get the actual picture of what is going on inside. Just because you have many of these symptoms does not mean you automatically need to supplement with the hormone listed. It is only a guide to weed out unnecessary tests and help save you some money. Many of the hormone imbalances can have similar symptoms. Also when one goes out of whack normally other hormone levels are then affected which then produce symptoms that correcting the original imbalance would correct without taking more hormones. I use this in my practice as a guideline for needed tests the square boxes got changed into? marks Hormone Balance Questionnaire Thyroid Deficiency ? Cold Body Temp ? Cold Hands & Feet ? Tired ? Hair Loss ? Hair Dry/Brittle ? Brittle Nails ? Thinning Skin ? Bone Loss ? Aches/Pains ? Weight Gain ? Can't Lose Weight ? Low Libido ? Infertility ? Thick Tongue ? Face Swollen puffy eyes ? Heart Palpitations ? Low Blood Pressure ? Slow Pulse ? Slowed Reflexes ? Slow Ankle Reflex ? Constipation ? Sleep Disturbed ? Decreased Sweating ? Memory Lapses ? Forgetful ? Mood Changes ? Difficult Concentration ? High Cholesterol ? Sad/Depressed ? Decreased Muscle Mass Thyroid Excess ? Insomnia ? Difficult Falling Asleep ? Unusual Swelling ? Always Feeling Hot ? Bulging Eyes ? Erratic Behavior ? Irritable ? Nervous ? Panic Attacks ? Decreased Concentration ? Short Attention Span ? Rapid Heart Rate ? Goiter ? Finger Tremors Estrogen Deficiency ? Memory Lapses ? Night Sweats ? Incontinence ? Heart Palpitations ? Tearful/Depressed ? Vaginal Dryness ? Bone Loss ? Foggy Thinking ? Hot Flashes ? Sleep Disturbances Estrogen Excess ? Mood Swings ? Tender Breasts ? Water Retention ? Nervous ? Irritable ? Anxious ? Uterine Fibroids ? Fibrocystic Breasts ? Weight Gain in Hips ? Bleeding Changes ? Headaches Progesterone Deficiency ? Night Sweats ? Hot Flashes ? Vaginal Dryness ? Foggy Thinking ? Tearful ? Depressed ? Sleep Disturbances ? Heart Palpitations ? Bone Loss ? Memory Lapses Progesterone Excess ? Mild Depression ? Candida Infection ? Breast Swelling/Tenderness ? Sleepiness Androgens DHEA & Testosterone Deficiency ? Low Libido ? Vaginal Dryness ? Foggy Thinking ? Fatigue ? Aches Pains ? Memory Lapses ? Incontinence ? Depressed ? Sleep Disturbances Androgen Excess ? Excessive Facial/Body Hair ? Loss of Scalp Hair ? Increased Acne ? Oily Skin Cortisol Deficiency ? Fatigue ? Heart Palpitations ? Aches/Pains ? Stress ? Arthritis ? Cold Body Temp ? Sugar Cravings ? Allergies ? Chemical Sensitivities Cortisol Excess ? Sleep Disturbances ? Bone Loss ? Thinning Skin ? Fatigue ? Weight Gain In Waist ? Loss of Muscle Mass Please note how many symptoms are in several categories. Male Hormone Questionnaire Screens for excess deficiency signs for all hormones Using Symptoms to Determine Which Hormones to Test (For Men Only) <FONT COLOR= " #000000 " BACK= " #ffffff " style= " BACKGROUND-COLOR: #fffffEach hormone category is divided into hormone deficiency and hormone excess symptoms, as each has a different subset of symptoms. On a piece of paper, score the symptoms that apply to you as 0 (none), 1 (mild), 2 (moderate), or 3 (severe). If you score higher than 10 in any hormone excess or deficiency category it is probably worthwhile to do a Saliva Test for that hormone. Prostate Survey: A screen for benign prostate hypertrophy (BHP) Catch Prostate Problems Early! Do you suffer from any of the following? * Increasingly frequent urges to urinate, especially at night? * Lessening urinary volume and stream of flow? * Generally greater difficulty and discomfort voiding? * And, accompanying the above symptoms: Backache? Loss of libido? Feeling sexually impotent? These are some of the common signs of prostate disorders. In men under 40, these are usually related to prostatitis. In men over 50, usually benign prostatic hypertrophy (BHP), but may well be prostatic cancer. The recommended saliva tests is the DHEA Challenge Test, If