Female hormones: A guide on hormone health for women

Your hormones and hormone levels affect your entire body and its functions. And they don’t just impact things like skin health and hair strength. They also act as guides for your body’s development from puberty to menopause and everything in between, including the entire pregnancy journey.

Specifically, your hormones help relay messages from organs that affect many bodily functions, including your metabolism and mood. Keeping your hormone levels balanced helps maintain these bodily functions. And, like the rest of your body, your hormones change over time.

Hormones are essential for your health, and even minor fluctuations in their levels can impact your health and affect how you feel. That’s why it’s important to stay in the know and consider testing if you have concerns about your hormone levels.
 

Key hormones and their functions

Estrogen

Estrogen refers to a group of hormones that play a big role in your development over your lifetime. Estrogen levels first rise during puberty and begin to decline during perimenopause, the stage leading up to menopause. They also fluctuate throughout your lifetime, significantly affecting the menstrual cycle.

Estrogen helps regulate important functions throughout the body, affecting things like cholesterol and blood sugar levels, circulation, muscle mass and even brain function.

If you’ve got a hormone imbalance, you may experience symptoms such as:

• Irregular or absent periods
• Painful sex
• Hot flashes
• Weight gain
• Fatigue
• Moodiness
• Frequent headaches
  
  

Testing your estradiol level, the most common type of estrogen, can help you determine whether you’re experiencing possible imbalances and whether they may be related to menopause or other hormonal health concerns. Produced by the ovaries, estradiol plays a key role in the menstrual cycle, supporting pregnancy and maintaining overall reproductive health.
 

Luteinizing hormone (LH)

Your reproductive system relies on the teamwork between LH and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) to release a mature egg during the menstrual cycle. FSH helps the eggs mature, and LH helps manage the menstrual cycle and release mature eggs for fertilization.
 

LH levels change regularly, spiking highest just before you ovulate, making LH an important hormone to monitor if you want to conceive. Tracking LH over time can help you determine your fertile window, or the time you’re most likely to get pregnant.

High LH levels outside of the normal surge that occurs during your period could mean decreased ovarian reserve, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) or menopause (as LH levels rise as you age). LH is often tested with FSH to help find the cause of infertility, irregular periods or missed periods.

Low LH levels can suggest malnutrition or issues with your pituitary gland, where LH is produced.

 You may seek LH testing if you:

• Are having difficulty conceiving
• Have irregular periods or your periods have stopped
• Want to know if you’re in menopause

Testing for hormones like LH helps you and your healthcare provider get a clearer picture of what’s going on with your body’s hormone production. Because a healthy balance of hormones is needed, it’s important to screen.

Whether you are tracking your ovulation patterns or looking for general insights about your hormonal and reproductive health, Labcorp OnDemand’s LH Test can help.
 

Progesterone

Progesterone is one of the main reproductive hormones and helps regulate menstruation and supports early stages of pregnancy. 

Progesterone levels vary during the menstrual cycle, rising after ovulation and continues to rise if pregnancy occurs. Like estrogen, progesterone levels begin to decline with the onset of menopause.

If you’re experiencing low levels of progesterone, you might also have:

• Irregular menstrual cycle
• Difficulty conceiving
• Mood changes
• Hot flashes
• Fatigue

As these symptoms overlap with other signs of hormonal imbalance, testing your progesterone levels may help provide some clarity. Whether you are monitoring ovulation, planning for a family, experiencing symptoms of hormonal imbalance or have general questions about your reproductive and hormonal health, Labcorp OnDemand’s Progesterone Test can help.
 

Follicle-Stimulating Hormone (FSH)

FSH is a hormone produced by the pituitary gland that stimulates ovarian egg growth, supporting ovulation and menstruation. The “follicles” in FSH refer to ovarian follicles, which are small sacs that contain ovarian egg cells.
 

As ovarian function declines with age and the ovaries begin to produce fewer eggs, FSH levels typically rise. A FSH imbalance may happen because of several factors, such as stress, illness, diet, lifestyle or the body’s transition to menopause.
 

Changes in FSH, or an imbalance in FSH levels, may lead to symptoms such as:
 

• Irregular menstrual cycles
• Low libido
• Weight fluctuations
• Fatigue
   

Labcorp OnDemand’s FSH Test measures your FSH levels and can provide information about your reproductive health and hormonal balance.

Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH)

AMH is produced by cells inside of the ovarian follicles, where ovarian eggs are released. AMH plays an important role in female reproductive health.

AMH levels typically correspond to your ovarian reserve, or the number of eggs you have in your ovaries. Higher AMH levels typically indicate more eggs and a higher ovarian reserve, while lower AMH levels typically indicate fewer eggs and a lower ovarian reserve.

Signs of low AMH levels may not always be obvious, but they can include:

• Irregular menstrual cycles
• Heavy or light bleeding
• Difficulty conceiving
• Fatigue
• Early menopause symptoms (hot flashes, mood swings, vaginal dryness)
  
  

Labcorp OnDemand’s Women’s Fertility Ovarian Reserve Test package measures AMH, FSH and estradiol to help evaluate fertility status.
 

Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH)

TSH regulates how much thyroid hormone your body produces. These thyroid hormones affect your body’s use of energy, so they are important to nearly every part of your body. They regulate your heart, digestion, temperature, weight, brain development, mood and metabolism.

According to the American Thyroid Association, women are five to eight times more likely than men to have thyroid issues. Hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid), can cause fertility problems, with women who have difficulty getting pregnant often get tested for thyroid problems.

Too high or too low levels of TSH can impact your health. So, it’s important to get a clear picture of your thyroid health.

If you’re experiencing low TSH levels, you may notice:

• Rapid heartbeat/palpitations
• Unexplained weight loss
• Increased bowel movements
• Vision changes
• Thin, warm and moist skin
• Irregular menstrual cycles

If you’re experiencing high TSH levels, you may notice:

• Fatigue
• Unexplained weight gain
• Numbness in the hands
• Constipation
• Depression or changes in mood
• Feeling cold
• Dry skin
• Low sex drive
• Frequent and heavy menstrual cycles
  
  

Speak with your healthcare provider if you’re experiencing any of these symptoms. Your provider can order a thyroid test, or you can purchase a thyroid test yourself through Labcorp OnDemand. Results from these tests can help you and your provider determine the care you need. Shop the Standard Thyroid Test.

Being proactive about your hormone health

Wherever you are on your health journey, Labcorp is here for you. If you are ready to learn more about your hormone levels, explore the range of Labcorp OnDemand’s Hormone Tests. We offer a variety of screenings from general wellness to fertility and menopause—to empower your next discussions with your provider about your health.