Dr.RaviCardio said:The single most useful discipline is bringing the whole panel to a clinician rather than one flagged value.
Genuinely useful, thank you. I had the facts and not the framework. Sending this to two other people who asked me the same thing last week.
Clinical perspective, offered as context rather than as advice.
HPA axis assessment on the hormone panel: rarely ordered but informative for understanding the stress-metabolism connection:
4-point salivary cortisol:
- Morning: 16 ng/mL → 13 ng/mL (improved)
- Noon: 9 ng/mL → 6 ng/mL
- Evening: 5 ng/mL → 2 ng/mL
- Night: 3 ng/mL → 1 ng/mL
The cortisol curve is normalizing — less flat, better diurnal variation. Reduced visceral fat = reduced cortisol overproduction. The metabolic benefits cascade into stress hormone regulation.
james_edin said:Quarterly for the first year is convention rather than evidence, and it is defensible for a simple reason: it is roughly the interval over which HbA1c…
Sex hormone labs after weight loss on the hormone panel — for the men in this thread:
Testosterone: 359 → 599 ng/dL (dramatic improvement!)
Free T: 7.4 → 13.9 ng/dL
Estradiol: 46 → 29 pg/mL
SHBG: 25 → 45 nmol/L
Visceral fat contains aromatase which converts testosterone to estrogen. As you lose visceral fat, this conversion decreases and testosterone naturally rises. I feel 10 years younger.
Sigma-Aldrich — Research-Grade Standards
Certified reference materials, analytical reagents, and research-grade standards for peptide verification. Trusted by laboratories worldwide.
Shop Reference StandardsPharmHunterJen said:Most of the hormonal change here is a consequence of adiposity falling rather than a drug effect.
Hormone panel changes on the hormone panel — relevant for anyone curious about endocrine effects:
- Testosterone: increased 35% (weight loss reduces aromatase in adipose tissue)
- Estradiol: normalized from elevated baseline
- SHBG: increased appropriately
- Free testosterone: increased 22%
- Cortisol AM: within normal limits, no significant change
My reproductive endocrinologist says the testosterone improvement alone could explain the energy and mood benefits I've experienced.
Moderator note: good thread. Keeping it here rather than moving it, because the question is general enough to be useful. Report rather than reply if it drifts again.