Bioidentical Testosterone Misconceptions

It is a common misconception that testosterone is a male only hormone and everything testosterone related is male.  So when it’s suggested to a woman to think of taking testosterone, it’s natural for them to worry that their voice will get lower and that they may begin to grow facial hair.  This is not exactly true. 

Testosterone is the third sex hormone: estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. All three sex hormones are made from cholesterol and they all exist in both women and men. The difference between them, are the amounts of each hormone of which the body makes.  Women have more estrogen and progesterone, and men have more testosterone. 

Testosterone is the hormone that is responsible for the growth of muscle, sex drive, positive outlook, aggression, and drive.  The difference in men and women depend on the amounts made by the body.  Testosterone is made in the ovaries and adrenal glands in women and the testicles and adrenal glands in men.  

When we get older, as our thyroid, estrogen, progesterone and basically everything else decreases, so does our testosterone.  So naturally when testosterone production decreases, our sex drive, muscle building capacity, outlook, drive, etc. also decrease.  Testosterone is a safe part of hormone therapy because it’s helpful in allowing you to keep up an active sex drive, as well as prevent your skin from aging too soon. 

Bioidentical testosterone supplements work best in the forms of creams, gels, sprays and injection forms.  Tablets of bioidentical testosterone supplements do not work because the stomach acids destroy the testosterone disallowing the body to absorb what it needs.  Injections can be painful and therefore not highly recommended for supplementation use.  Patches are usually made of synthetic testosterone, rather than bioidentical testosterone.  It’s known that synthetic hormones are more dangerous than bioidentical hormones due to fewer side effects, and the absorption of synthetic hormones is unpredictable and has been known to cause rashes in a lot of patients.

Synthetic forms of testosterone are not recommended. You can get natural, or bioidentical testosterone, from compounding pharmacies, after your doctor writes a prescription for you.  Bioidentical testosterone is made from soy and yam oils just like bioidentical estradiol and micronized progesterone.  When the oils are taken from their natural sources, a compounding pharmacy processes them until they turn into testosterone powder, which is then used in transdermal creams.  By creating the bioidentical testosterone in this fashion, the body is able to absorb it more easily, and it’s also easier to use.

Megan Mathews, Research and Content

http://www.bioidenticalmedicaldictionary.com 

Source:  Nov. 26, 2005.  http://drerika.typepad.com/notepad/2005/02/lets_talk_testo.html.