A very interesting concept is being developed embodying the idea that decreasing hormone production leads to a condition that has a specific set of symptoms that may be labeled as "somapause" or "somatopause". This term refers to a condition where many of the body's hormones are decreasing with age, especially HGH.

We have seen that, for a number of the body's hormones, the levels in the body tend to decrease with age. In the case of the sex steroids, estrogen and progesterone, this produces in women a set of conditions which are formally recognized as menopause. In men, an equivalent condition - andropause - also manifests itself (although more gradually) as the production of testosterone biologically available decreases with age. And so it is for most of the hormones we have mentioned so far, with the exception of insulin and cortisol, which often tend to increase with age, bringing their own related disease problems.

In the case of HGH, where adults exhibit low serum IGF-1 levels, a condition called Growth Hormone Deficiency Syndrome is now recognized and accepted. Some of the symptoms include impaired psychological well being, increased abdominal obesity, and reduced strength and exercise capacity. Other signs that may be indicative of growth hormone deficiency (GHD) are mixed obesity; increased hip-waist ratio; thin, dry, cool peripheral limbs; hyperlipidemia; decreased creatinine clearance; reduced lean muscle mass; reduced basal metabolic rate; fatigue; and reduced bone density. All patients with GHD should be eligible for methods to increase HGH, whether it is by use of secretogogues or by direct HGH injection.

Further, in the near future, it would appear likely that, just as menopause and andropause are formally recognized as treatable medical conditions, so too, somapause will be similarly recognized. Given that circumstance, it would appear likely, then, that somapause will become eligible for medical treatment as well.