Low Estrogen Symptoms
Updated on April 16, 2025
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Low estrogen means your body is not producing enough of the hormone. Among its many functions, estrogen helps control a woman’s menstrual cycle, keeps bones strong, and affects energy and mood. When estrogen levels drop, often during perimenopause and menopause, you may experience unwanted symptoms, with the most common being hot flashes.
Signs and Symptoms of Low Estrogen
Low estrogen can cause many different symptoms in women, including:
- Hot flashes or night sweats: A decline in estrogen confuses the part of your brain that controls body temperature. You might feel sudden warmth, redness, and sweating, especially on your face and neck. About 75 percent of perimenopausal women experience hot flashes.
- Dry skin: Your skin may appear dull and more wrinkled.
- Weak bones: With less estrogen, you may lose bone density, which can increase your risk of fractures.
- Change in mood: You may feel irritable, sad, anxious, or frustrated.
- Vaginal atrophy: The tissues of your vagina and urethra become dry and thin. This can lead to urinary tract infections (UTIs).
- Irregular periods or no periods: Your periods might come at different times or not at all.
- Trouble concentrating: You may feel like you have brain fog and frequently lose your train of thought.
- Weight gain: The added weight usually accumulates in your belly.
- Headaches: They often happen before or during your period.
- Painful sex: When estrogen levels are low, your vagina is less lubricated, which can result in discomfort during intercourse.
- Fatigue: You may feel extremely tired and lack energy when estrogen levels are low.
- Insomnia: It’s common to have trouble falling asleep and staying asleep if you have low estrogen.
- Changes in hair growth: Some women notice more facial hair or thinning hair on their head.
Symptoms of Low Estrogen in Males
Men need a small amount of estrogen, in the form of estradiol, for their overall health. Estradiol is converted from testosterone by the enzyme aromatase.
When men have low estrogen, they may experience bone loss, as estrogen helps maintain bone health in men. This may increase the risk of fractures.
Types of Estrogen
Your body makes three types of estrogens.
- Estrone (E1) This is the main hormone that you produce during menopause and after.
- Estradiol (E2) Your body makes mostly estradiol during your reproductive years. This is the most potent form of estrogen.
- Estriol (E3) This is the hormone that your body produces during pregnancy.
Menopause is typically confirmed with a blood test showing elevated follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and low estradiol in a woman who has stopped menstruating for at least several months.
Potential Complications of Low Estrogen
Low levels of estrogen can lead to complications, which are secondary health problems.
Some possible complications include:
- Heart disease or stroke: Estrogen protects your heart by keeping blood vessels relaxed and open. With less estrogen, cholesterol can start to build up on your artery walls. This increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.
- Osteoporosis: A loss of estrogen can lead to osteoporosis (a condition that weakens bones). People with osteoporosis are more likely to develop bone fractures.
- Mental health conditions: Mood disorders, like depression, are linked to lower levels of estrogen.
- UTIs: Low estrogen may affect your urinary health, making you more vulnerable to infections.
When to See a Doctor
Talk with your doctor if you have any signs or symptoms of low estrogen that bother you. It’s especially important to seek medical care if you:
- Have not had your period for a year and start bleeding again if you are menopausal.
- Are 16 or older and have not started your period.
- Have regularly missed one or more periods.
Your healthcare provider might order blood work to measure your hormone levels. If you do have low estrogen, they may recommend a treatment, like hormone replacement therapy (HRT) or lifestyle changes.
The Takeaway
- Low estrogen is a common problem for women during perimenopause and menopause.
- Symptoms of low estrogen include hot flashes, painful intercourse, weight gain, mood changes, and more.
- Your doctor can help you figure out if your estrogen levels are within the normal range.
Resources We Trust
- Cleveland Clinic: Low Estrogen
- Mayo Clinic: Menopause
- Office on Women’s Health: Menopause Symptoms and Relief
- National Institute on Aging: What Is Menopause?
- Johns Hopkins Medicine: Introduction to Menopause
EDITORIAL SOURCES
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Resources
- Estrogen’s Effect on the Female Body. Johns Hopkins Medicine.
- Low Estrogen Levels in Menopause. University of Rochester Medical Center.
- Low Estrogen. Cleveland Clinic. February 8, 2022.
- Introduction to Menopause. Johns Hopkins Medicine.
- Estrogen: What It Does and 5 Benefits. Cleveland Clinic. January 5, 2022.
- Rochira V et al. Estrogens, Male Reproduction and Beyond. Endotext. March 21, 2023.
- Vandenput L et al. Estrogens as regulators of bone health in men. Nature Reviews Endocrinology. June 16, 2009.
- Menopause and Cardiovascular Risk. American Heart Association. September 12, 2024.
- Albert KM et al. Estrogen, Stress, and Depression: Cognitive and Biological Interactions. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology. February 20, 2019.
- Menopause symptoms and relief. Office on Women’s Health. January 10, 2025.
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Elise M. Brett, MD
Medical Reviewer
Elise M Brett, MD, is a board-certified adult endocrinologist. She received a bachelor's degree from the University of Michigan and her MD degree from the Icahn School of Medicine ...
Julie Lynn Marks
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Julie Marks is a freelance writer with more than 20 years of experience covering health, lifestyle, and science topics. In addition to writing for Everyday Health, her work has bee...