Study, 1991
How does estradiol treatment affect cholesterol and blood sugar?
Estradiol implants raised HDL cholesterol and lowered fasting blood sugar. They did not change LDL cholesterol, how your body handles glucose after eating, or insulin levels.
What they did
Fifteen premenopausal women received 100 mg estradiol implants under the skin. Blood was tested before and 6 weeks after the implant. A subgroup of 12 women also had glucose tolerance testing to see how their body handles sugar after eating.
What they found
Serum estradiol levels doubled. Total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol increased, specifically the HDL2 subfraction. LDL cholesterol did not change. Fasting glucose levels decreased in the 12 women tested, but glucose response after eating did not change. Insulin levels remained unchanged.
What it means for you
Estradiol implants improved one type of cholesterol and lowered fasting blood sugar but did not change other cholesterol markers or how the body handles glucose during meals. Follow-up was only 6 weeks, so longer-term effects are unknown. The study is small and included only premenopausal women, so results may not apply to other groups.
100
mg estradiol in implant
6
weeks of follow-up
15
women studied
About the study
- Original title
- Lipid and carbohydrate metabolism in premenopausal women given subdermal estradiol implants
- Authors
- Crook D, Montgomery JC, Godsland IF et al.
- Journal
- Hormone and metabolic research = Hormon- und Stoffwechselforschung = Hormones et metabolisme
- Year
- 1991
- Study design
- Study
- Participants
- 12
- What was tested
- 100 mg estradiol subcutaneous implant.
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1055/s-2007-1003645
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