Oestrogen

Oestrogen is a powerful female sex hormone that regulates many aspects of our lives. Initially it makes girls develop into women at puberty by stimulating breast growth, laying down fatty deposits, thickening the vagina and causing it to secrete mucous. It affects how our skin looks, whether our bones are stong and healthy and it can protect us against heart disease. It also regulates our menstural cycle. At the begining of our cycle about 30 egg follicles will start to ripen and produce oestrogen. When levels of oestrogen in the blood are highest the hypothalmus in the brain release hormones that make a follicle release an egg, therefore if you are not producing enough oestrogen you will not ovulate.

Oestrogen can also affect your mood and it is thought that pre-menstrual syndrome, post-natal depression and menopausal depression are caused by falling levels of oestrogen. Your exposure to oestrogen may also have an effect on your risk of developing breast cancer as it attaches itself to receptors in the breast on the surface of cells and stimulates them to divide in anticipation of producing milk, it is this division of cells that is thought to cause the risk.

There are at least three forms of oestrogen produced by the human body, Oestrone (E1), Oestradiol (E2) and Oestriol (E3) ¹. The first two oestrogens, E1 and E2, are the most powerful they easily relieve menopausal symptoms and help the body stay healthy, however they may also be the cause of an increased risk of breast cancer and other side effects if they are given in high doses over a long period of time. The third form of oestrogen, E3 is made from a combination of E1 and E2 and is less potent. Therefore Hormone Replacement Therapy made from E3 may be more appropriate for those women who are concerned about taking HRT for health reasons.

There is no standard as far as the production of oestrogen naturally is concerned. Women vary in their needs during their lifetime. When a woman has a hysterectomy that removes her ovaries, she will no longer produce oestrogen from them. She will continue to produce oestrogen in the adrenal gland and in fatty tissues but these are only very small amounts and are not enough even to prevent climacteric symptoms.

Oestrogen is the main form of Hormone Replacement Therapy that is taken by women who have had a hysterectomy. It can be taken in many different forms and although called natural, it is manufactured. The term "natural" is used because the hormones that are produced are identical to those produced by the human body.