Best Time Of Month To Test Hormone Levels

When you are facing symptoms like tiredness, lack of sex drive, acne, and weight gain, the time has arrived to pursue treatment and find the best time of the month to test hormone levels. The test results will help you in making crucial decisions for the betterment of your health.

 Hormone testing is a perfectly logical and an eye-opening step to understanding what your body needs to feel good and healthy.” One hormone test that all women should get is during the period of Hormone Imbalance. This test will help you out to give you the essentials on what’s wrong with your hormones.

[Also Read: Foods That Cause Hormone Imbalance]

Make sure that you’ll be getting the test during your follicular phase (in the next few days after your period has ended). It is considered as the best time for women to test their hormone levels.

Laboratory tests are usually carried out on samples such as blood, dried blood spots on a card, saliva, urine samples, and 24-hour urine collections. The type of sample depends upon what is being measured, the accuracy, and the age of the patient. Let’s delve into the essential aspects to get a comprehensive hormone check for women.

You should follow a new approach to test your hormones after every 2 years to keep them in check.

Female Hormones And Their Functions?

Most of the time, a female’s body is affected by the improper functioning of hormones. Hormones act like messengers that communicate with neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine that are produced in the brain. Neurotransmitters are responsible for affecting a person’s mood, energy level, dietary cravings, and sleep.

When hormones in a female body go out of balance, they will throw off the performance. Our lifestyle, diet, toxic exposure, and medications leave a considerable impact on the functions of female hormones.
Typically, hormones peak at the age of 20 and fluctuate approximately around the age of 35.

Female hormones primarily consist of Estrogen and Progesterone.

Functions Of Estrogen

• Causes breasts and uterine tissues to grow
• Fortifies the collagen layer of the skin
• Affects cognitive function and mood
• Affects libido
• Lubricates vaginal tissue
• Affects energy

Functions Of Progesterone

• Balances estrogen
• Maintains pregnancy
• Bolsters the fetal brain and nervous system development
• Stimulates bone growth
• Helps in keeping calm and focus the brain
• Helps burn fat and energy

Female Hormone Test – Why To Get This Test?

• This test helps you to understand conditions like acne, irregular periods, weight gain caused due to hormonal imbalance.
• It can also check for PCOS and help you understand why you are facing troubles while getting pregnant.
• This test also checks a female’s thyroid function because a thyroid disorder can cause problems like irregular, missed, or heavy periods.
• The pituitary gland produces follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH). This test may be used to evaluate conditions like abnormal menstrual bleeding, infertility, menopause, PCOS, pituitary gland tumors, and ovarian cysts.
• Elevated thyroid hormones may cause weight loss, goiter, hyperactivity, and irregular and, irregular menstrual periods in women.
  To keep the above-mentioned health problems intact, it is essential to take the hormone test.

Best Time Of The Month To Test Hormone Levels

Your cycle begins on the first day of your period and lasts until the first day of your next period. There are four main phases – Menstruation, Follicular, Ovulation, and Luteal.

During these phases, three main hormones – Estrogen, Progesterone, and Testosterone – rise and fall, causing fluctuations in your mood, energy level, your cravings for food, your libido, and more. If you are well-aware of these peaks and valleys, you can make your appointments for women’s health check-ups and other events on your top priority list.

Make your schedule to get the test during the first week of your cycle. As per the experts, this is the time when estrogen and progesterone are at their lowest, and your breasts will be a little less tender. It will be more comfortable for the doctor to examine you when they are compressed.

Breast density strongly affects mammography performance. Your breast tissue is also a little less dense during the first few days of your menstrual period to spot abnormalities.

If we consider the best time of day for a hormone blood test, a blood sample must be collected in the morning.

Please keep in mind that any hormones you are taking for contraception or HRT will influence the result. Take this test at least 12 weeks after stopping any hormone replacement or contraceptive pill, implant or hormone IUD unless your doctor suggests waiting until your periods have re-established a regular cycle and is considered the best time of the month to test hormone levels.

Certain medicines can also influence hormone levels and hence alter hormone analysis blood test. So if you are taking oral corticosteroids, thyroid pills, immunomodulators, chemotherapy drugs, etc then better to inform your doctor. Usually, you need to stop these drugs for at least 3-4 weeks before getting your hormone levels tested.