4 ways to regulate to hormone health.

As women and menstruators, we are no longer taught how to understand and nourish our body’s hormones and biological cycles.  

Instead we are led to believe that we are linear and that hormone imbalance conditions like PMS, painful menstruation, irregular periods, fatigue, mood swings, fertility problems and low libido are ‘normal’.  It’s just not true and you can live with vibrant, luscious health by optimisising your hormonal flow.

We are all unique but our hormones essentially function and cycle in the same way. How we respond, is the difference we need to uncover.  

Seriously why are we not taught this in school!? 

We can consider hormone health as an intricate web of interrelated elements and systems that work together to co-create optimal endocrine (hormone) function. A functional approach to hormone health, is one that looks at the way that hormones work in the body and seeks to address the interconnected systems that impact them.

Nutrition plays a big role in hormone health! So does regulating your nervous system, movement and sleep.

We don’t want bandaid solutions! Symptoms are incredibly useful in communicating an imbalance but treating only symptoms does not heal the root cause of a hormone issue; working to optimise system and hormone fuction will!

Practicing nutrition and lifestyle stategies that promote hormone balance is a sustainable path toward optimal health and wellness.

Nutrition.

The food that you eat provides the raw materials that your body and cycle need to function properly; think nutritional building blocks that construct hormones, neurotransmitters and literally every cell in your body! Each body system, organ and bio-chemical reaction, uses nutrients to do its beautiful job of keeping you alive, healthy and happy.

This means that you have a base-line of nutrients that are required for your hormones to operate properly. If your diet is lacking, imbalances soon follow. Whole, nutrient-dense food, with a balance of grains, vegetables, fruit, proteins and good fats, hugely benefits your hormone health.

Building health from the roots up means eating real food!

Balancing your blood-sugar levels throughout the day and month is truly a game changer in hormone health. The right amount of protein, carbs, fibre and fats that work for you, helps to slow down the release of glucose into the bloodstream, minimising the sugar and cortisol spikes that follows, keeping hormones in a happy, healthy state.

A major tip here, is; eat breakfast. A big, protein rich one, that will give you enough energy and concentration to make it through to lunch without snacking!

Regulating your nervous system.

One of the most effective interventions to improve hormone health, is stress management. We have all heard of the negative impacts of stress but if you only knew the bio-chemical havoc that it wreaks on your hormones, then you would truly take your morning meditation goals more seriously!

Your nervous system is not very evolved from it’s ancient orgins and still attempts to protect you when facing threats to your safety, whether that be a saber-tooth tiger, finacial stress or too many things on your too-do list! Basically you switch from the parasympathetic mode, ‘rest and digest’, into sympathetic mode, ‘fight or flight’, when you are stressing out, which re-directs the body’s resources to your muscles and heart and away from your digestive and reproductive systems.

In the ‘fight or flight’ mode, adrenaline kicks in and eventually cortisol, which if left un-checked for too long, messes with your body’s ability to produce sex hormones and digestive juices and dysregulates your blood-sugar levels and insulin sensitivity.

So literally when you are under stress, you body can’t produce the hormones that you need to function properly. Stress absolutely equals hormone imbalance. Try meditation, belly-breathing, journaling, exercise or emersing yourself in nature.

Movement.

Regular exercise is fantastic for the body and mind on so many levels! Exercise can help to regulate sex hormones, PMS, period pain and help to faciliate blood flow during menstruation. It is a balancing act though, with excessive exercise putting pressure on your nervous system during times when your body is needing rest and pushing you into a ‘fight or flight’ nervous response.

Both cardio and strength training have been shown to have immense health benefits by reducing circulating oestrogen, promoting healthy testosterone production, regulating blood-glucose levels, building lean muscle and contributing to bone, heart and brain health.

Movement is also wildly underated when it comes to mental health. Exercise absolutely regulates your mood and mind throughout the month, supporting you to alchemise daily worries and aid the production of happy hormones and neurotransmitters.

Learning to listen to your body goes a long way when it comes to exercise and hormone health. Despite all the beneits listed above, pushing too hard when you are under chronic stress or when you have your period will be counter-productive and quickly result in imbalance. So rest when you need to rest and go hard when it’s right for you.

Sleep.

Sleep is indirectly responsible for maintaining a state of homeostasis or balance in the body, by regulating the production and secretion of many important hormones, including melatonin, cortisol, growth hormone, leptin and ghrelin.

Ongoing sleep disturbance is linked to irregular menstrual cycles, sub or infertility, PCOS, early ovarian insufficiency and can have serious effects on reproductive outcomes. In addition to this, poor or inaqequate sleep is connected to insulin resistance, weight gain, diabetes and changes in appetite.

To aid your sleep, turn off devices 2 hours before sleep, go to sleep at the same time every night, keep your bedroom cool and dark and expose your eyes to natural sunlight within the first 10 minutes after waking up.

Your brain and hormones, love structure and consistency. Create yourself a sleep hygiene program and stick to it! Your sleep routine is very personal, so create one that works for you and your unique family situation. Repetition creates a switch in your brain, that clicks on ‘bedtime mode’ when you initiate your routine; this hack is more effective than you might think!

I like to journal out my day whilst having a cup of chamomile tea 1/2 an hour before bed.

Hopefully you can see that hormone health is not a quick-fix, add a few supplements solution. It takes a few months to balance out your body by addressing multiple avenues of wellness, but once you learn how, you will have the skills to navigate your female health for many years ahead! Sometimes individuals will still need to also see a naturopath for herbal support if there are microbial imbalances or chronic health conditions, but The Menstrual Garden is the perfect base to start!

If you are interested in 1:1 holistic nutrition consultations, send through a booking enquiry and we can get started on improving your hormone health today.