Natural Hormone Balancing

The endocrine system works in concert with the nervous system to maintain homeostasis, or equilibrium, in our body’s biochemical functioning. The endocrine system produces numerous hormones that work synergistically. Hormones are biochemical messengers that exert profound metabolic influences throughout the body.

Because hormone production and function are both nutrient-based, the endocrine system is readily impacted by nutritional imbalances and deficiencies. In addition to nutritional deficiencies, both physiologic stress and liver toxicity can impact hormone balance. It is not surprising that 80% of women today have some type of hormone imbalance.

The majority of women demonstrate estrogen dominance, a condition in which a woman can have deficient, normal or excessive levels of estrogen with too little progesterone to balance the estrogen level. Estrogen only functions properly when it is in the right proportion with progesterone. Estrogen dominance can be exacerbated by various factors including: stress, xenohormone exposure (synthetic substances which have a hormone-like effect on the body) oral contraceptive use, adrenal fatigue, poor diet, nutritional deficiency, cycles lacking ovulation, and obesity.

Symptoms of estrogen dominance include: heavy bleeding, cramping, bloating, water retention, breast tenderness, fibrocystic breasts, weight gain, headaches, irritability, depression, anxiety, decreased sexual response, insomnia, sugar cravings, etc.

Progesterone deficiency is quite a common occurrence in women because stress encourages the shunting of our body’s progesterone in favor of cortisol production. Cortisol helps to modulate our stress response stress by influencing blood sugar, regulating electrolytes, and affecting nervous system function. Since progesterone can be used as precursor to cortisol, it often gets “robbed” in times of stress for this purpose. Symptoms of progesterone deficiency include: PMS, cramping, poor concentration, short term memory impairment, muscle tension, spasm, fibromyalgia, water retention, etc.

Re-establishing hormone balance requires a multi-facetted therapeutic approach. Proper nutrition is required for hormone production and function. Liver detoxification is necessary as well to establish hormonal balance. The liver is the organ responsible for processing and manufacturing of hormones. When congested, hormones are not processed adequately and can lead to signs and symptoms of imbalance including PMS, insomnia, menopausal symptoms, fatigue, cramping, etc.

Bioidentical hormones are another option for re-establishing hormonal balance in women. Unlike synthetic hormones, these natural hormones are identical to human hormones in structure and function. They are derived from diosgenin, a plant oil extracted from soybeans and wild yams. Diosgenin is very similar to cholesterol, which the human body uses to make steroid hormones, including: estrogens, progesterone, and androgens such as testosterone and DHEA. Diosgenin is chemically altered in the laboratory to identically match human hormones.

Along with nutrition, lifestyle coaching, and detoxification, bioidentical hormones are utilized to match the unique needs of each woman in achieving optimal hormone balance. Hormone balance has a profound on reproductive function, energy level, mental clarity, emotions and overall well-being.