6 Tips for Hormone Optimization

Your body secretes about 50 hormones which control and regulate many critical body functions. These chemical messengers impact everything from your blood pressure, metabolism, body fat, immune system, and sex drive. When hormone levels get out of balance, they can create side effects that trigger changes in your entire body, including hot flashes, weight gain, fluctuations in blood sugar, and even heart disease. Learn how to start reducing symptoms and improve your quality of life by achieving hormone optimization.

How to Achieve Hormone Optimization

Hormonal imbalance occurs when too much or too little of a hormone exists in your bloodstream. These imbalances can be caused by stress, dietary deficiencies, obesity, age, an overactive or an underactive gland, and more. While hormonal imbalances sometimes require working with an endocrinologist or another specialist, there are things you can do to start balancing your hormones naturally.

1. Introduce a Hormone Balancing Diet Plan

   Eating sugary and processed foods has been shown to elevate insulin levels and promote insulin resistance. When your cells become resistant to insulin’s message, severe imbalances can occur. Insulin is such a powerful hormone that it can knock other hormones out of balance, including the stress hormone, cortisol.

   To reduce insulin levels, cut out sugary drinks and snacks, and instead opt for a low- to moderate-carb diet. This diet is particularly helpful for those with insulin-resistant conditions, including polycystic ovary syndrome.

2. Lower Inflammation

   Over-secretion of hormones can also lead to chronic inflammation, which can further disrupt hormone production. Following an anti-inflammatory diet can be beneficial as well as adding in supplements to balance hormones to your health routine. Incorporate high-quality, fatty fish like salmon, sardines, tuna, and mackerel into your diet at least two times a week, or consider adding a fish oil supplement. In addition, emphasize fruits, leafy greens, and nuts.

3. Manage Stress

   Cortisol and adrenaline are the hormones that act as your body’s response to stress. While danger and predators once triggered these hormones, they’re now more often a result of modern, overwhelming lifestyle factors. Research has shown that there’s a link between stress levels and endocrine response. For this reason, it’s essential to find ways to reduce stress to help you learn how to balance your hormones at work and at home. Incorporating stress-reducing activities like yoga, massage, meditation, or listening to music can help decrease cortisol. Devoting as little as 10-15 minutes a day can help normalize levels.

4. Exercise Regularly

   Physical activity can help balance many hormones, including normalizing insulin and boosting growth hormones that decline with age. While a combination of aerobic and resistance training has been shown to yield the best results, what ultimately matters is that it’s an exercise program that you can stick with consistently. Regularly engaging in any physical activity will be beneficial for hormonal balance, as well as weight loss.

5. Get Enough Sleep

   Sleep quantity and quality both affect your circadian system, which impacts cortisol, ghrelin, and other hormones. Try to practice good sleep hygiene by limiting electronics before bed, following a nighttime routine, and going to bed at the same time each night.

6. Talk to Your Healthcare Provider

   Medical professionals can use blood tests to measure how much of a hormone your body makes, as well as help you identify other behaviors and habits that may be worsening your symptoms. Sometimes, bioidentical hormone replacement therapy can be used to correct imbalances.

   The side effects of hormone imbalances and aging impact millions of people each year and no two individuals experience symptoms the same way. For that reason, at Supro Direct, we take a personalized approach to hormone therapy, menopause treatment, and low testosterone treatment.

If you’re struggling with mood, sleep, metabolism, or sexual function symptoms in Indianapolis, IN that you believe are a result of a hormone imbalance, Supro Direct’s doctors are here to help. Schedule an appointment with our physicians to discuss your symptoms and work out a personalized treatment plan.