Estrogen dominance means there is too much estrogen compared to progesterone in a person's body. This hormonal imbalance causes several symptoms in women, such as stress, insomnia, fertility issues, osteoporosis and hot flashes. Although women experience these symptoms more often, some of them can also appear in men or children. Most estrogen imbalance symptoms can be experienced naturally only by women.
One of the most common estrogen imbalance symptoms found in both sexes is stress. When there are excessive amounts of estrogen in the system, it causes a person to experience anxiety and insomnia. As a result, the adrenal glands suffer from fatigue and produce less progesterone. Over time, this leads to even more progesterone output and an increase in estrogen dominance. Stress causes worse estrogen imbalance symptoms, including a change in blood sugar levels.
An imbalance of estrogen is responsible for infertility issues in women. Having low levels of estrogen in the body can stop the ovulation process from happening. Estrogen acts as a stimulant for mucus found at the opening of the cervix, and the sperm cells cannot move toward their desired destination until estrogen changes the texture of the mucus. After the transformation occurs, the sperm can swim easily to the ovum. There must be an adequate amount of estrogen in the body to line the uterus wall, and without the lining, it will not be possible to implant a fertilized egg.
Low estrogen levels in the human body increase the risk for developing osteoporosis. Estrogen is necessary to maintain the bone density found in women. After menopause ends, the estrogen levels continue to decline, and the loss of bone density quickens. Women can lose more than 25 percent of bone density during the first five to 10 years after menopause. Those who have both of their ovaries surgically removed can also experience these estrogen imbalance symptoms.
Hot flashes are experienced by the majority of women, usually right before menopause begins. The hypothalamus is responsible for controlling the body's temperature. When decreased levels of estrogen occur in the body, it causes the hypothalamus to overheat. This leads the brain to control the heat levels by sending out the necessary signals at a quicker rate. The rapid heartbeats allow the blood vessels in the body to circulate until sweat is produced to cool the heat.