Women’s Health

Women’s Health: Puberty & Adolescence

Young women experience changes in their body and mind during adolescence. Timing of puberty can be different from one young woman to the next. Puberty can start as early as 7 ½ years of age with subtle changes in a girl’s body.

Periods typically start sometime between age 10 ½ and 15 with 12 being the average age. The pace of puberty is different for every girl. Some develop slowly over a few years but for others it can be quite rapid.

Whether slow or rapid, a normal puberty brings changes in hormones and growth spurts which can be stressful and confusing. A young woman will experience emotions she has never felt before. The first few years of periods can be painful.

If severe, medical help will be required. In some cases, young women do not menstruate regularly. This can be normal within the first 3 years of the first period but prolonged irregularity can be a sign of an underlying hormone imbalance.

Conditions Treated in Puberty:

Women’s Health: Young Women

Young women respond well to natural therapies such as herbal and nutritional support to balance hormones.

At San Jose Integrative Medicine, we advise wellness testing for all young women and additional hormone panels for young women with signs of hormone imbalance. As girls become women, their nutritional demands increase so we often will advise multi nutrient testing to ensure she is getting adequate nutritional support.

Women’s Hormone Balance

The menstrual period is often a good indicator of a woman’s hormone balance. Cycles can vary and the average is every 28 days. Although normal is between 21 and 35 days, a period every 3 weeks can result in excessive bleeding causing anemia and fatigue.

Ideally, your period is predictable. If your period is every 21 days one month, and 35 days the next, it may indicate a hormone imbalance which can lead to fertility problems in the future.

The human body loves consistency.

If your periods are irregular, it may indicate PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), Hypothyroidism, Low Body Weight, Overexercise, Under Nourishment, Fibroids, Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, or Premature Ovarian Failure.

Common Conditions Treated:

At San Jose Integrative Medicine, we perform detailed hormone panels for women experiencing hormone imbalance along with wellness and nutritional testing. We offer herbal, nutritional, hormonal support, and acupuncture to treat hormone imbalance and female health conditions

Women’s Health: Fertility

Optimizing fertility is more than taking a prenatal vitamin. Although prenatal vitamins are important, so is optimizing your health in order to become pregnant.

At San Jose Integrative Medicine, we perform wellness, hormone, fertility, and nutritional testing for women wanting to get pregnant. We offer herbal, nutritional, hormonal support and acupuncture to normalize hormones and menstrual cycles.

Women with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) can sometimes find it very difficult to get pregnant. If you have or suspect you may have PCOS, it is very important to be tested and seek treatment early.

Women’s Health: Perimenopause & Menopause

Perimenopause is like puberty on steroids. It’s the second big change in a woman’s life, or third after pregnancy. Unlike in puberty, women in their 3os, 40s, and 5os have jobs, partners, children, and/or aging elders. The demands, ie stress, is far greater. Combine that with hormone fluctuations, and perimenopause can feel like a hurricane tearing through your body!

Menopause is the quiet after the storm. Hot flashes and mood swings abate but without proper support, health concerns associated with hormonal changes set in. Without sex hormones, women can feel more depressed, anxious, poorly motivated, dry, and no sex drive. Menopausal women are at increased risk of bone loss, memory problems, weight gain and painful sex. Risk for cardiovascular disease and stroke increases due to lack of sex hormones.

At San Jose Integrative Medicine, we support women through this phase in their lives. Low estrogen, testosterone, and progesterone affect the balance of all the other hormones in the body. We test adrenal, thyorid, and sex hormones along with wellness testing.

We help our patients regain their energy, emotional well being, sex drive, ideal weight, and prevent diseases associated with hormone loss. We offer herbal, nutritional, hormonal, Chinese Medicine, and acupuncture to support your transition.

Common Symptoms of Perimenopause & Menopause:

Women’s Health: Healthy Aging

As we age, we want to feel good, be independent, and active. The goal is to go to your doctor at 80 and say, “I feel great. Just thought I’d check in!”.

Staying active and engaged is key along with preventative medicine. Exercise is as important as estrogen is in supporting bone health or testosterone in supporting muscle strength.

Eating healthy, exercising, and monitoring cholesterol can protect your cardiovascular and brain health. Women experience Dementia and Alzheimers 2 to 1 compared to men. Why women are experiencing Dementia and Alzheimers more may be due to menopausal loss of estrogen.

At San Jose Integrative Medicine, we want to support every woman in aging well. We perform detailed cardiometabolic, hormone, nutrition and wellness testing. Based on your individual needs, we make a plan to optimize your health so that you feel fantastic in the many years to come.

Uniquely Female

There are numerous chronic conditions that predominantly affect women. Chief among them are autoimmune disorders. Approximately 75% of those with an autoimmune disorder are women. Autoimmune disease is caused by an overactive immune system which attacks self.

The gender difference is especially profound in Lupus (SLE) and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis/Hypothyroidism. Nine out of ten of those afflicted with Lupus and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis/Hypothyroidism are women. It’s a mystery why more women than men acquire autoimmune conditions. One theory is that testosterone keeps the immune system in check.

Lower testosterone may also be responsible for women being far more affected by chronic pain. Women account for nine out of ten cases of Fibromyalgia. Women are also more likely to complain of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome), and Osteoporosis.

Common Conditions Treated: