Potential Indicators

Menopause can cause varying symptoms. Some women have few or no symptoms, while other women can have many symptoms that are prolonged and severe. Symptoms can include, but are not limited to:

    Sleep changes

    Mood changes

    Hot flashes and night sweats

    Vaginal dryness

    Weight gain

    Skin changes

    Loss of menstruation

    Breast tenderness

    Fatigue

    Brain fog

    Memory lapses

    Greater susceptibility to urinary tract infections

Menopause Test 101

Aspects of menopause

Menopause is a normal transition that occurs when a woman's eggs are depleted and she stops ovulating. Although the benchmark of menopause is 12 months with no ovulation and no menstrual cycle, menopause symptoms can begin before that happens and can continue for months or even years after a woman's final menstrual cycle. The average woman's age for natural menopause to occur is 51. Menopause can also occur for other reasons, such as surgery that removes the ovaries, as a side effect of some medications, and when it's caused by certain health conditions.

The hormonal changes that occur during menopause can also have an impact on other areas of a woman's health during and after menopause, including:

    Heart health

    Bone health

    Brain health

    Body weight

    Metabolic function

    Urinary health

    Sexual health

How the biomarkers we measure impact your health

Estradiol (E2)

The hormone estradiol is primarily made in the ovaries, although it is also made in smaller amounts in the adrenal glands and in fat cells. Women make three types of estrogen: estradiol, estrone, and estriol, all of which decline during menopause. Because estradiol is the most powerful and active form of estrogen, it is often the only one measured in an estrogen test.

Progesterone

Progesterone is the hormone that is made in response to an egg being released from an ovary (ovulation). When a woman begins menopause and she stops ovulating, her ovaries stop making progesterone, which eliminates the major source of progesterone in the body. Women continue to make some progesterone in their adrenal glands.

Testosterone

Even though testosterone is thought of as the "male hormone," a woman also makes testosterone. A woman makes testosterone in her ovaries and in her adrenal glands. Like other hormones made in the ovaries, the testosterone level declines during menopause because the ovaries are ending their primary function, even though the health functions of testosterone will remain important for the rest of a woman's life.

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA)

DHEA, a hormone made in the adrenal glands, is a precursor to both testosterone and estrogen and is an age-dependent hormone. In a woman, her DHEA level tends to peak during late adolescence and begins to decline naturally starting at age 30, declining by age 70 to just 20 percent of her peak level. Production of DHEA in the adrenal glands is in direct competition with the production of cortisol, because both DHEA and cortisol require the same precursor hormone ‐ pregnenolone.

Cortisol

Cortisol is the body's primary "stress" hormone made in the adrenal glands. Cortisol has a natural 24-hour rhythm, which, when altered can have a wide variety of adverse health effects, including changes in mood, energy, weight, and immune function. It is not uncommon for a woman to experience changes in her cortisol level during menopause as the functions of her ovaries decline and her body becomes more dependent on the adrenal glands as the source of her hormones.

Warnings

This test is recommended to evaluate whether or not you may be going through menopause.  Women in their late 30s or early 40s may be entering perimenopause, and the average woman enters natural menopause between 45 and 55 years old.  Additional tests not included in this panel may be helpful to your doctor to evaluate whether you are going through menopause, including FSH (Follicle Stimulating Hormone) and TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone).  This saliva test cannot measure TSH and FSH.  Please see your doctor for additional recommendations to evaluate your health.