Hormone Testing: Check Your Hormone Balance with a Blood Test

Hormones are chemical messengers that travel through your bloodstream and regulate virtually every process in your body — from metabolism and mood to sleep, reproduction, and stress response. Even small imbalances can produce significant symptoms that affect your quality of life. Hormone levels naturally fluctuate with age, but factors like chronic stress, poor sleep, diet, environmental toxins, and medical conditions can push them out of balance at any age.

The challenge is that hormonal symptoms are often vague and overlapping: fatigue, weight changes, mood swings, low libido, and sleep disturbances could point to several different hormonal issues. Many people who come to us suspect their hormones when they do not feel like themselves, and sometimes they are right. Blood testing removes the guesswork by measuring your actual hormone levels.

At Wellth, our hormone panels are designed to give you a clear snapshot of your hormonal health. Whether you suspect a specific imbalance or simply want to establish a baseline, our accredited laboratory partners analyse your blood with the same precision used in hospital laboratories.

Key Biomarkers for Hormone Health

Cortisol

Cortisol, often called the stress hormone, is produced by the adrenal glands and follows a diurnal pattern — highest in the morning and lowest at night. Chronically elevated cortisol from prolonged stress can disrupt sleep, increase abdominal fat storage, impair immune function, and affect other hormones.

Testosterone

Testosterone is important for both men and women, affecting energy, muscle mass, bone density, mood, and libido. In men, testosterone naturally declines by about 1 to 2 percent per year after age 30. In women, it plays a role in energy and sexual health.

Oestradiol and progesterone

Oestradiol (the primary form of oestrogen) and progesterone are key reproductive hormones in women, influencing the menstrual cycle, mood, bone health, and cardiovascular protection.

DHEA-S and SHBG

DHEA-S is an adrenal hormone and precursor to both testosterone and oestrogen — low levels may indicate adrenal fatigue or aging-related decline. SHBG (sex hormone-binding globulin) affects how much of your testosterone and oestrogen is freely available to your tissues.

The thyroid

Thyroid hormones (TSH, Free T4) are also frequently included in hormone panels, as thyroid dysfunction often mimics or coexists with other hormonal imbalances.

Hormone Balance Panel →Cortisol Test →Testosterone Test →

Signs You Should Get Your Hormones Tested

  • Persistent fatigue despite adequate sleep and rest
  • Unexplained weight gain, especially around the midsection
  • Low libido or sexual dysfunction
  • Mood swings, irritability, anxiety, or depression
  • Difficulty sleeping or waking feeling unrefreshed
  • Loss of muscle mass or strength
  • Irregular or painful menstrual cycles
  • Hot flushes, night sweats, or other perimenopausal symptoms
  • Acne, excessive hair growth, or hair thinning
  • Difficulty concentrating or brain fog

What Your Results Might Show

Cortisol

Elevated morning cortisol may suggest your body is in a chronic stress state, which can cascade into other hormonal disruptions. Cortisol that fails to drop appropriately in the evening may contribute to sleep difficulties.

Testosterone

Low testosterone in men can manifest as fatigue, reduced motivation, decreased muscle mass, and low mood — levels below approximately 8 nmol/L in men are typically considered low. In women, elevated testosterone or DHEA-S alongside symptoms like acne, hair growth, and irregular periods may warrant investigation for polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Oestrogen and progesterone

Oestrogen and progesterone imbalances can explain irregular cycles, PMS severity, mood changes, and perimenopausal symptoms.

SHBG

Low SHBG (common with insulin resistance) can amplify the effects of testosterone, while high SHBG can reduce bioavailable hormones.

Lifestyle plays a part

A few weeks of poor sleep or heavy stress can shift cortisol and testosterone noticeably. The same result can therefore mean quite different things for two different people. In our clinic we just as often find that sleep, stress or blood sugar has upset the balance.

