Normal Hormone Levels

Do you know the normal levels for progesterone, estrogen, and testosterone?

Normal hormone levels are hard to determine because hormone levels are always shifting.

Detecting hormone levels

Since hormone levels are always shifting, it's hard for researchers to tell that a particular person contains a such-and-such amount of specific hormones. The greatest shifts in hormones may very well occur in menstruating women. Estrogen predominates during the first half of their monthly cycle when progesterone levels are practically nil.

After ovulation, estrogen levels tend to drop and progesterone dominates. It's difficult to determine your hormone levels because hormones in the blood fluctuate from minute to minute in normal people and may vary considerably over the course of a day.

So it's often difficult to obtain reliable blood measurements of hormones, though there are blood and saliva hormone testing for some.

Alternatives to hormone testing

Since determining normal hormone levels are difficult to detect, it's not surprising that many physicians don't even bother measuring hormone levels. Many doctors prefer to base therapeutic decisions on a patient's symptoms and a trial use of bioidentical hormone replacement therapy.

Facts on hormones

The average adult male produces about 7mg of testosterone daily. Testosterone levels in men decline a little from peak levels when they reach 25 years old. Other hormone levels drop more precipitiously with age.

If you're a woman, DHEA levels peak at around 250mcg per milliliter of blood during your early 20s. By the time you're 70, your DHEA levels have dropped to one-fifth that amount.

Men's DHEA levels are higher than that of women, but they also follow a similar decline with age.

Progesterone in a non-pregnant patient is 8 to 10, but can be as high as 20 ng/ml.

The actual normal level of estrogen varies during different parts of the menstrual cycle. Ranges of normal estrogen levels are measured in parts pg/ml of estradiol. During the menstrual cycle, for normal reproductive age women, estradiol levels range from 50-400 pg/ml.

In menopause, the general range of estrogen levels may be 10-20 pg/ml. Value ranges of normal estrogen levels under 100 pg/ml can be associated with hot flashes, and may signal peri menopause.

Do you need hormone supplements?

Determining whether or not you need hormone supplementation is difficult. If you're under 45 and in good health, most experts would generally agree that you don't need hormone supplementation. However, if you're chronically ill or experiencing odd symptoms, it's a good idea to get an exam.

Many middle-age and elderly people do benefit from an increase in energy and libido when they take supplemental hormones. You do need to ask yourself, "is this a drug effect, or is the hormone really making up for an undiagnosed physiological problem?"

Alternative to hormone supplements

It's important to mention you can accomplish the same thing by taking vitamins as you would in hormone therapy. You can supplement the precursors that make these hormones. This will take longer, but you have the added benefit of not being at any risk.

For example, when you take hormones, you avoid the natural feedback and safety mechanisms the body has and this can get you into trouble.

There is a problem particularly with older people. Their body's have been adjusted to certain levels, and there's danger in upsetting your body's normal hormone balance. You don't necessarily have this problem when taking vitamins to restore normal hormone levels.

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