HOW DOES YOUR GUT HEALTH AFFECT YOUR HORMONES?

The world of women’s hormones can seem really intimidating but it doesn’t need to be. If there is one thing to keep in mind when we dig into women’s health it is that everything is connected. We can’t discuss PCOS without addressing stress. We really can’t discuss our thyroid without discussing our minerals. We definitely cannot discuss our hormones without discussing our gut.

If we had to really pick one system to trace most issues back to it would be our gut. Our gut is an amazing, sophisticated system. In fact, up to 80% of our immune system function comes from our gut.

We could speak about gut health and the very intricate details for quite some time. There will be more on this topic, but for now the basic idea is this:

• No matter how great of a diet we have, how relaxed we are or how many supplements we take…if our gut is not able to break down and absorb those nutrients then it doesn’t really matter.

• Estrogen is discarded in our stool. If we are not pooping 1-2 times a day then we are not getting rid of estrogen and therefore getting a build-up of estrogen (as well as other toxins).

• Parasites or pathogens put the body into a state of chronic stress which leads to you making more cortisol and in turn affecting your adrenals, thyroid, blood sugar while exacerbating conditions like PCOS and endometriosis.

The pyramid shows just one way that gut health affects our hormones. As you can see, hormone imbalance is just the tip of the iceberg.

So what is “gut health”? Health means different things to different people. For the sake of this topic I would define a healthy gut as:

• Being balanced in good and opportunistic bacteria (for example not experiencing yeast infections)

• Low inflammation markers

• Free from pathogens (such as H.Pylori)

• Having 1-2 normal bowel movements a day

• Not experiencing excessive bloating

So what causes poor gut health?? Inflammation. But is inflammation a symptom or a root cause? We can take it one step further. What causes inflammation in the gut?

• Chronic stress

• Not enough stomach acid or digestive enzyme

• Gut bacteria imbalance

• Medications

• Insulin resistance

• Parasites, candida, pathogens

• High or low estrogen

• High androgens

• Low progesterone

Addressing these triggers is important but it’s best to “test not guess”. It is not a one size fits all. We can’t just take a supplement and be cured. We need to address gut health with a stool sample to really see the state of the gut and identify imbalances and possible parasites/pathogens.

There are some things we can do on daily basis to help support our gut: Reduce stress, incorporate pre and probiotics, bone broth protein, collagen and/or gelatin.

This blog post is for informational purposes only and is not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here.