Here at Holistic Wellness, we get at least one call each day asking if we can help rebalance female hormones. Some of these women have acne, others PCOS, still others have painful menstrual cycles or have never felt right after pregnancy. Through an individualized approach using nutrition, exercise, appropriate laboratory testing, botanical remedies, detoxification and supplementation we can help correct imbalances.
Here’s a tiny snippet on why detoxification is important:
Xenoestrogens are substances that biologically function like estrogen but are not identical to the hormones we make in our body. There are three kinds of xenoestrogens: naturally occurring ones such as saponins in the yam species, deliberately manufactured estrogen analogues such as HRT or oral contraceptives, and substances manufactured for a different purpose but possessing estrogen-like properties. Women should be aware of avoidable exposure and actively support their body’s detoxification process if they want to rebalance their helter skelter hormones.
A few of the many sources of xenoestrogens include intravaginal spermicide, make-up, canned foods containing BPA, dental sealants, baby bottles, plastic food wrap and containers, herbicides, pesticides and detergents whose alkyl phenols release estrogenic byproducts upon degradation. Because these substances persist in the body, they can lead to hormone imbalances over long periods of time. Pollutants acting as xenoestrogens will disrupt the body’s healthy balance of hormones and interfere with normal liver function, the ramifications of which are extensive and far-reaching. Preservatives in cosmetic products such as parabens are easily absorbed through the skin and accumulate in breast tissue. Since xenoestrogens are impossible to completely avoid, optimizing their metabolism should be addressed.
The beauty of Naturopathic Care is that it can address many possible contributors to hormone imbalance. Through an individualized approach using nutrition, exercise, appropriate laboratory testing, botanical remedies, detoxification and supplementation to correct imbalances, hormone imbalances can often be improved.
