During menopause, a lack of ovarian hormone production can cause women to experience numerous symptoms that include hot flashes, vaginal dryness, fatigue, lack of motivation, weight gain, headaches, migraines, night sweats, insomnia, anxiety, depression, low libido, estrogen dominance, and thinning bones. Ideally, a woman’s adrenal glands are supposed to supplement the body with hormones during menopause, but by the time most women enter menopause, they have exhausted their adrenal glands, which prevents them from producing essential hormones.

As women enter into menopause, the hormones that often become deficient are estrogen and progesterone. These two hormones are made in the ovaries and partly in the adrenal glands, and they are a woman’s primary sex hormones. Estrogen and progesterone control thousands of functions in the body, and they both promote youthful functioning. They must also be maintained in proper ratios in order to balance each other and prevent estrogen dominance, which increases the risk of developing breast and uterine cancer.

Estrogen is the hormone that most often becomes deficient with aging, and there are three types of estrogen produced in the female body. Estradiol is the strongest type of estrogen, and a lack of this hormone produces the night sweats, thinning bones, hot flashes, mood changes, and insomnia. During menopause, levels of estrone can rise, which is a type of estrogen that produces breast and uterine tissue, and estriol the third type of estrogen, which protects against breast and uterine cancer, can fall and increase cancer risks.

Progesterone can also become deficient, and this can contribute to other symptoms of menopause that include depression, anxiety, thinning hair, weight gain, water retention, sweet cravings, and bloating. Low levels of progesterone can cause estrogen to rise, which can lead to estrogen dominance. Balancing Progesterone and estrogen ratios with bioidentical hormone replacement therapy can help women prevent estrogen dominance.