5 Hormone Balancing Foods

I talk to so many women that deal with low libido, PMS, mood swings, skin issues, infertility and period problems. They all ask how to balance their hormones. The biggest factor of balancing hormones is giving your body the building blocks it needs through the food you eat. Every food you consume is either balancing, or causing imbalance. Here are some of my favorite, powerful Hormone Balancing Foods.

Bone Broth:

Bone broth is a true healing, anti-aging, and hormone balancing liquid. It is full of bioavailable minerals that the body can easily use and absorb- which is one of the major problems in our day and age. Many womans’s digestive systems are damaged due to GMO’s, pesticides on nonorganic food, and all of the chemicals in our drinking water. Which means that many are eating healthy foods, but are not being able to absorb the nutrients because of an impaired digestive system.  Bone broth however, works brilliantly in this area because it is easy to digest and these life-giving minerals can begin working in the body right

Bone broth also contains the key amino acids needed for your body to make collagen- hello beautiful hair, skin, and nails! The amino acids, collagen, and gelatin in bone broth also heal the digestive lining, which is the foundation to a healthy body.

Basically, drinking bone broth is like getting a beauty treatment along with a repair of your inside intestinal lining- which affects your neurotransmitters, hormones, and how well you look and feel.

Fermented Foods:

A not so popular food, but perhaps the most potent. The microbiome is the most exciting topic in the medical and functional medical world right now. Basically, we have discovered that we are more bacteria than anything else- and the type and amounts of bacteria we have inside our body are running the show. Most people are walking around with dysbiosis (imbalance of good to bad bacteria). This is a problem because women with dysbiosis crave sugar and carbohydrates consistently, have PMS, skin issues like eczema and acne, and also tend to hold on to extra weight.

When you have the right balance of good and bad bacteria, your body is detoxing properly which makes your hormones flow in harmony. Fermented foods have the most potent, diverse, and active bacteria that will transform your body. More than any probiotic pill could ever do.

Examples of fermented foods include kimchi, saurkraut, coconut kefir.

Fermented foods also contain important micro nutrients that provide the building blocks for hormones to be produced correctly and in the right amounts. They also have live enzymes and acetic acids that provide your body with life and also help heal the intestinal lining.

Basically, eating fermented foods is like taking a happy pill, clearing out your digestion, and filling your body with good bugs that control your hormones, clear your skin, and protect you from disease.

Healthy Fats:

Healthy fats = glowing skin, stable moods, diminished cravings, and sharp brain function. Our brain and hormones are made from fat, so if you are not eating enough of it, or, more importantly, the RIGHT KIND- your hormones and skin will suffer.

I wrote all about the kinds of healthy fats here, but a quick recap- fats like vegetable oils, soy and canola oil, and margarine cause major inflammation in the body which leads to hormonal imbalance. The problem is- most packaged, fast, and restaurant foods are FULL of these oils. If you are eating them- then this is what your cells are made of and are having to work with.

Eating Fats like coconut, coconut oil, avocados, butter, and olive oil provide the building blocks needed for your beautiful body. Try having a healthy fat at every meal you eat.

Basically, eating healthy fat is like taking a pill for your skin, hair, and brain.

Cruciferous Vegetables-

Leafy greens and cruciferous veggies contain specific nutrients that bind to excess estrogen in your body.

Cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower Brussel sprouts & cabbage contain several powerful nutrients that detoxify bad estrogenic molecules. These nutrients include Indole-3 Carbonyl and Diindolylmethane (DIM).

These cruciferous veggies also contain sulfur nutrients that enhance liver detoxification processes and destroy cancer cell formation.

Basically, eating vegetables is like taking a pill that gets rid of the hormones that cause PMS.

Liver:

Before you just automatically skip over this one, hear me out. First off, just so I do not have to spend your time on explaining all of the myths around liver and why they are not true including that it is toxic because it filters toxins, and vitamin A toxicity- read this post to put your mind at ease.

Liver is one of the foods that has made the most dramatic impact on my hormones. I wrote a whole post about the benefits of liver it here- however let’s just dive in a bit.

Liver is one of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet. It is full of important vitamins, minerals, and trace elements that assist the body in hormone production and detoxification. Taking vitamins or pills full of these nutrients do not get absorbed or used like they do when you eat liver. This is because the nutrients in liver are in just the right amounts and ratios that allow all nutrients to work together synergistically as nature intended instead of isolating nutrients.

Nutrient Synergy is the way that two or more different nutrients work together to produce an effect that you can’t get from either nutrient alone. For example, many are taking oral vitamin D, which may become problematic unless you’re also getting sufficient amounts of vitamin K2. Zinc and selenium, magnesium and calcium, and other vitamins need to be taken together in the proper ratio to be effective- AND not do more harm than good.  Instead of trying to figure this out with vitamins- just take liver, it is nature’s multi-vitamin.

Some of the most important nutrients for hormonal balance are A, E, D, K2, B vitamins, iron, magnesium, CoQ10, and Folate- which liver has in ABUNDANCE.

If you want the best way to boost your fertility, beauty, and especially post partum health- liver is the way to go.

I am one of the rare crazies that actually enjoys the taste of liver, but if you don’t- try cooking it in different ways OR just buy liver pills- done and done.

Basically, liver is like taking a pill with all the nutrients you need for healthy hormones, fertility, glowing skin, and energy.