What is Estrogen/Oestrogen?
  • Main sex hormone in women and are essential to the menstrual cycle
  • Steroid compounds that are important for development and functioning of females.
  • They are named so because they play an important role in the estrous cycle. Their name comes from estrus/oistros (period of fertility for female mammals) + gen/gonos = to generate.
  • There are 3 bio-identical estrogens. They are estrone (E1), estradiol (E2) and estriol (E3), each with different levels estrogenic activity and biological properties.
Estrone (E1)
  • Potent estrogen.
  • Comprises between 10-20% of the body's circulating estrogens.

"Estrone doesn't appear to be effective at treating menopausal symptoms but still has many of the unwanted side effects. Most concerning is its capability to encourage breast tissue growth which may lead to increased risk of breast cancer!"

Estradiol (E2)
  • It is the primary estrogen in the body and the most potent.
  • Comprises between 10-40% of the total estrogens circulating in the body.
  • Very effective at treating many menopausal symptoms, especially hot flashes and vaginal dryness.

"Because estradiol is so potent, it needs to be dosed carefully. Overdosing estradiol can lead to many undesirable side effects like headaches, fluid retention, and break-through bleeding. Overdosing also increases risks of endometrial and breast cancer and blood clots guiding to heart attack or stroke. Therefore, it is vital to dose estradiol at the lowest effective dose and to make sure its activeness is stabilized with the suitable amount of progesterone. One way to lower the dose of estradiol is to combine it with the less potent estrogen, estriol."

Estriol (E3)
  • Weakest estrogen (takes up a milder estrogenic effect than estradiol or estrone).
  • Comprises between 50-80% of circulating estrogens in the body.
  • Appears to be effective in treating many menopausal symptoms.
  • Has a higher attraction to the estrogen receptors on breast tissue that are protective against breast cancer (clinically proven)
  • Prevents breast cancer.

"Estriol is an effective treatment with often lower side effects than the more potent estrogens. However, it is still crucial to equalize the effect with an appropriate dose of progesterone."

Physical functions
  • Responsible for development of the female body and the secondary sexual characters.
  • Helps decelerate height increase in females during puberty, accelerates burning of body fat and reduces muscle bulk.
  • Stimulates growth of the inner lining of the uterus (endometrium) during the menstrual cycle, increases uterine growth, improves lubrication of the vagina, and thickens the vaginal wall while increasing blood vessels to the skin.
Effects on various biochemical parameters
  • Reduces bone absorption and increases bone formation.
  • Help in protein synthesis, increases hepatic production of binding proteins, coagulation proteins (factors II, VII, IX, X, plasminogen).
  • Increases platelet adhesiveness and reduce antithrombin III.
  • Increase good cholesterol (HDL) and also increase triglycerides.
  • Decrease bad cholesterol (LDL) and promote fat deposition.
  • Causes salt (sodium) and water retention on fluids and electrolytes.
  • Reduces bowel motility in the gastrointestinal tract and increase cholesterol in bile.
  • Improves lung functions.
Effects on hormones
  • Increases cortisol and sex hormone binding globulin.
  • Increases melanin (pigments found in skin and hair) and pheomelanin (one type of melanin which gives reddish tones to the body), reduces eumelanin (the other type of melanin which imparts a brown or black color to the body)
Estrogen and cancer
  • Helps in the growth and maintenance of hormone-sensitive breast cancers.
Estrogen and development of the fetus
  • Helps in causing physical differentiation of the fetus to either males or females as per their genetic code, estrogen feminizes the fetus.
Estrogen and mental health
  • Sudden decrease in blood levels of estrogen and periods of sustained estrogen low levels correlate with significant mood lowering.
  • After childbirth, nearing menopause and after menopause low levels of estrogen can predispose to depression.
Estrogen and skin
  • Essential in the maintenance of human skin. They improve collagen content and quality, increase skin thickness and improve blood supply to the skin.
Estrogen and heart disease
  • Estrogen deficiency increases the risk of heart disease.
  • Lack of estrogen is a catalyst to atherosclerosis.
      • Estrogen in men
      • Males also possess estrogen receptors. To some extent, estrogen levels in the male are higher than post-menopausal women.
      • Responsible for initiating spermatogenesis or formation and maturation of sperms in men.
      • Helps in bone strength, sexual maturation and cholesterol metabolism.

