Posted on 10 Nov, 2010 -
8 Steps to Rebalance Your Body and Reclaim Great Health
Could this be the missing half of the truth behind your aches and pains or suffering?
How the toxins all around us play a big part in it too
The highlights of Kathryn Retzler’s 8 Steps to Achieving HormoneSynergy in a nutshell
Dear Reader,
As promised, I’m dedicating today’s email to the massively huge and important topic of hormone balance that I started on Sunday. (If you haven’t read that one yet it’s probably best to start there.)
If you can crack this nut, apparently, you can not only clear up all kinds of aches and pains and physical grumbles… but also slow down the rate at which you age and regain that youthful feeling of feeling fit and energetic and having nothing wrong with you!
So many people, in fact, could be suffering from some sort of hormone imbalance or dysfunction that it may pay us to take a look at a few more of the symptoms:
Suffer from mood swings and carbohydrate cravings? Then there’s a good chance you may have an estrogen dominance. Causes include: being overweight… constipation or poor liver function meaning estrogen is not effectively eliminated from the body… exposure to estrogen-like chemicals such as BPA found in plastic bottles…
“The last main reason for estrogen dominance is long-term, high levels of stress. This is because the adrenal glands convert progesterone into cortisol - short-term survival is more important to the body than balanced reproductive hormones.”
Suffer bad perimenopause or menopausal symptoms? High levels of stress could be the problem. “As women age and go through the menopause, the adrenal glands take over the role the ovaries performed earlier in life… Chronic stress can diminish the adrenal gland’s ability to take on this function.”
Men who suffer from fatigue and poor stamina… lack of motivation or depression… low libido… erectile dysfunction… joint pain or stiffness… or weight gain, especially round the middle: Could be suffering from low or declining testosterone production.
Weight gain accompanied by intolerance to cold, forgetfulness, dry skin or hair or hair loss, constipation, muscle pain... may be due to low thyroid hormone.
(Also refer back to the symptoms I quoted in last Wednesday’s email.)
So what can you do to re-balance your hormone levels and restore your good health?
It’s all well and good saying we’re all suffering from hormone imbalance and stress, but what we really need to know is how we can make it all run to plan again.
Cut down on stress and live a healthier lifestyle? Well yes, that’s certainly an ongoing process that’s going to take more than one email and even one small book to crack. Kathryn Retzler’s concise 8 Steps, however, still make a pretty good place to start:
1. First of all, you might consider getting your hormone levels tested. You may be able to get tests done by your GP or you may have to go privately. Be aware, however, says Retzler, that it is very important to know how the results are interpreted. Because low testosterone levels are common, for example, your level may come back as ‘normal’. This does not mean that it’s ‘optimal’ though. It can be a case of getting the right physician, clinic or laboratory.
2. Decrease your stress! The most crucial thing to remember says Retzler is that stress is not caused so much by what happens to you as by how you respond to what happens to you.
Grr. I know. Some people really do have horribly stressful things happen to them and that’s easy to say if you’re not in a difficult situation yourself.
One idea I did find particularly useful is that we should try to find ways to prevent ourselves from “triggering stress responses when they’re not necessary.” Get in the habit of asking yourself if you’re creating a stress response to certain situations, problems or thoughts you’re having…
Ask yourself whether what’s happening right now is really such an emergency?
Another piece of advice that the author gives is to slow down and do things one thing at a time. When we feel that we’re under pressure to get too much done in too little time we can get very stressed. Yet a lot of this feeling of stress and pressure is created by ourselves.
Our situation, as we’ve already said, really can sometimes be a major cause of our stress. We may feel, for example, that our work or any problems we’re facing make it impossible for us not to be constantly stressed. In such a situation you have four choices:
1. Work to change the situation.
2. Accept the situation.
3. Leave or remove yourself from the situation.
4. Do none of the above but “recognize that his is a decision that will affect your health” and “keep re-evaluating the above steps”.
Finally, don’t forget to have fun and laugh every day. “As adults, we often forget that life is not all about work and responsibilities” and “your body benefits tremendously from releasing stress or ‘emptying the stress bucket’ every day”.
3. Eat a healthy diet. I won’t bang on too much here because you know most of this already. 5-a-day… wholemeal… omega-3 etc. etc. One interesting thing to note, however, is that “Fats play a role in hormone balance since they are used to make some hormones. For example, cholesterol is the backbone for estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, DHEA, cortisol, and vitamin D synthesis.” Also note that vitamin D is, in fact, a hormone as well! A high protein breakfast is recommended.
4. Daily exercise is crucial because it raises your level of growth hormone - the hormone that keeps you young It also lowers estrogen in men and raises testosterone levels in both men and women. Sessions need to be 30-45 minutes long, every 24 for 48 hours. Any kind of movement is better than being completely inactive.
5. Sleep well and enough because good sleep also raises growth hormone levels. “Remember that growth hormone is responsible for repair of your body’s tissues - when growth hormone levels decline, aging rapidly accelerates.” If you don’t sleep enough, recognise that this is a health problem and commit to doing something about it.
6. Avoid toxins and do a yearly detox. Due to the high levels of pesticides and chemicals used all around us, most of us are full of toxins. Pesticides, for example, are used to kill living organisms such as insects and fungi. The more you can do to reduce your expose to toxins the better. Use more organically grown produce and free-range meat. Also be aware that Bisphenol-A (BPA) is one of the most pervasive chemicals in modern life and affects the levels of a number of hormones, especially estrogen. Clear plastics are likely to contain it and also the lining in some canned foods.
7. Maintain a healthy weight. “Nearly all studies show that eating a calorie-restricted diet high in nutrients can slow signs of ageing, including telomere shortening, as well as lead to weigh loss.”
8. Supplements. This step, says Retzler, is not a short-cut for the other steps and certainly should come AFTER a healthy diet. However, she does recommend: an antioxidant supplement, CoQ10, fish oil and Viamin D. “People with higher levels of vitamin D age more slowly than those with lower levels. This is likely related to vitamin D enhancing the length of telomeres and inhibiting inflammation.” Ideally dosage should be based on lab testing but 1000 to 2000 IU a day should be adequate. Too much can lead to kidney stones and calcification of soft tissues.
“It is not work that kills men; it is worry. Work is healthy; you can hardly put more upon a man than he can bear. Worry is the rust upon the blade. It is not the revolution which destroys the machinery but the friction. Fear secretes acids; but love and trust are sweet juices.”
Henry Ward Beecher
“If you look into your own heart, and you find nothing wrong there, what is there to worry about? What is there to fear?”
Confucius
And, to folow Kathryn’s instructions about having a laugh each day, here’s a couple of funny ones to end on:
“Do not worry about avoiding temptation. As you grow older it will avoid you.”
Joey Adams
“I don’t worry about terrorism. I was married for two years.”
Sam Kinison
Best wishes for a less stressful mind!
