Women and Why We Need Testosterone

Women and why we need testosterone. I know what you are thinking…Here is another post on hormones as we age. You may think I am a little obsessed (well I might be) with it but hormone balance is really important. And why not let other women know they are not alone in the struggle. I struggle with it. Balancing all the hormones is a daily grind.

When we think of women in peri-menopause and menopause, we always think of estrogen levels first.

But today I am going to chat about women and why we need testosterone. I know we think of testosterone as a male hormone, but ladies produce it and need it too. And it was really never on my radar until I had my hormones checked. I didn’t have abnormal hair growth, deep voice or irregular periods. But testosterone imbalance can produce other symptoms.

Testosterone is produced by are adrenal glands and our ovaries. For women, we need testosterone for fertility, sex drive, red blood cell formation and maintaining muscle mass.

Symptoms on Low Testosterone

• thinning hair
• dry skin
• low sex drive
• muscle weakness
• fatigue/sluggishness
• weight gain
• loss of bone mass
• irregular menstruation

Symptoms of High Testosterone

• acne
• abnormal hair growth
• deeper voice
• irregular menstruation
• weight gain

Yes, I know what you are thinking..These symptoms are pretty generalized and can be symptomatic of other hormone imbalances, mainly estrogen. This is a good reason to have a conversation with your health care practitioner on possible tests that you can have to determine what may be causing the imbalances.

As we reach the age of pending menopause and for those already in menopause, we have so many different symptoms it is really hard to understand what the root cause is. I am a firm believer of finding the root cause of the problem and not just trying to mask the symptoms through other means.

Natural ways to balance Testosterone

• 

• Minimize stress by balancing our thyroid and adrenal glands. Check out these posts for more information
• Exercise with weight training. HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) is actually a great
• Eat a healthy diet containing protein, fats and carbs
• Supplement with Vitamin D, Zinc and B Complex
• Natural testosterone boosters (Ginger, Ashwagandha)
• Get enough sleep

As we age gracefully it is natural that our testosterone may drop as we get closer to menopause. So if you think this is you, talk to your health care practitioner on what you can do.

Check out these three smoothies for balancing your hormones here .

Would love to hear your thoughts on hormone balancing and what worked for you. Let us know in the comments below.

Danni