Your report

Your Wellth report presents your hormone levels in context, explains the relationships between them, and provides guidance on next steps — whether that involves lifestyle modifications, further testing, or a conversation with your GP.

Order a Hormone Panel

Frequently Asked Questions

When is the best time to take a hormone blood test?
Morning testing (before 10 AM) is recommended for most hormone panels, as cortisol and testosterone are highest in the morning and this provides the most standardised comparison to reference ranges. For women tracking reproductive hormones, testing on day 2 to 5 of your menstrual cycle (follicular phase) is typically recommended unless your practitioner advises otherwise.
Can birth control affect my hormone test results?
Yes. Hormonal contraceptives (the pill, patch, ring, or hormonal IUD) significantly affect levels of oestrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and SHBG. If you are taking hormonal contraception, your results reflect medicated levels, not your natural baseline. Your practitioner will interpret your results accordingly.
Do hormone levels change with age?
Yes, significantly. Testosterone in men declines gradually from around age 30. Women experience more dramatic hormonal shifts during perimenopause (typically starting in the mid-40s) and menopause. DHEA-S peaks in your 20s and declines steadily thereafter. Establishing a baseline earlier in life provides valuable context for interpreting later changes.
Can lifestyle changes improve hormone balance?
Absolutely. Regular exercise, adequate sleep (7 to 9 hours), stress management, a nutrient-dense diet, and maintaining a healthy body composition all have well-documented effects on hormone levels. Reducing alcohol and managing blood sugar are also important. Your Wellth report includes personalised lifestyle recommendations based on your results.
What are the symptoms of high cortisol?
Long-term high cortisol can show as weight gain around the middle, poor sleep, feeling tired but wired, sugar cravings, raised blood pressure and getting ill more often. A true overproduction of cortisol, such as Cushing's syndrome, is rare and needs to be investigated by a doctor. Far more often, long-term stress shifts the normal daily rhythm, with cortisol too high in the evening or too flat through the day.
What is oestrogen dominance?
Oestrogen dominance is a term used when oestrogen is high relative to progesterone, rather than a medical diagnosis. It is common in perimenopause, when ovulation becomes less regular and progesterone falls first. Tender breasts, heavy periods, bloating and worse PMS are typical complaints, and blood tests taken at the right point in the cycle show how the two hormones relate. It is a phrase many people bring to us from social media, and it is worth finding out what is really behind the symptoms.
Can women have low testosterone?
Yes. Testosterone matters for women's energy, libido, mood and muscle strength, and levels fall gradually from the thirties onwards. How much of it your body can use also depends on SHBG, so the two are best read together.
What does high or low SHBG mean?
SHBG is a protein that binds testosterone and oestrogen, so it decides how much of these hormones is free to act. High SHBG can come from an overactive thyroid, oral contraceptives or eating too little. Low SHBG is often linked to insulin resistance, PCOS and extra weight around the middle.
What is DHEA?
DHEA is a hormone made by the adrenal glands that your body can turn into testosterone and oestrogen. Levels are highest in your twenties and fall steadily with age. It should not be taken as a supplement without testing and medical advice, because it affects several other hormones at once.
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Wellth Team

Wellth

Our content is written and reviewed by Wellth, and fact-checked against peer-reviewed research and current Swedish clinical guidelines.

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Important to know

Wellth does not diagnose or treat disease. We work with diet, lifestyle and preventive health, alongside the care you already have.

Our reports and sessions do not replace medical advice, and a test result should not be read as a diagnosis. We use both standard healthcare reference ranges and optimal ranges. A value can therefore be normal by healthcare standards and still fall outside the range associated with good health. That does not mean disease, but it can be a chance to act early.

Supplements are only recommended by a nutritional therapist as part of a consultation, never automatically from a test result.

If anything in your results needs to be looked at by a doctor, we will tell you clearly. Contact your healthcare provider if you are worried about your health. Call 1177 for advice, or 112 in an emergency.