Erectile Dysfunction (ED) affects more than 30 million men in the US alone but most of us prefer not to talk about it. However, while the topic may seem embarrassing, there are effective treatments for ED, so our first recommendation is to talk to a medical professional to find a solution.

Hormonal imbalance is not the only cause of erectile dysfunction, but it is a very common one, as every man knows that testosterone is responsible for male sexual function. Simply put: if you have low testosterone, you are very likely to experience erectile issues. Men lose testosterone due to a range of factors such as age, poor food choices, lack of exercise, liver disease, over-medication and diabetes (among others). However, not all of us are aware of the fact that in addition to testosterone, cortisol - the stress hormone - may also play a role. As we undergo stress, experience anxiety, and deal with the relentless pace of life, cortisol hormone increases, which directly affects your ability to achieve an erection. In addition to that, high cortisol levels cause a further decline in testosterone production. It’s quite a vicious circle.

A combination of testosterone replacement therapy, proper nutrition and carefully balanced supplement regimen is shown to be effective in improving the quality of erections and in treating other symptoms of low testosterone (such as high levels of anxiety, for example). If you have a history of heart disease, hormonal treatment may not be the solution for your ED. The first step to healthy erections is diagnosing the underlying issue, so start by discussing your issue with a medical professional.

A hot flash is a sudden sensation of intense heat and yes, men get hot flashes too. However, while for women, the cause is estrogen imbalance, for us guys, it’s all about testosterone.

Male hot flashes occur when testosterone levels are severely depleted (due to lifestyle choices, prostate cancer treatment, and other factors), which sends a false alarm signal to your hypothalamus (your brain’s thermostat, basically), telling it that you are overheating, when in fact you are not. The tricked hypothalamus then tells your body to get rid of the non-existent heat, which it does by widening blood vessels of the skin. That, in turn causes excessive perspiration, so you end up drenched in clammy cold sweat.

One of the most effective solutions for male hot flashes is bio-identical hormone replacement therapy. Once your testosterone is brought to an optimal level, your hot flashes will be eliminated. For those men, who are undergoing prostate cancer treatment, a small dose of estrogen can be an effective mode of treatment. The first steps however should be a comprehensive blood test to determine your hormone levels and a conversation with a knowledgeable medical professional.

Low levels of testosterone, poor nutritional choices and lack of exercise eventually lead to muscle cells deterioration. Even worse, that process leads to conversion of muscles into fat.

Testosterone plays a crucial role in your muscles’ ability to contract and grow. In addition, testosterone helps your body process protein from food and utilize it for muscle development. When your testosterone level is depleted, muscles can no longer contract as effectively, which results in weakness and muscle loss. In addition to maintaining healthy testosterone levels, it is also crucial to exercise in order to maintain and build muscle. The saying ‘if you don’t use it, you lose it’ can be accurately applied to muscle mass. In fact, men who don’t regularly exercise lose muscle mass at a rate of 0.5% per year between 25 and 60 years old. That rate of muscle loss doubles every 10 years after that. The final piece of the muscle puzzle is proper nutrition. Since muscles need protein and amino acids to grow, you need to intake a healthy proportion of proteins, fats and carbohydrates.

Effective treatment for muscle loss is comprised of testosterone replacement, consistent exercise regimen and healthy nutrition. However, the very first step should be a comprehensive blood test to determine your hormone levels and a conversation with a knowledgeable medical professional.

Millions of men are affected by low libido and sex drive. Much like erectile dysfunction, this issue is most often caused by a low testosterone, higher-than-normal estrogen, as well as poor nutrition and lack of exercise.

Every man knows that testosterone is responsible for male sexual function. Simply put: if you have low testosterone, you will have low levels of sex drive and may even experience erectile dysfunction. The way testosterone affects sexual desire is pretty simple: it stimulates the production of a neurotransmitter called nitric oxide, which is responsible for erection and arousal. As your testosterone declines (due to various reasons like age, lack of exercise, unhealthy food, etc.) and nitric oxide is insufficiently stimulated, you experience loss of interest in sex and often erectile issues. In addition to low testosterone, some men who are living in a state of hormone imbalance also have elevated estrogen (female sex hormone, produced in men in small quantities). Elevated estrogen effectively kills sex drive in men.

