The old adage, “You are what you eat,” is quite true. A balanced diet of nutrient-dense foods can help everything from your energy level and digestive system to your ability to focus and your skin and hair. But did you know some foods can help your hormonal equilibrium?
This is important because your hormones control an astounding amount of what goes on in your body. This amazing internal messaging system is fueled by your endocrine system — organs that include your thyroid, sex glands, and pancreas.
When your hormones get out of whack, many uncomfortable symptoms can occur that feel crummy. We discuss those in more detail here.
The Regenerative Health & Wellness Center team offers treatment for hormone imbalance, and they educate you about lifestyle practices you can adopt to support your hormonal system — one of the most impactful being diet. Our integrative approach allows us to dig deep and discover the underlying causes of any condition you struggle with and offer expert, compassionate care.
The endocrine system supplies hormones for a wide range of bodily functions, from your reproductive system to your metabolism, so it’s easy to acknowledge the powerful impact of your diet.
A disrupted hormonal system can cause:
Hormonal problems affect us more as we creep toward middle age. For women, natural life transitions, such as pregnancy, birth, and menopause, can turn our hormones upside down, too.
Your diet impacts your mood, energy level, and mental sharpness, which is why school children have difficulty learning on an empty stomach.
Fortunately, a hormone-supportive diet featuring foods that are low on the glycemic index (GI) and raise your blood sugar gradually are best for your health and your hormones. The Mediterranean diet is a good example. Pillars of a hormone-friendly diet include:
Limiting saturated fat, full-fat dairy products, caffeine, artificial sweeteners, and high-GI carbs (anything “white,” rice, bread, etc.). A diet that helps your hormonal balance also consists of whole foods rather than processed ones.
Whether you have weight to lose or gain, this plan can help restore hormonal balance.
When you visit us to discuss unpleasant symptoms and whether you may be experiencing a hormonal imbalance, the first step is to perform a blood test, so we can learn what your hormone levels are. Results come back in about a week, and if Dr. Foley or Dr. Holdren finds that your levels are low, they may recommend bioidentical hormone therapy treatment.
Bioidentical hormones are derived from plants and act just like the hormones your own body produces.
BHRT is a long-term treatment that slowly releases hormones into your body over the course of months, so you’re freed from managing daily oral pills.
Your brief treatment takes only 30 minutes or less. We place a tiny pellet under the skin in your buttock or upper hip area that contains a completely customized hormone dose. Women who receive estrogen start noticing positive results about three or four days into treatment, and for men who get testosterone treatment, it’s about 7-10 days.
After your initial treatment, we meet with you again before six weeks have elapsed to ensure that your dosage doesn’t need adjustment, that everything is going well, and that you’ve gained relief from your symptoms. After you’re treated for a year, we revisit whether your dosage should change.
The days of being on a symptom roller coaster due to hormone imbalance are over. Call our Holly or Colorado Springs office to schedule an appointment, or reach out to us through our website.
