Hormones are natural chemicals within the cells of the body that travel through the bloodstream to organs and tissues. Hormones are essential for a variety of functions, including regulating a woman’s metabolism, growth, immunity function and sexual reproduction. Hormone production tends to decrease naturally over time. As the production of certain hormones decreases, there may be an overproduction of other hormones within the body, which often results in hormonal imbalances that affect the health in different ways.

Hormonal imbalance generally occurs as a reaction to elevated levels of the hormone estrogen, and lower levels of the hormone progesterone. Estrogen helps regulate the menstrual cycle; progesterone is essential for healthy pregnancy. The most common hormonal imbalance among women of all ages is progesterone deficiency; common among menopausal women is estrogen deficiency. There are different treatment options available for hormone imbalances.