Hormone replacement therapy is a hormone therapy that replaces hormones, either natural or synthetic ones.
Hormone replacement therapy can be done for men as well as women. This treatment can also even be combined with other treatments such as hormone medications, surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy to treat hormone-sensitive cancers and other diseases.
Some of the hormone replacement therapies are androgen hormone replacements, estrogen hormone replacements, progestin hormone replacements such as progesterone hormone replacements, and estradiol hormone treatment.
This type of hormone therapy has been found to benefit people with cancer who have had their prostate glands taken out as well as post-menopausal women in terms of preventing heart disease. It is also used for men who would like to have more energy.
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What is HRT for Men?
When (HRT) hormone replacement therapy is used for men, it is usually given to those who have testosterone hormone deficiency and this hormone replacement therapy can help them to have more energy they need or want.
This hormone therapy has been found to help with maintaining lean muscle mass as well as bone strength and density.
Hormone replacement therapy for men can also improve their moods so that they will feel better about themselves, giving them a better quality of life than what they used to be experiencing before hormone treatment was introduced into their lives.
How Does it Help?
Other benefits include improvements in cognition, memory tasks such as: problem-solving ability, logical reasoning skills, and executive function which includes managing time, working towards goals, and remembering appointments, etc.
It’s also had a positive impact on dealing with anxiety and depression among men.
How do men qualify for HRT?
Since hormone replacement therapy for men is mostly taken by those who have a testosterone hormone deficiency, the doctor will need to do some hormone profiling in order to determine whether or not hormone replacement therapy is needed.
This hormone profiling will consist of a physical examination and your medical history review.
A blood test may also be performed which includes an evaluation of hormone levels in your body such as: luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), prolactin, total testosterone, free testosterone, estradiol, among others.
If you are found to have low levels of these hormones then hormone replacement therapy may be prescribed. This type of hormone therapy would usually consist of injections but there are other types available.
Types of Hormone Replacement Therapy for Men
There are a variety of hormone replacement therapies that can be given to men who qualify for hormone therapy, including:
- testosterone hormone replacement injections,
- patch hormone replacements,
- creams hormone treatments,
- gels hormone regiments, and
- pellets hormone medications.
These hormone replacements may also come in different forms so your doctor will go over them with you as well as go over what they feel would work best for you.
What Men Can Expect
For hormone replacement therapy in men, testosterone hormone therapies are usually the treatment of choice. This hormone therapy contains probably the most common hormone given to men who have hormone deficiencies.
The reason why is because men need higher levels of this hormone in order for it to work properly.
The only problem with administering testosterone hormone injections into a male’s body is that their bodies will eventually get used to it and then they will stop working for you.
Side Effects of HRT For Men.
Since hormone replacement therapy for men consists mostly of testosterone hormone treatments, they do have a higher chance of experiencing some hormone-related side effects when compared with hormone replacement therapies for women.
In most cases, these side effects will be due to overdosing on testosterone hormone treatments.
Some hormone-related side effects may include:
- acne,
- balding or hair loss,
- irritability, and
- enlarged male breasts (gynecomastia).
If you are concerned that you may be suffering from hormone therapy side effects then your doctor would need to see you as soon as possible so that they can diagnose what is happening with your body to cause these hormone therapy related issues.
It’s very difficult to say whether hormone replacement therapy will work for a specific man because each hormone therapy must be tailored for each individual.
Hormone replacement therapy may work great the first few months but over time it might stop working properly or you could notice that your hormone levels are higher than what they should be.
This is why hormone profiling is extremely important so that you get the hormone replacement therapy that works best for your body.
Those who qualify will definitely benefit from hormone replacement therapy in terms of their moods, cognition, managing anxiety and depression, etc.
Also, men can expect benefits such as muscle mass growth, bone strength, increased libido, among others which leads to better quality of their life overall while hormone replacement.
Enhanced Sex Drive from HRT
As hormone replacement therapy for men consist of testosterone hormone treatments, this hormone is used because it helps with sex drive and endurance.
This hormone also has the ability to help those who suffer from erectile dysfunction as well as those who ejaculate prematurely.
Also, these hormone therapies can enhance your overall moods which will help you feel better and more alive than ever before so that you may experience a much stronger sex drive.
However, if you notice that your sex life is not experiencing any benefits from hormone replacement therapy then you should talk to your doctor about it right away so they can adjust your hormone treatment accordingly. This way you will still experience all the benefits hormone replacement therapy has to offer.
Hormone Replacement Therapy for Men is Safe
The hormone replacement therapy that is administered into the male body must be carefully monitored by your doctor so they can look at hormone levels and make changes if needed since hormone replacement therapy for men is safe to use.
However, what some men do not realize is that hormone replacement therapy can increase their risk of developing prostate cancer so this must be discussed extensively with your doctor before you decide what you want to do about hormone replacement therapy.
If these hormone treatments are given over a long period of time then there could definitely be an increased risk of developing cancer but it’s unclear as to whether or not the benefits outweigh the risks when it comes to hormone replacement therapy in men.
Also, hormone replacement therapy can help you improve your moods and overall well-being.
This hormone treatment has the ability to make men feel better by improving their sexual desires as well as making them more content with themselves.
There are a lot of benefits hormone replacement therapy for men offers but it’s important that hormone treatments must first be tailored specifically to each individual man so they don’t suffer from hormone related side effects.
One common factor we see from many is how they tried products on the market that promoted to to lose weight, strip estrogen and boost test levels naturally. Often these test boosters on the market are just plain hype preying on people’s hopes and dreams of looking a certain way.
Is HRT just another form of Anabolic Steroids?
There are hormone replacement therapy side effects that can be seen but hormone replacement therapy for men is not just another form of anabolic steroids.
Anabolic steroids have been known to cause a lot of complications in the body including high blood pressure, obesity, hormone-related hormone-related cancers and prostate disease.
Also, anabolic steroids do not take regular hormone levels into consideration so this means that they give you a very irregular hormone level which would never be beneficial in terms of your overall health.
This does not mean that every man needs testosterone hormone treatments because there are plenty of them who do not need hormone replacement therapy at all because hormone replacement therapy for men has been proven to work for hormone deficiencies in the body.