DHEA Levels and Their Role in Fertility for Functional Medicine Patients

Toronto, Ontario -

Toronto Functional Medicine Centre in Toronto, ON, Canada, has recently released a blog post that explains that the functional medicine approach to fertility in women is to check on DHEA levels. This is because DHEA is a hormone that plays a significant role in a science-based, patient-centered and individualized approach to fertility. It has been noted that DHEA levels decrease as women age and this can result in fertility issues. Women who have low ovarian reserve usually have low DHEA levels and research has revealed that DHEA supplementation may enhance fertility rates for these women. Furthermore, DHEA may help in boosting egg quality and boost the chances of successful pregnancy.

In functional medicine DHEA levels are indicative of a woman’s fertility. DHEA has been found to support fertility by helping with egg quality and enhancing pregnancy rates in women with diminished ovarian reserve (DOR). DOR is characterized by smaller follicles and a decline in ovarian follicular pool size at a particular age. Women with DOR typically produce a low optimal number of eggs, plus they also have poor quality embryos, with the result that they have decreased rates of implantation and pregnancy. An Anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH) blood test must be performed to determine whether a woman has a low ovarian reserve.

Women with DOR typically have lower DHEA levels, which may be a significant factor in their poor response to fertility treatment. However, studies have shown that fertility treatments tend to be effective for women with low ovarian reserve if DHEA is used. This is because DHEA may help in enhancing egg quality through the promotion of follicular steroidogenesis. It increases IGF-1, which functions as a pre-hormone for follicular testosterone, decreasing aneuploidy while increasing the AMH and antral follicle count.

At the Toronto Functional Medicine Centre, their goal is to help patients boost their chances of getting pregnant and also to help them achieve optimal wellness. This is because they offer an integrative approach to functional medicine programs, which focus on traditional Chinese medicine, Western medicine/allopathic medicine, naturopathic medicine, bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, acupuncture, and herbal medicine. The philosophical basis of functional medicine is that every patient is a unique entity and functional medicine must address fertility by personalizing treatment plans for the patient’s specific biology only. Functional medicine testing may be used, including fertility-specific treatments with regards to lifestyle changes, nutritional deficiencies, chronic diseases, hormone imbalances, disease prevention, and more.

Toronto Functional Medicine Centre treats each patient as a unique “whole” person and their treatment methods are designed to restore cellular functioning and energy levels, while managing both the symptoms and the root cause of the health issue. They can address a broad variety of health problems, such as: brain health, adrenal fatigue, immunity, menopause, inflammation, chronic conditions, digestive health, detoxification, mold toxicity, hormone imbalances, nutritional deficiencies, food allergies or intolerance, thyroid malfunction, infertility, and more. Additionally, those interested can learn about the functional medicine approach to pcos from a previous article the clinic published.

The integrative care they provide to patients may include different strategies, including: traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture for pain relief, naturopathic and herbal medicine, allopathic/western medicine, and medically-supervised IV therapy. And it should be pointed out that naturopathy integrates the traditional and natural forms of medicine with the latest scientific knowledge.

People who are interested in using DHEA for their fertility goals, should speak to their nurse practitioner and or medical doctor about functional medicine fertility support in Toronto. Those interested can also visit the Toronto Functional Medicine Centre website, or contact them on the phone (416) 968-6961 or through email at info@tfm.care. They are conveniently located at the heart of downtown Toronto.