The milk hormone or prolactin is what stimulates the breast to produce milk during lactation, and this hormone can rise or decrease due to some health problems or according to certain conditions, causing disturbing symptoms. Learn more about the rise and fall of the milk hormone, its causes, symptoms and treatment according to each gender during this the article.

Prolactin is a hormone produced by the pituitary gland to help stimulate and maintain the production of breast milk. Sometimes the blood prolactin level may rise during pregnancy or immediately after delivery to stimulate the breasts to produce milk for breastfeeding. However, prolactin can be increased or decreased when using Certain medications or other health problems.

Normal prolactin levels

The normal ratio of the milk hormone (prolactin) is:

• Men: Less than 20 ng/mL (425 µg/L).
• Non-pregnant women: Less than 25 ng/mL (25 µg/L).
• pregnant women: 80 to 400 ng/mL (80 to 400 µg/L).

Reasons for high milk hormone

Most often, an increase in prolactin, or what is known as hyperprolactinemia, occurs in the blood due to pregnancy and lactation, which is normal, but what is less than that is not normal. Other causes of high prolactin include the following:

• Pituitary tumors (prolactinoma), as 50% of people with high prolactin hormone suffer from this type of tumor, but it is not cancerous.
• Hypothyroidism or hypothyroidism.
• Injuries or irritation to the chest wall from scarring, a bra that is too tight, or shingles (herpes zoster).
• Cushing’s syndrome.
• Infection, tumor, or trauma to the hypothalamus.
• Chronic liver and kidney disease.
• Some natural herbs such as fenugreek, fennel seeds, and red clover.
• Nipple stimulation.
• Excessive stress or exercise.

Medications that cause hyperprolactinemia include:

• Histamine H2 blockers such as cimetidine.
• Antihypertensive drugs such as verapamil.
• Medicines containing estrogen.
• contraceptive drugs
• Antidepressants such as desipramine and clomipramine.
• Anti-nausea medications such as metoclopramide.
• Pain relievers (opioids and opiates).
• Medicines for serious mental health disorders (antipsychotics).

Sometimes a cause for hyperprolactinemia may not be found.

Reasons for low milk hormone

There are a number of reasons that lead to low prolactin levels in both men and women, including the following:

• Sheehan’s syndrome: Because of a large amount of blood drop during or after childbirth, which threatens life and leads to the inability to breastfeed.
• smoking: Whereas, there is evidence that decreased breast milk in women who smoke cigarettes may be related to the effect of nicotine on prolactin production.
• Remains of retained placentaThe placenta contains hormones that are known to lower prolactin levels.

Signs of a milk hormone disorder

It is sometimes difficult to detect signs of high or low prolactin hormone in men because prolactin levels affect the menstrual cycle or the amount of breast milk production in women, and the symptoms of milk hormone disorders differ depending on the gender, and therefore the nature of the symptoms in women differs from the symptoms that Talk to men.

Diagnosing a milk hormone disorder

The doctor does a blood test to check your prolactin levels. If your prolactin levels are higher or lower than normal, the doctor will test for other conditions. They may suspect a tumor in the pituitary gland (prolactinoma) so they will order an MRI scan. To try to determine if there is a tumor in the pituitary gland or not to determine the appropriate treatment for your condition.

Treatment of milk hormone disorder

Treatment for a prolactinemia disorder mostly focuses on restoring hormone levels to normal, but if a tumor is present, surgery may be needed to remove the prolactinoma, but the tumor can often be treated with medication.

Treatment of high milk hormone

• radiation.
• Description of synthetic thyroid hormones.
• Prescribe a prolactin-lowering medication such as bromocriptine or cabergoline.

Duration of treatment of high milk hormone

The duration of treatment ranged from 12 to 84 months, and the duration of observation after drug completion ranged from 12 to 60 months.

Treatment of low milk hormone

• Hormone therapy.
• Medicines that help raise the prolactin hormone.

Treatment of low milk hormone with herbs

• the ring.
• ginger.
• Fennel seeds.
• red clover

In the end, after knowing the reasons for the decrease and rise in the milk hormone, its symptoms, its sign, and methods of treatment, you should not follow any prescriptions or treatment methods without referring to the specialist doctor, so that these prescriptions do not conflict with your condition and lead to bigger problems, and we wish you a speedy recovery.