The Importance of Hormones On Our (Esp Women’s) Overall Health and Wellness

Hormonal health is widely misunderstood by many and consequently, ignored. While I am not an expert on this subject matter (an Endocrinologist is), what I am sharing today has more to do with our need to educate ourselves rather than me dispensing god-like advice and replacing your doctor. I repeat: this is not meant to be taken as medical advice.

If you have hormonal concerns, questions, or issues, please consult your health care practitioner (aka your doctor) and ask for a referral to see an Endocrinologist.

What I want to talk about is how much our hormones affect our health. They serve as messengers that travel to all corners of our body and regulate things like mood, reproduction, energy levels (this includes burning and storing fat), stress, our appetites, etc..

They work in perfect harmonies, like individual players in an orchestra. If one is off, the entire symphony is affected and thereby suffers.

There is no magic pill you can take that will “fix” your hormones. Anyone who tries to tell you that is trying to make money (and has probably made an impressive amount already). What I would like for us to understand is the need to educate ourselves on exactly how much influence our hormones have on our body and how the food we eat affects our hormones.

Let me start with a very common scenario I see…women trying to lose weight. Firstly, we stress about it and obsess over it. This polluted diet culture has created an unrealistic standard of beauty that is affecting the way women view themselves. The truth is, all women undergo hormonal fluctuations every month (that’s just the way we are biologically designed). To ignore this fact is to ignore science. Every month, you will have cravings, you will feel bloated due to some water retention and you will eventually menstruate. We need to start listening to our bodies rather than ignoring the signs it desperately tries to tell us.

I have had the misfortune of hearing my girlfriends call themselves “whales” (personally I find that offensive on behalf of whales - which are SO cool) or or other self-deprecating names that imply their impending weight gain after consuming a bag of chips or having a carbohydrate-rich meal. I see women desperately trying to maintain (and stress about) their gym or exercise routine to the point where they won’t allow their body the rest it deserves. Instead, they will push their body to unhealthy levels in order to fulfill the desire to meet the required number of times they were supposed to exercise.

Please listen to your body. If you are constantly tired, sluggish, highly stress reactive, then maybe your cortisol levels are at an unhealthy high and perhaps what’s better for you is to reduce your caffeine intake, get enough sleep, and limit the cardio for now. Cortisol is a stress reactive hormone that will try to protect your organs if it thinks you are in danger. In doing so, it will add fat to the midsection of your body and that’s just one way it will affect you.

We eat things every day that have an impact on our hormones. Caffeine, sugar, meat (that has been hormonally treated) are just a few of the food items we consume that affect our beautiful symphony of hormones. Stress is another factor that will throw off that balance. If you’re not listening to your body, taking time to rest, and sleeping properly, you will find it very hard to get through the day. Eventually, your body will go down piece by piece like a cascade of dominos and result in poor mental health, increased anxiety, mood swings, and other potential health problems.

Let’s try to listen to our bodies…give them the love and appreciation they deserve, and most importantly, listen to the messengers that are desperately trying to talk to you - your hormones.