I was giving a keynote presentation to a group of dynamic women as part of a Women’s Retreat at Champneys. They were a mix of homemakers, businesswomen, professional women, charity patrons, mothers, travellers … All significant spouses of the World President’s Organisation (WPO).
My talk was focused on optimising the health and wellbeing of Women In Transition. The planned 40-minute talk quickly turned into a 2-hour one as there was a lot of information to share with plenty of discussions, engagements, AHA moments and fun.
We went through the common hormonal imbalances that cause the common challenges women go through each passing year e.g.
– weight gain
– brain fog
– difficulty sleeping
– loss of libido
– skin aging
– less resilience to stress
– increase risk of sickness
– loss of energy
– lower mood
…. How to recognise the warning signs and what we can do to prevent and treat them naturally.
I will not be able to give you the whole presentation here in the blog (some of the information however will be available in my upcoming book The Hormonal Acne Solution) but I would like to share with you the summary I shared with the women.
Here are my Top 5 Must Do to balance your hormones, feel happier and younger. In no particular order, they are …
1. Live Clean
This will be so much easier when spring is almost here. Time for a spring clean.
What can you do to eat, breath, drink, wash, move and sleep cleaner? Look at the products you are using and the food you are buying – are they organically sourced? Do they have chemicals or artificial hormones which can poison your own hormonal system, causing Oestrogen Dominance (too much of the bad oestrogen). Oestrogen (the female hormone) is what I call the Diva Hormone. It gives us hips, bust and makes us feel like a woman. However, too much of a Diva can cause problems, resulting in weight gain, irritability, endometriosis, fibroids, worsening PMS or Perimenopause or increase risk of breast cancer. You can view a list of Xeno-Oestrogen (artificial hormones) on the website of National College of Natural Medicine.
2. Take your Omega 3
This is one of my favourite supplements. If I would choose only one to have, it would have to be my Omega 3. It’s a powerful anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant. It reduces hot flushes by 40%, reduce sun damage by 50% and reduce heart disease. I would recommend take 1000mg/ day and my favourite brands are Udo’s Oil, NutriAdvanced (Eskimo-3) and BioCare – they all don’t taste fishy.
I manage to secure you a 15% discount from Nutricentre – one of the best online stores that houses the best supplements I know. Call customer service on 0208 752 8450 and quote the code ZZTLO015 to activate the offer.
3. Boost your Progesterone
Progesterone is produced in the 2nd half of your cycle and is what I call your Oestrogen’s Best Friend – the Calming Hormone. Progesterone stabilises the uterus wall, ready for implantation. Progesterone controls the growth of breast cells, preventing cyst and cancer. Progesterone calms the mind, skin and contributes to a restful night. From the age of 35 years old due to stress or the toxic environment, low progesterone is pretty common and this can be presented as PMS, painful periods, sore breast, feeling bloated and skin breakouts.
A good way to check is to check your blood levels on Day 21 of your cycle (Day 1 is the first day of your period). Your Progesterone: Oestrogen ratio should be between 100-500, ideally 300. If it’s less, you have low Progesterone.
You can naturally boost your calming hormone by eating 2 eggs a week (as long as you’re not allergic to eggs), eat your green leafy vegetables, your Vitamin B and C’s and hang out with your girlfriends for some productive bonding.
4. Limit your Coffee/Alcohol
Coffee stimulates production of the stress hormone cortisol which in too much for too long causes inflammation, sugar imbalance and high blood pressure. Alcohol affects the metabolism of Oestrogen, leading to a build up of “bad” oestrogen, causing Oestrogen Dominance. Consider this – 1 glass of wine increases the risk of breast cancer by 11%. I would recommend limiting your alcohol intake to 2-3 glasses a week and 2 cups of coffee a week (if at all). Try to swap to green tea and slowly on the decaffeinated coffee or tea. Green tea is a powerful antioxidant and anti-aging agent too.
5. Fix what’s irritating you
Holding on to frustrations, irritations, anger and grudges is stressful. This will increase the stress hormone cortisol which causes internal inflammation, increase sugar cravings and cause premature aging. In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), holding anger can lead to heart burn, stomach problems, heart disease and even cancer.… Not to mention angry-looking wrinkles. So be aware of it, resolve it, laugh at it or let it go.
And that’s my Top 5 Must Do’s to Balance your hormones, feel younger and happier.