Healthy Hormones Part 1 - Have You Got the Balance Right?

It is now over one hundred years since the word hormone was first used and it can seem as if they are to blame for everything from bad temper and spots to mood swings that make the big dipper look tame. You may not see them, but you certainly feel their effects as hormones rule many of the functions in your body. Don't make the mistake of thinking that the fact that they are natural means they are relatively harmless. In fact they are very powerful substances that need treating with respect.

Getting the balance right

Although we think of women as being controlled by only two main hormones, oestrogen and progesterone, they are only a part of the story. The body produces around 50 hormones altogether, and more are being discovered all the time. For women, it is the reproductive cycle from puberty to menopause that tends to dominate our hormonal life and problems seem to arise from the fact that in order to be healthy our hormones need to be in balance with each other.

Fact: Hormones function at their most effective when they are in balance.

If you disturb that balance then you can get symptoms that range from mildly irritating to life threatening. The problem of excess oestrogen has been recognised by some doctors since the 1930's, but it was not until the pioneering work of John R. Lee, M.D (1929-2003) who showed that the real importance lay in the ratio of oestrogen to progesterone, not just their actual levels. Lee was an American doctor in general practice who coined the phrase 'oestrogen dominance' to explain the many symptoms that could occur when the body had too much oestrogen and not enough progesterone that he had observed in his patients who were on the Pill and HRT.

Fact: Hormones are designed by nature to balance each other out

This means that, for example:

繚 Oestrogen stimulates breast tissue but progesterone protects against fibrocystic breasts

繚 Oestrogen is lined to increased risk of breast cancer while progesterone helps prevent it

繚 Oestrogen increases body fat while progesterone helps use fat for energy

繚 Oestrogen encourages salt and fluid retention while progesterone is a natural diuretic

繚 Oestrogen is linked to depression and headaches but progesterone is a natural anti-depressant

繚 Oestrogen decreases libido/sex drive while progesterone increases it

The effects of too much oestrogen were established in clinical trials in the USA by the Women's Health Initiative. These were halted early because of the established risks of combined HRT, and the continuation of the oestrogen only trial was also halted early in March, 2004 well before its planned completion in 2005. This was due to the increasing evidence that oestrogen can in fact increase the risk of strokes.

What can go wrong?

Whether suffering from PMS or symptoms of the menopause, there are a number of reasons why this important balance can be upset. The most common is when oestrogen production and intake is dominant over the progesterone produced by the body. This may be the result of interference from artificial hormones such as the Pill or HRT, some medications and drugs, alcohol, stress, poor nutrition, diet, excess exercising and environmental pollution can all play their part.

These have become known as symptoms of oestrogen dominance, and these are some of the effects that are constantly seen:

繚 Breast tenderness

繚 Decreased sex drive

繚 Depression with anxiety or agitation

繚 Fat gain, especially abdomen, hips and thighs

繚 Fibrocystic breasts

繚 Increased blood clotting

繚 Increased risk of strokes

繚 Miscarriage

繚 Mood swings

繚 Osteoporosis

繚 PMS

繚 Uterine fibroids

繚 Water retention, bloating

One of the least-recognised causes of oestrogen dominance is the environmental effect of pollution, most of which consists of substances that are - or can become - xeno-oestrogens. These are chemicals which behave like oestrogen and have similar, but stronger, effects in the body. They are widespread in the environment because they are the breakdown products of many process involved in the petrochemical and plastics industries. They are found in furniture, carpets, underlay, some paints and plastic water bottles.

The environment is further polluted by the passing of oestrogens into the water supply. In recent years there has been much concern about the rising oestrogen levels in men as well, which has resulted in sperm counts dropping alarmingly. A study by the Medical Research Council found that Scottish men born since 1970 are 25 per cent less fertile than those born 20 years earlier - and that fertility is continuing to drop by two per cent a year.

In order to keep your hormones healthy there are some simple measures you can take, and I will be outlining those in part two of this article.