Low sex drive in men is effectively treated by a combination of testosterone replacement and balanced lifestyle plan. The first step to regaining healthy sex drive and having strong erections is diagnosing the underlying issue, so to discuss your problems with a medical professional who can do a comprehensive hormonal evaluation.

Depression is defined as a prolonged and severe feeling of loss of hope and joyfulness and is common among men with depleted testosterone. If you feel depressed, you absolutely must discuss it with a medical professional. It is also important you keep in mind that antidepressant medications provide only relief of the symptom itself but don’t fix the underlying issue.

While depression in some case can have purely psychological causes, hormones are shown to have deep impact on this disease and the role of testosterone in mood regulation cannot be overstated. As testosterone reduces in the course of a man’s life (due to aging, poor food choice, sedentary lifestyle and other reasons), it also causes steep reduction in production of a thyroid hormone called T3. T3, in turn, is responsible for production of serotonin, a vital neurotransmitter that regulates mood, behavior, motivation and much more. Depletion of serotonin is directly linked to depression. In addition, depression may be aggravated by other issues related to hormone imbalance such as insomnia, erectile dysfunction and others.

Bio-identical hormone replacement is a proven and effective treatment for hormone-related depression. Typically, once your hormones are balanced again, you can expect depression to lift in around 2 weeks. One of the biggest problems with depression today is incorrect treatment. In far too many cases, doctors prescribe antidepressants, which only address the symptom but don’t actually fix the underlying issue. Not to mention the many side effects of such treatment. The first step to truly treating depression (and not just putting a bandaid on it) is to discuss your issue with a medical professional who is trained in hormonal optimization.

As men’s hormones become unbalanced (due to age, poor eating habits, lack of exercise and other factors), our metabolism slows down. That, in turn, lets our bodies hold onto fat and losing weight becomes a big challenge. It’s important to remember that excess weight is not just an aesthetic problem, but carries very real risks for your health.

Remember how you used to be able to eat whatever you wanted in high school and college and never gain weight? The reason was that your hormones were at peak level then but they are probably quite unbalanced now. Here is what we know about the relationship between optimal hormone levels and weight gain. Hormones such as testosterone and thyroid (among others) regulate your body’s metabolism, which is the rate at which you burns calories. The more out of balance the hormones, the less energy you burn and the more muscle you store. Furthermore, testosterone is directly responsible for maintaining and growing your muscle, so when you lose testosterone, your muscle reduces and is turned to fat. Fat burns less energy than muscle (15 times less!). So, as you gain more fat, you burn even less calories, and gain more fat. Not to be forgotten are the negative effects unbalanced hormones have on motivation to work out (or even to just take a walk sometimes). It’s a vicious circle that can be broken by a systematic approach to hormonal health and healthy lifestyle choices.

Hormones play such a huge role in weight regulation that balancing your hormones and bringing them to optimal levels for your body can deliver significant weight loss results. However, we have to be honest, hormones are an important part of the equation but not the whole equation. The rest of the equation is a healthy eating and consistent exercise routine. Here at HealthLogicMD, we will provide a complete weight loss solution and will support you along the way. However, if you don’t live nearby, you should still act and contact a doctor who is trained in hormone optimization.

“What wouldn’t I give for just one good night’s sleep?’, is a common thing to hear from someone with hormonal imbalance. Insomnia is a very common issue among men in their 30s and older. Insomnia can be a debilitating issue that can have profound effect on every aspect of our lives. Luckily, there is a solution.

Remember how well you slept in your early twenties? Amazing, right?! The reason was that your hormones were at optimal level then but they are probably quite unbalanced now. Here is what we know about the relationship between optimal hormone levels and insomnia. As men’s testosterone lowers (due to age, poor eating habits, lack of exercise and other factors), it limits your body’s ability to produce serotonin and melatonin. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter responsible for sleep regulation and melatonin is a substance that is directly responsible for your circadian rhythm (aka your biological clock). With those two not working correctly, falling asleep and staying asleep becomes an ever-increasing challenge. But wait, there is more. Low testosterone is also known to cause sleep apnea (difficulty breathing during sleep) and night sweats (if you have ever woken up drenched in sweat, you know what we mean). But it doesn’t stop there! As you sleep less, you develop fatigue, which can drop down your testosterone even further. It’s a vicious circle that can be broken by a systematic approach to hormonal health.

