Four Ways Your Digestion is Preventing You From Balancing Your Hormones
I know. How can someone be a hormone + gut nutritionist. Aren’t they two different things? Nope, girlfriend they are intimately connected in so many ways! In my practice I always address the foundations first which include gut and mineral balance before moving into hormones. This is an integral piece to healing and one that is often missed.
Time and time again I have seen clients that get a hormone panel from their doc and are put on some supplements or hormone replacement therapy and either never get better or only feel better for a little while before shit hits the fan again. Why is this?
It’s because you never addressed the root cause of the hormonal imbalance in the first place and 9x out of 10 once you fix what’s going on in the gut the hormone issues can resolve.
Let me explain...
⫸ Gallbladder/ Bile Issues
Bile is an important component to the elimination of estrogen. Estrogen is escorted out of the body through bile. A sluggish liver or gallbladder or no gallbladder at all leads to sluggish hormone elimination. This explains why women who have their gallbladders removed often suffer from symptoms of estrogen dominance.
⫸ Poor liver function
The liver is important in so many way for hormones function. First it is responsible for creating the bile to then be passed through the gallbladder. It also plays a integral role in thyroid function, the liver is where the inactive thyroid hormone T4 turns into the active from T3. The thyroid is our main metabolic gland and conductor. If your thyroid is not optimal your sex hormones will suffer.
⫸ Low Stomach Acid
Contrary to popular believe heartburn is actually caused by low stomach acid - not too much. You can think of stomach acid as your digestive fire, it helps to break down your food into nutrients to be used by the body. Guess what hormones need to function optimally? Lots and lots of nutrients and minerals! If you are not breaking down your food efficiently you will be mineral depleted creating a hormonal shit storm.
⫸ Chronic Constipation or Diarrhea
Constipation is so detrimental to our health in more ways than one but I will tell ya, if you got constipation you are probably dealing with some hormonal shit too. Constipation prevents the body’s natural detox process from happening. Excess hormones are excreted through the bowels. If this does not happen it causes reabsorption of toxins and hormones. And chronic diarrhea or multiple bowel movements a day can deplete us of those minerals we need to keep our endocrine system happy and nourished.Let me know, do you think your digestion is playing a role in your hormonal symptoms? PMS, breast tenderness, moodiness, anxiety, irregular cycles, heavy periods, cramping, brain fog, fatigue, weight issues, dry skin, just to name a few...