The Hormone Decoder is it your hormones?

What’s inside the Hormone Decoder

Two versions, one for women and one for men, each about a 10-minute read. Every chapter covers one hormone: what it does, the signs it may be off, four things that help, and the lab tests that check it.

For women: cortisol, insulin, thyroid, leptin and ghrelin, estrogen and progesterone (perimenopause), and PCOS. For men: testosterone, insulin, cortisol, sleep, leptin and ghrelin, and thyroid.

Signs of hormone imbalance in women

• Weight moving to your middle in your 40s or 50s, often with poorer sleep and hot flashes: estrogen and progesterone shifting around perimenopause.
• Irregular periods, acne or extra facial hair with stubborn weight: possible PCOS, which affects about 10 to 13% of women.
• Always cold, tired, dry skin or thinning hair: a slow thyroid is worth checking.
• Sugar cravings and belly weight under stress: cortisol and insulin working together.

Signs of hormone imbalance in men

• A belly that won’t budge, low energy, low sex drive or losing muscle: low testosterone. Belly fat lowers testosterone, and low testosterone adds belly fat.
• Loud snoring and waking tired: short or broken sleep raises hunger and stress hormones and lowers testosterone by the next morning.
• Cravings at night and weight gain around the waist: insulin resistance, often before blood sugar looks high.

Which hormone tests to ask your doctor for

A single blood test rarely tells the whole story. These are the labs the guide explains, and when each one helps:

• Insulin resistance: fasting glucose, A1c and, when useful, fasting insulin.
• Thyroid: TSH, and free T4 if TSH is off; thyroid antibodies with a family history or a borderline result.
• Testosterone (men): morning total testosterone, checked twice, plus free testosterone, SHBG and LH when needed.
• PCOS (women): your cycle history plus testosterone, SHBG and glucose tests.
• Perimenopause: usually diagnosed from symptoms and age, not one blood test. Labs help rule out thyroid and other causes.

This guide is education, not a diagnosis. Talk to a clinician before changing medicines, supplements, diet or exercise. Results vary from person to person.

When to see a doctor about your hormones

If several signs sound familiar, or you’ve done everything right and the scale or your energy still won’t move, it’s worth checking instead of guessing. At GENEVA in Alpharetta, a free consultation starts with your history and the right labs, then a plan that can include medical weight loss, hormone therapy or testosterone therapy when you qualify.

Want a quick read on what else may be stalling your weight? Try the Why Can’t I Lose Weight? quiz.