Let’s Get Healthy Hormones

Happy Sunday everyone!! As many of you know, I have been struggling to keep my hormones happy and healthy. After I started increasing the amount of plant-based meals I had, I began losing tons of energy. To say the least, veganism was not sustainable for me and the amount that I exercise. I found I had been lacking B12 which made me insanely tired. I have been eating more animal products and taking a B12 supplement and have found that I feel much better. However, I don’t have my period and I am underweight. I now know that I need to be eating more especially because of my activity level. With this, I wanted to research hormones and the importance of them and how we can keep them feeling good. I think posts like these can be very overwhelming so I tried to stream-line it and keep a flow to it.

What are hormones?

Hormones are chemicals that coordinate different functions in your body and tell your body what to do and when. Hormones help control metabolism, homeostasis, growth/development, sexual function, mood, sleep, and reproduction. Since our hormones play a pivotal role in our health and show us signs, imbalances need to be addressed.

Hormones are also neurotransmitters which relay messages between the brains nerve cells to muscles which coordinate mood, cognition, and movement.

What is the endocrine system?

The hormone producing glands and organs make up the endocrine system. The endocrine system allows hormones to travel to other parts of the body and regulate how much of each hormone is released. Therefore, it is in charge of energy control for the whole body. Hormonal imbalances can be seen from weight gain or loss, fatigue, sweating, decreased sex drive, increased sensitivity, etc.

What affects hormones?

Stress, infection, diet, sleep, etc. can affect your hormones. Stress can be internal or external, emotional, physical, and/or mental. Your diet (not a specific diet, just meaning the foods you eat) could be too strict, or too loose.

How do we keep the endocrine system healthy and balance hormones?

To keep the endocrine system healthy you should eat healthy and exercise, but it’s very important to maintain a healthy weight. You can also include iodine in your diet and balance your hormones. To balance your hormones, make sure to eat enough protein as this will provide the body with amino acids to produce polypeptide hormones. Also eat healthy fats and fiber to help you feel full and regulated. Get enough sleep!! Sleep is so important in our overall health and not getting enough sleep will cause hormone imbalances.

We can also balance our hormones and keep a healthy endocrine system by improving our gut health. Gut health means a proper balance of bacteria in the gut. Improving gut health leads to greater amounts of energy, boosted mood, easier fight against disease. The gut is the root of everything because it helps with digestion and works to absorb what we eat and use it as fuel. I learned that around 70-80% of the immune system is your gut. So, to keep a healthy body we need a healthy gut.

How to improve gut health?

Eat/drink probiotics to “Help your body digest food. Keep bad bacteria from getting out of control and making you sick. Create vitamins. Help support the cells that line your gut to prevent bad bacteria.” Also eat prebiotics. Probiotics are are live bacteria whereas prebiotics feed the good bacteria in your body. Prebiotics are found in oats, barley, leeks, asparagus, apples, cocoa, flax seeds, garlic, onion, banana, etc. These foods are high in a certain fiber that supports digestion. It is also important to practice wellness techniques such as meditation and relaxation. This will help gut health, hormones, and the endocrine system.

Why does it matter?

We need to keep the endocrine system healthy because if not we can have problems with infertility, thyroid, diabetes, irregular periods, etc. Further, the gut is the basis of everything so keeping this healthy will keep you healthy. It can help with digestive problems, your immune system, prevention of disease, and more.

So… What can you do?

Overall, try to eat balanced meals full of fiber, protein, healthy fats, carbs and nourish your body. Eat your fruits and veggies too! Stay active and move your body. There is no specific workout you need to do, just move your body in a way that feels good to you. Rest and take time for you. Work on de-stressing.