14/05/2022
What causes hormonal imbalances?
Throughout your life — and even throughout the day — your hormone levels naturally rise and fall.
Certain periods of life cause more dramatic changes and fluctuations in hormones, including:
Puberty.
Pregnancy.
Menopause.
However, there are several other reasons why your hormone levels may be irregular at unexpected times. Some of the most common causes of fluctuating or imbalanced hormone levels include:
Stress.
Certain medications.
Steroid use.
These hormonal imbalances are more likely to be temporary or fixable with a change in medication or properly managing stress.
Chronic hormone-related conditions can have several different possible causes. In general, the main conditions or situations that cause medically significant hormone imbalances include:
Tumors, adenomas or other growths.
Damage or injury to an endocrine gland.
Autoimmune conditions.
Tumors, adenomas and growths
Any kind of growth on a gland or organ that produces hormones, such as a tumor, adenoma or nodule, could affect its ability to do so.
Tumors
Rare endocrine tumors form in glands or in cells that produce hormones and can cause hormone imbalances. Some of the rare endocrine tumors include:
Adrenocortical carcinoma: An adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC) is a cancerous adrenal tumor that forms in the adrenal cortex. It sometimes causes excess hormone production.
Carcinoid tumors: Carcinoid tumors are a type of neuroendocrine tumor (NET) that grows from neuroendocrine cells. Neuroendocrine cells receive and send messages through hormones to help your body function.
Medullary thyroid cancer: Medullary thyroid cancer (MTC), is cancer that forms in the inside of your thyroid (the medulla). The medulla contains special cells called parafollicular C cells that produce and release hormones.
Pheochromocytoma: A pheochromocytoma is a rare tumor that forms in the middle of one or both of your adrenal glands (adrenal medulla). The tumor is made of a certain type of cell called chromaffin cells, which produce and release certain hormones. They’re usually benign but can be cancerous.
Paraganglioma: A paraganglioma (also known as an extra-adrenal pheochromocytoma) is a rare neuroendocrine tumor that forms near your carotid artery, along nerve pathways in your head and neck and in other parts of your body. The tumor is made of chromaffin cells, which produce and release certain hormones.
Adenomas
An adenoma is a benign (noncancerous) tumor. Many adenomas are nonfunctioning, meaning they don’t produce hormones. But some can produce excess hormones. These are called functioning adenomas. Adenomas that affect your endocrine system and cause hormone imbalances include:
Pituitary adenomas: Pituitary adenomas can cause an imbalance in any of the hormones your pituitary gland makes. For example, pituitary adenomas are the most common cause of acromegaly (excess growth hormone in adults).
Adrenal adenomas: The most common cause of Cushing’s syndrome (excess cortisol) is an adrenal adenoma on the adrenal cortex.
Parathyroid adenomas: A parathyroid adenoma can cause primary hyperparathyroidism (excess parathyroid hormone).
