Estrogen Dominance

The reason behind many of our hormonal related symptoms such as acne and PMS is increased levels of the hormone estrogen and the inability of the body to break this down. This again is caused by leaky gut and liver inefficiency. One of the best ways to get rid if excess estrogen is to support your body’s natural detoxification pathways, thereby your liver, by drinking lemon water, taking DIM (diindolylmethane), dandelion and milk thistle. More solutions and why you get too much estrogen in the first place coming further down;

Estrogen dominance, which is too much estrogen in relation to progesteron, is very common in the women of today. Excess estrogen can lead to a variety of different issues including painful periods, endometriosis, mood swings, irritability, anxiety, depression, brain fog, PMS, hair loss, headaches, breast tenderness, bloating, acne, difficulty losing weight, fatigue, insomnia, low sex drive and memory loss. Basically you feel like crap. So what causes you to have high levels of estrogen? 

STRESS AND CORTISOL

Pregnonelone, which is called the «mother hormone» is the hormone in which you produce cortisol and progesterone from. Stress causes high cortisol, so when you’re chronically stressed you will sacrifice the production of progesterone, and rather make cortisol. (Called pregnenolone steal) This means that you will convert your pregnenolone to cortisol at the expense of progesterone. This causes a depletion in progesterone, which essentialy balances estrogen in the body. In addition to the pregnenolone steal, high stress will force cortisol to block progesterone receptors so that you feel low in progesterone on a cellular level, even if blood levels are normal. Under normal circumstances, pregnenolone is converted into progesterone or DHEA (another steroid hormone), but if progesterone gets too low because it's getting converted into cortisol, this is automatically going to have your estrogen levels be high. 

XENOESTROGENS

Xenoestrogens are chemicals that can mimic estrogen and that acts as an estrogen in the body. They come from outside the body, and just by living our normal lives, we come into contact with hundres of them each day. The women of today are exposed to more toxins and chemicals in a thirty-day period than our grandmother’s generation was exposed to over the course of their entire lives. Xenoestrogens can be found in personal care items such as shampoo, creams, toothpaste, cosmetics and food preservatives and plastic. All these xenoestrogens causes high estrogen. (Can’t even start on hormonal birth control)

DIET

Conventionally raised meat is likely to cause estrogen overload, because of growth hormone found in the animal products. A high intake of refined carbohydrate like white bread and sugar can also reduce progesterone and worsen estrogen dominance. Alcohol consumption and heavy consumption of soy based foods (which contains phytoestrogens, a type of xenoestrogens) can also increase your estrogen levels. Pesticides used on fruit, grains, vegetables etc are also an xenoestrogen.

NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCIES

Some nutritional deficiencies can lead to excess estrogen. Two examples:

1. Copper and zinc, and the balance between the two, has everything to do with hormone balance. The more estrogen you have in your body, the higher your copper levels go, and vice versa, the more copper in your body, the higher your estrogen levels. Just as copper is correlated to estrogen, so is zinc to progesterone. So if you have a problem with your mineral balance, work to restore that, and the hormones will balance themselves naturally.

2. A deficiency causes your ability to break down estrogen to be less effective, as the liver needs specific nutrients to do its many job. Converting thyroid hormone and detoxifying estrogen are just a couple of vital functions your liver needs nutrients to perform. (B6, magnesium ++)

SOLUTION

Don’t eat or drink from plastic. Use glass or stainless steel. Look for natural beauty products. Reduce alcohol. Eat more nutrient dense food like eggs, organ meats, bone broth, herbs and sprouts. Sleep more. Stress less by prioritizing mindful practices like meditation and yoga, being in nature, etc. Choose organic food.