How to Balance Estrogen
I wanted to dedicate a post to give estrogen some time in the spotlight - even though she gets plenty of attention as it is, but for good reason.
In today’s post, you will learn all about:
The purpose of estrogen and the role it plays in our body and menstrual cycle
What happens when we have too much or too little of it
Root cause of imbalances
How we can go about normalizing levels of estrogen in our bodies
Estrogen is one of the main hormones that our body’s produce. Think of estrogen as the hormone that makes women, women. When we hit puberty, estrogen drives breast development, widens those hips, promotes growth of body hair, and kicks off the beginning of our menstrual cycles. We want her around for many different reasons (discussed below), but it’s also possible to have too much of a good thing, especially in relation to other hormones. Due to factors in our environment, products we use, the diet we eat we can become estrogen dominant. So let’s discuss the good and bad of estrogen.
Estrogen’s Role in the Body
You may hear estrogen go by a variety of different names including estradiol, estriol, and estrone.
Estradiol is the main form of estrogen produced by women of childbearing age
Estriol is the main form in pregnant women
Estrone is the main form after we reach menopause
As discussed, estrogen helps us develop during puberty, but it does a whole lot after that to protect our bodies as well.
For instance, it protects bones in both men and women, is good for cognitive health and memory, helps our skin elasticity and hydration, and plays a role in cholesterol and glucose metabolism. Along with all of that, estrogen is also involved in our heart, blood vessels, muscles, and urinary tract. We love her.
But we also love to hate her, because too much estrogen can put you at a higher risk of certain types of cancer such as breast cancer, thyroid dysfunction, certain autoimmune diseases, and fibroids. Like I said, too much of a good thing.
Signs and Symptoms that Estrogen is Out of Range
Having too much estrogen (or even having too much in comparison to other hormones), also known as estrogen dominance is one of the most common hormonal imbalances in women.
If you have too much estrogen, you might experience:
Bloating
Irritability or intense mood swings
Heavy, painful periods
Weight gain and difficulty losing it
Being more emotional, if you cry over nothing (we’ve all been there, but if it happens all of the time)
Frequent migraines or headaches
Brain fog
If you have too little estrogen, you might experience:
Poor memory
Night sweats or hot flashes
Bladder infections or frequent UTI’s
Sagging breasts (normal part of getting older, but if they are prematurely sagging or if you’ve noticed a sudden change)
Vaginal dryness or a general lack of lubrication (dry skin, eyes, etc.)
More fine lines/wrinkles
Low libido
Periods lasting fewer than 3 days
Root Cause of Imbalances
As you can see, we want a good balance of estrogen on its own and in relation to other hormones. You may have related to some of the symptoms above and are now left wondering, how the heck did this happen?
Low estrogen can be caused by: any issues impacting your ovaries such as menopause, removal of the ovaries, or damage to them; any issues with caloric intake such as anorexia or other eating disorders, malnutrition, excessive exercise, gluten insensitivities, autoimmune conditions, and issues with your thyroid or pituitary gland.
High estrogen can be caused by: certain medications such as antibiotics, oral contraceptives, etc., pesticides in foods, certain artificial ingredients that are considered endocrine disruptors, perfume and other personal care products, plastics and heavy metal exposure, stress, excess body fat (fat cells can store estrogen), anovulatory cycles (not producing progesterone, throwing off the balance), poor liver detoxification and gut health imbalances.
Balancing Estrogen Levels
The only true way to know for sure if you have an imbalance is to ask your doctor to test your levels (or find a practitioner who will test). Because symptoms of estrogen dominance could mean that you have high levels OR it could mean that you have normal levels of estrogen, but lower levels of other hormones. However, the following are diet and lifestyle tips that may help alleviate symptoms in the case of an imbalance. This is not medical advice and you should consult your doctor if you are concerned that you have a hormonal imbalance.
In the case of low estrogen, some of the causes happen naturally such as menopause, but there are also the cases of excessive exercise, malnutrition, and stress that can cause low estrogen to occur. In those cases, here are some ways to help increase levels:
Avoid excess caffeine: some research suggests that caffeine can lower your levels of estradiol. Try switching to decaf or herbal tea to see if it helps reduce symptoms of low estrogen.
Add flaxseeds or maca to your smoothies: Flaxseeds contain lignin's , which are a type of phytoestrogen and maca has been shown to increase estrogen in menopausal women. Try a smoothie in the morning with 1tbsp flax seeds or ground flax seeds in oatmeal.
Orgasm: You heard me! Orgasms have been shown to increase estradiol in women who haven’t reached menopause yet, so start getting frisky solo or with a partner.
High estrogen levels are more often associated with diet and lifestyle factors, so are a little easier to influence.
Limit exposure to Xenoestrogens: The water we drink, the food we eat, the products we use can all contribute to a build up of estrogen. To limit your exposure: avoid plastics (never cook food in plastic), take your shoes off when you enter your home, buy organic and grass-fed where you can, and check out my list of safer brands to use.
Get some sleep: Regulation of your circadian rhythm can be helpful when you have high estrogen because melatonin actually helps to lower estradiol. If you aren’t getting tired by 10pm, struggle from insomnia, feel groggy when you wake up, these are all indications that your circadian rhythm is thrown off. Check out my blog post on healing adrenal fatigue to get yourself back in working order.
Increase your fiber: Aim for 28-35 g of fiber/day to help reduce estrogen levels in the body. Some sources of dietary fiber include: raw carrots (w/skin), coconut meat, berries and other fruits (w/skin), vegetables, lentils, beans, oats, popcorn, chia seeds, and dark chocolate. However, to reach the recommended dose everyday may require taking a fiber supplement, like this one from Garden of Life.
Exercise Regularly: Not only has exercise been shown to decrease levels of estrogen, but it also helps to lower stress, improves sleep, and just makes you feel good!
Improve Gut Health: I have an entire ebook on how to improve your gut health. But if you aren’t having 1-3 bowel movements a day, then you aren’t moving estrogen out of your body.
I hope this gives you a better idea and appreciation of estrogen and all it does for us! If you are experiencing any symptoms of a hormonal imbalance I would highly recommend discussing having your labs drawn with your doctor. I also have an upcoming course on balancing hormones through diet and lifestyle and would love to see you there.
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