Could Estrogen Dominance be why you aren’t losing weight?
Are you having trouble losing weight even though you feel like you are doing all the right things? Well listen up, because it may just be a hormonal issue that can easily be adjusted with a few lifestyle changes. I want to talk to you about estrogen dominance because it is one of the more common hormonal imbalances in women, and can lead to frustrating symptoms that leave us confused about what is happening to our bodies and seeking answers in all the wrong places (like medications to cover up symptoms) rather than eliminating multiple symptoms at a time and getting to the root cause!
First, let's talk about what estrogen dominance even is. In simple terms, it means you have high levels of estrogen, but being that hormones are tiny messengers that communicate to all your cells and tissues, it means that the influence of estrogen on your cellular function is higher than what is considered normal. Also, estrogen and progesterone balance each other out, so when progesterone levels are low, it causes estrogen to increase. This can wreak havoc on cellular communication, leading to symptoms like weight gain, dry and brittle hair, hair loss, breast tenderness, increased PMS, heavy cramps, irregular periods, migraines, anxiety, depression, bloating, water retention and puffiness, fatigue, poor sleep quality, low sex drive, irregular bowel movements, and even low thyroid function which means a decreased metabolism.
What's to blame? Many factors. Birth control will increase estrogen because it stops ovulation, and progesterone is a hormone released when you are ovulating. Remember how I said that low levels of progesterone will cause an increase in estrogen? Also, hormone replacement therapy after menopause or a hysterectomy can still cause your estrogen levels to increase because it provides high levels of sythetic estrogen which your body has a harder time metabolizing out. Another factor is high levels of cortisol and insulin due to high stress lifestyles. These two hormones can effect thyroid function and cause you to hold on to fat, and the more fat you have, the more estrogen you will produce. Your fat cells produce estrogen! Then you have liver function. If your liver is clogged due to excess alcohol consumption, too many meds, or high levels of trans fats in the diet (which is found in hydrogenated oils, baked goods, pizza doughs, margarine, ice cream, and other processed foods) then that will enable estrogen from being metabolized out through the liver and it will be reabsorbed by the body. Another way that diet factors in is through nutrient deficient diets such as those low in protein, B-vitamins, zinc, Omega-3's, and magnesium. You need these vitamins and nutrients to help metabolize estrogen out of the body. If you don't enjoy eating seafood, meat, nuts, and veggies, it's important to supplement with these nutrients. Lastly, xenoestrogens are chemical estrogens that are found in plastics, beauty products, cookware toxins, and pesticides, that mimic natural estrogens in the body and not biodegradable, so they are stored in your fat cells, acting like estrogens, and increasing the hormonal response in your body.
So what steps can you take to rebalance your progesterone to estrogen ratio?
1) The first and most important step is to clean up your nutrition. Start buying organic as much as possible to eliminate hormone-disrupting and disease-causing pesticides and herbicides on your food. Then try to focus on nutrient dense foods like fish, nuts, whole grains, green vegetables, and organic, grass-fed, growth hormone-free red meat. Eat more cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, broccoli rabe, cauliflower, and brussels, because they have a compound called I3C that is a natural estrogen metabolizer. I take this in supplement form as DIM plus by Nature's Way, and I can tell a huge difference in my period symptoms, acne, and moods when I stop taking it. I swear by this supplement so much that I even recommend it in my Body Upleveled Course.
2) Reduce stress. Of course you can do things like stop watching the news and surrounding yourself with negative people, but stressors are always going to be there. Instead learn to build stress resiliency through techniques such as meditation, visualization, EFT tapping, and mindset shifts. Again, I teach all of these things in Body UpLeveled. Stress kills. It literally has the ability to turn on harmful genes and suppress helpful genes, leading to auto-immune conditions, cancers, and dementia to name a few.
3) Exercise, but specifically, weight train. All forms of exercise help to reduce stress, but weight training has been proven to increase muscle mass which burns more fat. And remember, fat can produce more estrogen. Sweating helps to eliminate out excess estrogen, as well as it is removed through your bowels. Which leads to my next suggestion....
4) Improve gut function by increasing fiber in the diet. Add in foods like psyllium husk flakes to your smoothies, oats, lentils, beans, and fruits like apples and pears. The more fiber the better!
5) Start focusing on what toxins or "xenoestrogens" you are letting in. These enable fat to be broken down in the body as they are stored in your fat cells , causing hormonal disruptions.
6) When it comes to birth control and hormone replacement therapy, talk to a functional medicine doctor about other healthier ways to balance your hormones and prevent pregnancy without harming yourself in the process!