Hormones play a key role in sleep, so balancing your hormones and bringing them to optimal levels for your body can deliver immediate improvements in sleep quality. If you are experiencing insomnia, don’t delay anymore. Start by reaching out to a medical specialist who can carry out a complete hormonal evaluation.

Enlarged male breasts result from an imbalance of testosterone and estrogen in men and affects men after 50 most often. While you may be thinking of surgery to fix enlarged breasts, it is often unnecessary, as it can be fully treatable with hormonal optimization therapy.

Gynecomastia can be caused by a variety of reasons but they all come down to the balance of testosterone in relation to male estrogen. A man’s testosterone levels can drop due to age, poor eating habits, alcohol and even antibiotics. As testosterone reduces in a male, estrogen can become more dominant. Estrogen is a ‘female hormone’ responsible for female sex traits and is produced in men in small quantities. When estrogen production increases compared to testosterone, a male body can start essentially acquiring quazi-female characteristics, including enlarged breasts.

Since the underlying issue behind gynecomastia are out-of-balance testosterone and estrogen, proper balancing of these hormones can be an effective and natural solution to the problem. It’s important to keep in mind that while some men may think of surgery as a possible solution to gynecomastia, it should only be used as a last resort. In either case, if you have enlarged breasts, you should seek out a medical professional trained in hormone optimization.

“What wouldn’t I give for just one good night’s sleep?’. We often hear this from patients with hormonal imbalance. Sleep apnea can cause and aggrevate insomnia, and can have debilitating and can have a profound effect on one’s life. In addition, sleep apnea can cause oxygen deficiency, which overworks the heart. Luckily, there is a solution.

The relationship between sleep apnea and hormones is two-way. Sleep apnea can both be a result of hormonal imbalance and can aggravate it. As men age, our testosterone levels drop due poor eating habits, lack of exercise, abundance of stress and other factors. That reduction in testosterone has a direct link to Obstructive Sleep Apnea and is especially prevalent in obese men over 40. Sleep apnea results in sleep fragmentation and may also result in low arterial oxygen (hypoxia). Both of these issues further decline your hormone production, which further aggravates the problem. It’s quite a vicious circle but it can be broken with careful hormone balance treatment.

A combination of testosterone replacement therapy, proper nutrition and a carefully balanced supplement regimen is shown to be effective in treating Obstructive Sleep Apnea. The first step to healthy sleep is diagnosing the underlying issue, so start by discussing your issue with a medical professional trained in hormone optimization.

Testosterone plays a key role in energy production in a male body. So it’s no surprise that one of the most common symptoms of low testosterone in men is fatigue, specifically the kind that that doesn't improve even after rest. Some of the other factors that may contribute to your fatigue are insomnia, low metabolism, night sweats and others.

Those of us who have experienced chronic fatigue know that it is a serious and sometimes debilitating issue. But why is it happening to you? The answer lies in your hormones. As men’s testosterone lowers (due to age, bad food choices, no exercise and other factors), production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin and melatonin declines also. Serotonin, which is sometimes called ‘the happiness molecule’, regulates mood and sleep. Melatonin, on the other hand, is directly responsible for your circadian rhythm (aka your biological clock). When serotonin and melatonin are out of whack, three things can start happening to you: insomnia, anxiety, and depression. During insomnia, as you sleep less soundly, your body is less and less able to recuperate at night, which leads to you being physically tired. On the other hand, depression and anxiety drain you psychologically. The result is chronic fatigue. Unfortunately, the problem doesn’t stop there. Chronic fatigue, can in itself drop down your testosterone even further, leading to an ever worsening set of symptoms. The good news is that this vicious circle can be broken by bio-identical hormone replacement therapy.

Effective treatment for chronic fatigue in men includes a combination of hormone replacement and lifestyle changes (such as healthy nutrition and consistent exercise). However, the very first step you should take is to discuss your issue with a doctor specializing in hormone health, so she can carry out a comprehensive blood test to determine your hormone levels.