Hormones
The hormones panel covers sex steroid hormones and the binding protein that regulates them: estradiol (the main estrogen), SHBG (which binds sex steroids), the pituitary gonadotropins FSH and LH, progesterone, and the precursor androstenedione. Many of these vary strongly by sex, menstrual cycle phase, and menopausal status, so the population distributions are wide. Values come from the NHANES 2017-March 2020 sex steroid hormone subsample.
Also listed under Endocrine .
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are the hormone distributions so wide?
Estradiol, progesterone, FSH, and LH change substantially across the menstrual cycle and around menopause. A population sample captures every phase and stage at once, so the spread within a sex and age band is large by nature.
Why is there no testosterone page?
Total testosterone was not part of the public NHANES 2017-March 2020 sex steroid hormone file, so it is not included here. Only the hormones that are available in that public dataset are shown.
How are values below the detection limit handled?
NHANES replaces results below the assay detection limit with the detection limit divided by the square root of 2. For groups where many people have low concentrations, the lower percentiles can reflect this imputation, which is noted on each affected page.