Hormone Optimization:
Hormone Therapy Services &
Bioidentical Hormone Replacement
Therapy in Albuquerque, NM
What Women and Men Should Know About Pellet Therapy
Balanced Hormones are Necessary for Good Health and Disease Prevention
Maintaining your hormone balance isn’t a luxury. It is a critical factor in staying healthy.
Hormones help regulate your body from head to toe — from brain function to the skin on your little toes. Carried through your body via the bloodstream, these chemical messengers tell your organs and body tissues when and how to do their job.
When hormones run low or get out of balance, people can experience a variety of symptoms, such as mood issues, sexual dysfunction, body aches and even acne. Hormones also play a part in regulating our immune system and help protect us from disease and conditions like brittle bones and heart disease.
After age 30, most of us experience a decline in hormone production that averages between 3% and 10% a year.
As we continue to age, the effect of this decrease in hormones becomes more profound. In short, as our bodies decrease the production of these hormones, our quality of life becomes greatly affected.
For both men and women, hormonal balance is necessary for good health and disease prevention. While there are several protocols used by the medical profession to address this issue, the introduction of bioidentical hormones using pellet therapy has had good results.
Symptoms of hormone decline frequently include:
- Reduced mental clarity
- Weight gain
- Loss of muscle mass
- Declining libido
- Difficulty sleeping,
- Muscle and joint pain
- Depression
- And other mood changes.
Get Your Hormones Back on Track with Hormone Replacement Therapy
Hormone replacement therapy, or HRT, can be used to address hormone issues. For women, HRT is used to lessen menopause symptoms by replacing the female sex hormones (estrogen and progesterone). Men also benefit from hormone optimization, especially concerning the loss of muscle mass and sexual dysfunction.
Bioidentical Hormones
Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT). BHRT is similar to traditional hormone replacement, except the hormones are made from plant estrogens. Because they are chemically identical to the hormones in the human body, they are called bioidentical (or bio-identical) hormones.
Are you in or near the Albuquerque area? Duke City Health provides comprehensive hormone therapy evaluations, lab testing, and BHRT treatments.
Benefits of BHRT
- Loss of libido
- Painful intercourse
- Loss of muscle mass
- Loss of energy
- Mood swings
- Night sweats
- Memory loss
- Sleep issues
Are you interested in ongoing pellet therapy treatment? Discover the ongoing benefits that a monthly membership in our Direct Primary Care program can have on your health.
General Questions about Hormone Therapy
Good hormone balance greatly improves libido. The addition of testosterone in pellet form can have a profound impact on how an individual feels and interacts with others.
Most patients recognize the effect of pellets within 24 to 72 hours. Optimal effects usually occur three weeks after insertion.
Most side effects are temporary and treatable and occur less than 2 percent of the time when pelleted correctly.
Women usually need bioidentical hormone pellet therapy (BHRT). also called “pellet therapy,” every 3 to 4 months, and men every 4 to 5 months.
Pellets are a pure hormone that is not metabolized into byproducts as a result of being processed by the liver, stomach, or skin. This method of delivering hormones can help the body use the amount it needs as the blood flow surrounding the pellets “picks up” what is required.
That depends on age and activity level. Testosterone decreases fat and increases muscle and lean body mass. Testosterone also increases the body’s natural growth hormone production, thereby improving stamina and increasing muscle mass.
BHRT FAQ’s for WOMEN
We have had great success with hormone pellet therapy, especially with women who have menstrual migraines and who have new migraines that appear after age 35.
Women who still have their uterus will need to be on natural progesterone as well.
Estrogen is the most important hormone for a woman. It can help protect women against heart attack, stroke, osteoporosis, and Alzheimer’s. It also helps keep women looking young and healthy.
Testosterone is the third female hormone and is as essential as estrogen and progesterone. Women need testosterone to help keep their thought processes quick and libido healthy. It helps improve bone density, muscle mass, strength, and prevents some types of depression. Testosterone is also a source of energy and solid sleep.
Facial hair will grow with testosterone pellets, but normally no more than when you were in your thirties. There is less chance of excess hair growth with natural testosterone than with synthetic hormones.
BHRT FAQ’s for MEN
Metabolites of testosterone, Dihydrotestosterone and estrone, can cause prostate enlargement and contribute to prostate cancer. Estrone increases and testosterone decreases as men age and gain belly fat. Testosterone pellets may help reverse that trend.
The blood levels of estrone and DHT are checked after treatment to see if they are elevated. Some men still convert to these metabolites even on testosterone pellets. If they are converting, we troubleshoot with natural supplements such as DIM and Saw Palmetto, or an aromatase inhibitor prescription.
Testosterone pellets may make it better if it’s not converted to DHT. We will treat that if it happens.
Testicles are suppressed by taking any kind of testosterone and will not make as much testosterone while the pellets are working, so they may shrink. This is not permanent and the testicle retains its ability to produce testosterone.