Do you rub it in or not?
The subject of how to apply gel comes up quite frequently, we wanted to share this brilliant advice from Dr Mandy Leonhardt, who runs the hormone equilibrium, along with treating hundreds of women with transdermal Oestrogen gels and has researched extensively with pharmaceutical representatives who produce the gels of which they all advise NOT TO RUB IT IN!
What’s transdermal Oestrogen gel:
- Transdermal Oestrogen gel is used as a form of HRT.
- The gel contains Oestradiol as the active ingredient & the carrier is an alcohol-based gel.
- The gel is clear & fragrance free & feels like hand sanitising gel.
How it works:
- Once the gel is applied to the skin, the oestrogen sinks to the bottom, penetrates the skin & gets absorbed into the deeper layers of the skin.
- The evaporating alcohol enhances the absorption.
- Once the oestrogen is absorbed through the skin, it enters the blood stream & gets transported around the rest of the body.
Where to apply the gel:
- During the clinical trials the gel was applied to the outer upper arm, but the inner forearm is also fine.
- The breast area should be avoided due to tenderness.
- Other areas which are suitable are the inner thighs or behind the knees.
- Rotating the areas frequently is important to achieve stable absorption & avoid skin saturation, which can cause a drop in hormone levels.
How to apply the gel:
- The gel should be applied to the skin directly from the sachet or pump or applied to the fingertips & then transferred to the recommended skin areas.
- Then, it should be gently spread out thinly on the skin surface.
- After the gel has been applied, you’ll need to wait until it has dried naturally – this can take 5 minutes or longer.
Why rubbing the gel into the skin isn’t recommended:
- The rubbing motion will make the alcohol evaporate more quickly and this may reduce the absorption of the Oestrogen.
- The Oestrogen may just sit on the surface and not penetrate the skin deep enough to be absorbed into the blood stream if the alcohol evaporates too quickly.
- This can lead to lower or unstable levels of Oestrogen.
Why is this important:
- It’s important that women who use Oestrogen gel, know how to use it properly.
- Using it properly can prevent having to increase the dose, because the absorption is better long term with the proper technique.
- Better absorption means more stable Oestrogen levels & fewer fluctuations & side effects.
For more information, please visit hormone equilibrium website.
