Every wonder what a hormone really is? The phrase 'it must be hormones!' comes up frequently when spending time with someone going through puberty, PMS, or menopause. People often make that declaration when sexually attracted to someone they don't particularly like. It is even heard in response to unusual displays of athletic prowess.
So what is a hormone? My medical dictionary gives the rather dry definition that it is a chemical substance produced in the body which has a specific effect on the activity of a certain organ or organs. This dictionary then goes on to give definitions for 23 different kinds of hormones.
Photo by Peter Trimming on Flickr.com
What could this possibly have to do with RA?
It turns out that the ratio of two types of hormones, androgens and estrogens, are often messed up in RA. (Androgens are any substance that stimulates male characteristics. Estrogens are any substance capable of producing estrus in females. Both androgens and estrogens are present in both men and women, just at different levels.) In fact, in one study I read all male and female participants with RA, who had normal estrogen levels had androgens levels that were too low.
Turns out that estrogens, at normal (non-pregnant) levels, enhance the type of immune responses that cause RA. Androgens suppress these responses. If you have normal levels of estrogens but don't have enough androgens, it is much harder for the body to stop the out of control immune responses that cause RA.
Given the complexity of the human body, an imbalance of this sort does not automatically produce RA. Rather, these studies demonstrate that this hormone imbalance may increase susceptibility to RA and may influence the experience of RA for those who have it.
To know if a hormone imbalance is influencing your RA you will need to have a doctor check your estrogen and androgen levels.
In the next newsletter I will discuss treatment options for this kind of situation. See the next article now.
5 Comments On Hormone Therapy for Rheumatoid Arthritis
Brenda,
Could you please tell me more about the growth that was removed from your lung? Also, what type of arthritis have your been diagnosed with? Do you have any other health problems that might be contributing?
Date : 28th Oct 2014 | By : Barbara Allan
Hi Brenda,
Thank you for giving more information on your condition privately, so that I could better answer your questions. For everyone else reading this, arthritis is a complicated disease with a great deal of variation between people. I recommend you arrange for a private phone consultation with me, if you want detailed answers that take your unique circumstances into consideration. For more information on my phone consultation options, look at the right side bar under Consultations.
Date : 28th Oct 2014 | By : Barbara Allan
Hi Karen, sometimes it is better to get the ALCAT test (see ALCAT Evaluation on the right sidebar) before going on RA medication. Doing the test first allows you to catch all your inflammtory triggers before they are harder to identify because of being suppressed by antiinflammatory drugs. I'm glad you have found my website to be of such value. Thank you very much for passing it on to friends.
Date : 28th Oct 2014 | By : Barbara Allan
Hi Barbara,
Thank you so much for your callback. I know you are away until next week but I just wanted to let you know....I had an appointment with my Rheumatologist 2 days ago and received the results from my Avise test. I was diagnosed with Lupus. But he is pretty sure that I also have RA. He is not against the Alcat test in fact he is very open to any holistic treatment that may help. But he feels that he needs to get my symptoms (which are pretty severe right now) under control with medication at this point. I will be in touch when I figure a way to get the test kit and blood drawn in another state. Hopefully it will become available in NY soon. But I just wanted to thank you for your quick response. I love your website and have found so much wonderful, educational information on it. I've passed it on to several friends that I thought could benefit from the info. Thanks again.
Karen Carrick
Date : 24th Oct 2014 | By : Karen
I had an arthritis growth removed from my lung and
Want to know more about it can you help
Date : 14th Oct 2014 | By : Brenda meharg
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