you are experiencing these symptoms, see your doctor. Prostatitis is an inflammation of the prostate of non-specific origin. BHP will cause a positive digital rectal exam (DRE), but the blood test called a PSA (for prostate specific antigen) will be normal. High PSAs indicate prostate cancer. All men over 50 should have regular prostate and rectal exams. Estrogens (Estrone): Estrogen Deficiency Hot flashes __ Night sweats __ Foggy thinking __ Depressed__ Apathy__ Bone loss __ Total Points:____ Total Points > 8 suggests estrogen deficiency. Consider estradiol and progesterone saliva test. Estrogen Excess prostate disorders__ Urinary problems __ High triglycerides __ Nervous__ Irritable __ Anxious __ Weight gain in hips__ Gynecomastia__ Headaches __ Total points: __ Total Points > 8 suggests estradiol excess. Consider a two hormone (estrone and testosterone) saliva tests Stop all androgens (DHEA, Androstenes and testosterone enhancers) Progesterone Progesterone Deficiency Decreased libido __ Prostate growths__ Urinary difficulties __ Sleep disturbances__ Bone loss __ Total Score: ___ If your Total Score is greater than 5, consider a two hormone test (testosterone/progesterone) Androgens (DHEA and Testosterone) Androgen Excess More Anxious Loss of scalp hair __ Increased acne __ Oily skin __ Increased aggression_ More Irritable__ Total Score__ If Total = to or > 10 then excess androgens are indicated. DHEA, androstenes should be avoided Androgen Deficiency Low libido __ Decreased erections__ Lessened mental sharpness __ Fatigue __ Aches/pains__ Memory lapses__ Urinary problems __ Depressed/burned out __ Sleep disturbances__ Bone loss __ Decreased muscle mass__ Thinning skin __ Total Score:__ If Total Score > 10 then DHEA, testosterone and perhaps progesterone and estrogen should be tested via saliva testing. This is called a DCT or DHEA Challenge test. Cortisol: Cortisol Deficiency Sugar craving __ Allergies/chemical sensitivities __ Decreased concentration_ Stress __ Cold body temperature (BMR)__ Heart palpitations __ Increased Aches/pains __ Worsening Arthritis Total Score:__ If Total score is > 10, then adrenal exhaustion is suggested. An ASI or Adrenal Stress Index salivary test would be highly recommended. Cortisol Excess Chronically Irritable, forgetful, and/or fatigued __ Sleep disturbances and /or depression __ Low libido, anxious, " wired but tired " __ Weight gain in waist, loss of muscle, __ Elevated triglycerides (>200)__ Thinning skin and/or bone loss __ Total Score: __ If Total score > 8 then adrenal hyperactivity is indicated. An ASI or Adrenal Stress Index saliva test would be highly recommended. Tests for Women Most women would do well to at least measure estradiol and progesteroneThe DCT is the preferred recommended test, however. Taking a DHEA and testosterone saliva measurement along with progesterone and estrogen is known as a DHEA Challenge Test or DCT. Women who still menstruate should test on the 19 th to 22 nd day of their cycle. If a female develops facial hair, acne, unusually strong sex drive, testing DHEA and testosterone is indicated, as these are likely too high, often a sign of dysglycemias, Syndrome X, or polycystic ovaries. DHEA and testosterone precursors are to be avoided. In peri- and post-menopausal women, if sex drive is too low, especially once progesterone is optimized, low to low normal testosterone should be checked for along w/ DHEA, a precursor to testosterone. Hope this helps someone. Sunny Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 3, 2004 Report Share Posted February 3, 2004 Thanks for an excellent guideline to which tests may be needed. I'm bookmarking it. There are doctors who don't have this information spelled out this logically and exactly. A number of the symptoms listed also point to various Kidney imbalance problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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