Menopause - Testosterone and Hormone Replacement Therapy

Considerable controversy exists surrounding the usage of synthetic hormones for menopausal women. Hormone replacement therapy has both pros and cons and a lot of women become confused over all of the information on the subject. One thing they can agree on, though; taking hormone replacement therapy helps to relieve some of the symptoms of menopause that women often find insufferable. But many also question if these hormones are necessary.

Menopause can be perplexing; there is a lot of information about this particular time in a woman's life. Some desire to go through menopause naturally and others beg for prescriptions to help them deal with night sweats, insomnia, and mood swings. When a woman enters into menopause, her ovaries cease producing all kinds of hormones. One hormone that is produced is the male hormone known as testosterone. Some other hormones produced by the ovaries are progestin and estrogen.

Testosterone is thought of as a "male" hormone. True, in a male, testosterone is responsible for sex drive, development of muscles and deepening of the voice. In women it fills a different function and is found in much smaller quantities. After menopause or a surgical removing of the ovaries, a woman's testosterone level can drop up to fifty percent. This can leave women with decreased sex drive, depression or reduced energy levels. With hormone replacement therapy which includes testosterone, women often report an overall sense of wellness, and improved mental situation.

Doses of testosterone are not given in large amounts, but given in the dosage that is equal to the normal amounts that are produced by the ovaries. Therefore, testosterone is not harmful to a woman. Every woman has some level of this hormone prior to having ovaries removed or entering menopause. Some women are afraid that they will have facial hair growth, deepening of their voices or an aggressive sex drive. Doctors believe such fears are groundless and, indeed, few women in point of fact report these side effects when taking small doses of testosterone.

Many women can benefit from an increase of sex drive while taking testosterone for menopausal hormone replacement therapy. All the same, doctors who choose to prescribe testosterone to women of menopausal years are warned to use it only in small doses.