Testosterone vs Estrogen: Which Hormones Regulate & Increase Female Libido? A Deep Dive
Is there such a thing as a "female low libido hormone," or "female low libido hormones?" There is SO much controversy surrounding which hormone—estrogen or testosterone—is primarily responsible for regulating & increasing female sex drive.
I want to tell the story of the controversy & present the research for you in this video; however, more than anything, I want women, & people with female anatomy, to understand what science thinks it knows about their bodies so that they can make informed opinions & decisions about their sexual health.
I hope this video brings you one step closer to that understanding 🧡
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Timestamps:
A HUGE thank you to doctors Maurand Cappelletti & Kim Wallen. Their 2015 systematic review helped inform my research so much 🤗
→ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
✩ Intro: 0:00
→ Sex hormone review & how they function throughout a woman’s lifetime: • Hormones & Female Low Sex Drive / Female L...
☼ Why Consider Testosterone? A History: 3:06
All of the other female mammals we’ve studied respond to estrogen, not testosterone, when it comes to their libidos & other sexual behaviors
→ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20341...
→ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/417014/
→ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6519656/
→ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2190122/
How do high levels of testosterone affect female libido in women of all ages?
→ 1940s study: https://doi.org/10.1210/jcem-3-4-235
William Perloff—estrogen therapy consistently results in reports of increased libido in postmenopausal women
→ 1949 study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18153...
Sheldon Waxenberg & his colleagues on the adrenal glands, testosterone, & female sex drive in women with terminal breast cancer diagnoses
→ 1959 study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/13620...
→ The 2016 Psychology Today article that uses Waxenberg’s study to argue that testosterone is the primary hormone responsible for regulating female libido: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/bl...
✩ Estrogen Resurfaces—Studying The Menstrual Cycle: 13:36
Dr. Abraham proves that testosterone fluctuates throughout the menstrual cycle, & that the ovaries produce at least 50% of testosterone in women
→ 1974 study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/4278727/
It was proven over & over again in the 1980s & 1990s that not only does female libido fluctuate during the menstrual cycle, but it also does so in a predictable pattern:
→ 1987: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3820137/
→ 1988: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3223811/
→ 1994: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8202577/
→ 1997: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9251835/
Dr. Barbara Sherwin & her colleagues contradict Waxenberg’s findings & show that the adrenal gland’s testosterone production alone could not maintain female sex drive in the absence of ovarian hormones
→ 1985 study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/4023162/
☼ Natural Ovarian Hormone Levels & Changes In Female Libido: 22:06
Dr. Lorraine Dennerstein & her colleagues find that estrogen levels significantly correlate with changes in both sex drive & sexual behavior in women transitioning from early to late menopause—and that testosterone levels did not significantly correlate with any measure of sexuality
→ 2002 study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12007...
→ The Princeton Conference & Female Androgen Insufficiency (2002): https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11937...
→ The FDA rejects Intrinsa in 2004: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
Can women’s natural testosterone levels predict the symptoms of female androgen insufficiency? Nope 🤷
→ 2005 study: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15998...
The relationship between the ovarian sex hormones & female libido is studied across the menstrual cycle in 2013
→ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23601...
✩ Estrogen- vs. Testosterone-Based Hormone Therapy: 29:10
→ Estrogen-only hormone therapy vs. combination hormone therapy in postmenopausal women & changes in libido / hypotheses as to why exogenous testosterone increases female sex drive: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
☼ Closing Thoughts: 33:58
✩ Outro: 35:07
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Read my full medical disclaimer, here: https://www.pelvicempowerment.com/dis...
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