Hormone Replacement in Edmonton (BHRT & TRT)We offer Edmonton both herbal and bio-identical optionsWe often begin with Salivary, Urinary or Blood hormone testing.Focusing on both Men's and Women's health.Conditions like PCOS, PMS and Menopause are often seen for Women's Health.Fatigue, Depression, Strength or Libido Loss are often seen for Men's Health.
Practitioners at TruMedDr. Muradov, Dr. Sumar, Dr. Tran and Dr. Deol all focus on hormone balancing. Dr. Muradov & Dr. Tran tend to use primarily herbs & vitamins to balance hormones. Dr. Deol often uses Acupuncture to modulate hormones especially for Fertility. Dr. Sumar often employs homeopathics for hormone balance in her Naturopath practice. Melisse Smith, our Nurse Practitioner, offers BHRT options (Bio-identical hormones) and TRT Hormone TestingBlood Hormone testing is the best way to look at the thyroid and allows us to see a few hormone parameters that are not available through Saliva or Blood (eg. FSH, LH). Blood testing is usually what our Nurse Practitioner runs for Hormone and Testosterone Replacement Therapy (HRT & TRT). Our Naturopaths often switch to Blood hormone testing to communicate results to practitioners like your Medical Doctor. Blood lets us look at Thyroid & Pituitary Hormones with rapidly available results for a reasonable cost. Blood based testing is the cheapest test method usually around $250 Salivary Hormone Testing is extremely helpful for a clinically relevant look at free hormone (unbound) levels active at the level of the tissues. Hormones in the bloodstream are usually bound to carrier proteins, and in this form the hormones are unable to act at their target tissues. Saliva testing measures the amount of hormone that's actually available to the target tissues – it's what we call the "the bio-available or free hormones" Saliva testing is a non-invasive collection method where patients collect their samples with the convenience of at-home collection. Our Naturopaths have seen a lot of clinical applicability between what's seen on saliva hormone testing and what we see happening in our patients. Although BHRT & TRT monitoring can be done through saliva - our preference is still to use blood (cheaper & faster). Price-wise saliva is reasonable - comprehensive testing is around $350. TruMed has led the way in Edmonton for Urinary hormone testing as it provides our Naturopathic doctors a deep understanding your body’s hormone metabolism. Dried Urinary Hormones "DUTCH" Testing is the best way to measure adrenal and sex hormones (Estrogen, Progesterone and Testosterone) and their by-products. Once again, urinary testing can be used to monitor HRT & TRT but high costs, lack of customization and slow turnaround make it unappealing. Urine can give great insight but can be costly - comprehensive testing is around $650. |
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Focusing on hormone health |
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Treatments chosen vary depending on your test results.
Our Naturopathic Doctors may use Vitamins, Herbs and Homeopathics to gently balance hormones. Melisse Smith NP may prescribe Bio-identical hormones, Natural Thyroid and Testosterone Replacement. Key HRT Hormones:Cortisol - Many patients fear Cortisol, as it has a bad rap as a weight gain promoting stress hormone. It's a hormone released from the Adrenal glands and Cortisol is critical for energy production (increases blood levels of all fuel substrates - glucose, fatty & amino acids). Cortisol is involved in the entry of T3 (active Thyroid hormone) into cells and as such Cortisol is needed for proper Thyroid function. We often see co-existing Adrenal and Thyroid hormone issues in our Edmonton patients. We can accurately measure Cortisol hormone levels in Saliva or Urine. If needed, we may explore the use of HRT with prescription Hydrocortisone - which is considered the strongest available Adrenal support. DHEA - DHEA is, like Cortisol, is a hormone secreted by the adrenal glands. Clinical trials have found that DHEA improves overall vitality, mood, energy level and libido and our we have seen similar results in our Edmonton patients. DHEA can be prescribed by our Nurse Practitioner as part of your HRT treatment. DHEA hormone levels can drop along with Cortisol levels in patients with Adrenal Fatigue and DHEA levels already decline with age. Testosterone - Low testosterone can cause decreased sex drive, low energy, and depression in both men and women - as such, we consider TRT in both sexes. We almost always screen our male patients in Edmonton for low Testosterone. Testosterone replacement is the most commonly prescribed Hormone Replacement for males at our Edmonton office. Saliva hormone testing is one way to measure "Free" Testosterone and Urine hormone testing is good for Testosterone and its metabolites especially in male or female acne and hair loss. Blood Testosterone testing is great for a cheap, fast, total testosterone level and is typically the way we go with patients seeking TRT as it allows us to easily and rapidly assess Testosterone and related hormones. Please see our TRT section. |
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Pinpoint where you need support. |
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Key HRT Hormones continued:Estradiol - Estrogen replacement is commonly sought after for relief of menopausal symptoms, prevention of memory loss/brain fog, heart health, bone health. At our office, we only work with natural Estrogens for our Edmonton patients - that is, they have the same chemical structure of Estrogen we make in our bodies. Estrone, Estradiol and Estriol are the three Estrogens produced in our bodies, but for Hormone Replacement purposes we work with the latter two. In particular, for BHRT we only work with topical Estrogens at our office and vaginal Estriol if only local action is needed.
See our Female Hormone Replacement section. Progesterone - Some symptoms of low Progesterone include anxiety, irritability, insomnia and hot flashes. At our office, we only work with natural Progesterone for our Edmonton HRT patients - as synthetic Progestins have many more side effects. Although commonly prescribed topically, we do consider the use of oral Progesterone for sleep disturbances associated with menopause - as orally it seems to be more impactful. Bioidentical Progesterone cream is also commonly prescribed for premenstrual syndrome. Progesterone has a myriad of benefits including enhancement of Thyroid hormone, increased scalp hair growth, less water retention, mood boosting and calming.
See our Female Hormone Replacement section. Thyroid - Hypothyroidism is characterized by a failure of the thyroid gland to secrete enough thyroid hormone to meet the body’s needs. Thyroid hormone has very widespread impact on the body, as such low levels can result in many symptoms. Symptoms of hypothyroidism may include fatigue, weakness, depression, constipation, weight gain, memory loss, cold extremities, thinning hair, muscle aches, edema and more. We commonly start with a more in depth Thyroid panel than what is typically done and determine the degree of dysfunction. With minor dysfunction, we may begin with herbal therapies, however for severe dysfunction, prescription Thyroid preparations particularly prescribed by our Nurse Practitioner. At our Edmonton office, we have tremendous experience with Natural Desiccated Thyroid (NDT) - and have seen many patients with insufficient response to Synthroid respond favorably to NDT.
See our Thyroid Hormone Replacement section.
Bioidentical HormonesNaturopathic Doctors in Edmonton and Alberta are not able to prescribe bio-identical hormones.
As such, we have partnered with a Nurse Practitioner to offer HRT & TRT to our Edmonton patients. Natural Desiccated Thyroid is also something we commonly work with that our NP can prescribe. For those looking strictly for BHRT, can book in directly with our Nurse Practitioner.
Want your hormones tested? We can help
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Our Naturopathic Doctors treat fertility issues in our Edmonton patients. Dr. Deol does the majority of our infertility treatments at our Edmonton clinic and is trained in acupuncture to assist IUI and IVF procedures and natural conception.
Our Naturopaths often successfully treat Women's health issues at our Edmonton Clinic. Our Naturopathic Doctors treat Women's Health & Hormone concerns like PMS, Peri-menopause, Menopause, PCOS, Endometriosis Irregular Periods are often seen