      "No one knows what causes breast cancer, and no one can clearly say why there's an increase in breast cancer cases. Women have high chances for breast cancer than men; ratio about 100:1. Women's bodies produce more estrogen than men's. This led many people to believe and conclude that estrogen causes breast cancer. This vague opinion is not necessarily true. This is because, women's estrogen levels actually decreases as they grow old, decreasing severely after menopause, but the occurrence of breast cancer increases with age. The risk ratio that we all hear about, 1:8 women get breast cancer is for women over 90 years of age. The rate for women in their 50's is more likely 1:50. Therefore, there is much more than estrogen alone contributing to the development of breast cancer, and it is actually being childish to think of estrogen as harmful when it comes to breast health. Estrogen is a very gainful hormone in general because it initiates tissues to grow when we need them to. Estrogen is also essential in response to stress."

      "Do not be afraid of all forms of hormonal supplementation. There's no evidence that bio-identical estrogens increase the risk of breast cancer or of recurrence. Moreover, only estrone encourages breast tissue growth which may lead to increased risk of breast cancer.

      In our formulation of bi-est cream, we only incorporate estradiol and estriol.

      Above all, professionally trained practitioners shall dose estradiol and perhaps all hormones at the lowest effective dose and make sure its activeness is stabilized."

      Normal range of estrogen in women

      The normal values are as reference range. These ranges vary from lab to lab, and your lab may have a different range for what's normal. Your lab report should contain the range your lab uses. Also, your doctor will evaluate your results based on your health and other factors. This means that a value that falls outside the normal values may still be normal for you or your lab.

      • Estrogen levels fluctuate during pregnancy in order to increase blood flow to the uterus and stimulate lactation postpartum. After birth, levels decrease rapidly.
      • Adequate levels of estrogen is required to maintain healthy bones, so many doctors prescribe hormone therapy for postmenopausal women. Some women, however, need even higher levels to avoid hot flashes.
      What are the symptoms of low levels of estrogen? (Physical)
      • Hot flashes
      • Night sweats
      • Vaginal dryness or itching
      • Loss of libido or sex drive
      • Mood swings (may or may not be related to decreased levels of estrogen)
      • Often exposed to urinary infections (This is because, once estrogen level decreases, vagina turns dry and harmful. This will also probably lead to vaginal bleeding).
      Some of the psychological symptoms include
      • Depression
      • Loss of concentration
      • Irritability
      Decreased estrogen levels may be due to
      • Perimenopause and menopause
      • Hypogonadism {Reduction or absence of hormone secretion or other physiological activity of the gonads (testes or ovaries)}.
      • Hypopituitarism (Decreased hormone secretion by the pituitary gland)
      • Pregnancy failure
      • Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) (hormone imbalance)
      • Anorexia nervosa (eating disorder)
      • Extreme exercise or training
      • Drugs that may decrease levels of estrogen such as clomiphene.
      • Immediately after childbirth and also during breastfeeding.
      What happens during estrogen deficiency? (For women)
      • Increased risk for heart disease
      • Stroke
      • Osteoporosis
      • Fractures
      Estrogen & HRT
      • As a prophylaxis (to prevent beforehand) against osteoporosis and atherosclerosis.
      • To combat all menopausal symptoms caused by decreased estrogen levels.
      Available formulation
      • Bi-est cream; bio-identical {a mixture of Estradiol (E2) and Estriol (E3)}
      Athletes are at risk for levels of estrogen. Why?

      Women who are athletes, models and gymnasts often possess low body fat thus; do not produce sufficient amounts of sex hormones. It can also be a problem for women with eating disorders. These women can experience a cessation of menstruation, known as amenorrhea. They may also develop osteoporosis (thin bones) and fractures as well as other conditions more common in older women after menopause.

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