“As collagen and elastin loss accelerates, your skin becomes less plump and firm, while the skin on your body appears crepey.” Other fun clues: slower wound healing, more irritable skin, and hands and feet that tend to crack.
Symptoms of Estrogen Deficient Skin
Dryness. Dullness. Fine lines and wrinkles. Thinner skin.
Hot flashes, flushes, and night sweats are the most common symptoms of low estrogen. At times, blood rushes to your skin's surface. This can give you a feeling of warmth (hot flash). Your face may look flushed.
Estrogen insufficiency decreases defense against oxidative stress; skin becomes thinner with less collagen, decreased elasticity, increased wrinkling, increased dryness and reduced vascularity.
Estrogen Replacement Therapy May Increase Collagen
As collagen production declines, the skin can start to sag and develop more wrinkles. However, estrogen may increase how much collagen your skin produces to help prevent these issues.
In post-menopausal women skin wrinkling has also been shown to be improved by topical estrogen therapy after a 24-week treatment period (Creidi et al 1994). However, other authors have demonstrated an improvement in skin elasticity, although there was no improvement in wrinkling in smokers (Castelo-Branco et al 1998).
As estrogen levels decline, it's common for noticeable changes to the skin to develop. Have you reached menopause and began noticing that you have crepey, sagging skin? Well, that loss of estrogen is the culprit.
Genes associated with follicle growth were not significantly altered by vitamin D3. However, it increases expression of genes involved in the estrogen-biosynthesis. Further, estrogen concentrations in porcine granulosa cell-cultured media increased in response to vitamin D3.
Estrogen is an essential component of skin function, health and wellness. It has been shown to improve skin elasticity, hydration and thickness.
Estrogen helps to stimulate collagen, elastin, and hyaluronic acid production that helps the skin to stay plump and firm. Progesterone stimulates the production of sebum or the oil glands in the skin. It can cause the skin to swell, and compress the look of pores. Too much of it, however, can lead to oil build up.
Many women notice an increase in belly fat as they get older even if they don't gain weight. This is likely due to a lower level of estrogen because estrogen seems to have an effect on where fat is located in the body. Genes can contribute to an individual's chances of being overweight or obese too.
When estrogen is too high or too low you may get menstrual cycle changes, dry skin, hot flashes, trouble sleeping, night sweats, vaginal thinning and dryness, low sex drive, mood swings, weight gain, PMS, breast lumps, fatigue, depression and anxiety.
Progesterone: Increases elasticity and firmness of the skin. Maintains skin hydration.
Scientists haven't discovered exactly how they interact with each other, and more studies are needed. According to Cleveland Clinic, when estrogen drops, so does the skin's collagen production. So far, research hasn't shown that collagen supplements increase or decrease estrogen production.
Moy says there are a number of hormones that tighten and thicken skin. As one ages, collagen is lost in the skin, which affects skin thickness, texture and hydration. Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), testosterone, estradiol (estrogen) and the thyroid all affect the integrity and health of skin.
Inadequate Vitamin D in the skin causes it to become thin, saggy, wrinkled, and weak. Your skin is your largest organ, so making sure it's strong and healthy is incredibly important in preventing premature aging.
The hormone estrogen is responsible for making skin look younger due to the hyaluronic acid it produces. Estrogen not only affects your skin but also your muscle mass, metabolism, and energy levels. Women have more estrogen than men do; men have more testosterone than women do.
Vitamin B12 it is used to break down estrogen so that it can be excreted from the body. As a result, women with B12 deficiency may experience infertility or irregular cycles because high estrogen levels can cause lack of ovulation, embryo implantation failure, and difficulty maintaining pregnancy.
Hormone creation - magnesium actually makes your hormones progesterone, estrogen and testosterone, so if you're getting into perimenopause or are just off the Pill and your levels are low, it can be your best friend.
A Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center study involving postmenopausal, overweight, and obese women who took 2,000 IUs of vitamin D daily for a year found that those whose vitamin D blood levels increased the most had the greatest reductions in blood estrogens, which are a known risk factor for breast cancer.
Smoking, sleep deprivation and consuming too much alcohol can contribute to crepey skin, as can rapid weight loss or gain.
Unfortunately, no at-home fix will reverse the look of crepey skin, but methods used by dermatologists can often vastly improve the look of your skin.
Collagen levels also dip with the decrease in estrogen which causes your skin to become thinner. The hyaluronic acid produced by estrogen helps your skin look younger and helps you maintain your body mass, energy and metabolism levels.