More than 6.5 million people across the United States are struggling with Infertility. There are many moving parts to our hormones and how they can become out of balance. Especially when they get to a place where they cause issues such as Infertility, PCOS, erectile dysfunction, and other debilitating hormone issues. 80% of women and around 40% of men are dealing with some hormone imbalance. In this article, I will share the evidence behind this and how you can naturally prevent and improve your hormones.
**None of this is to be taken as medical advice. I am not a medical professional; I am a holistic expert; please speak to your doctor before making any drastic changes to your fertility plan or hormones.
Sugar/Processed Foods Affect Our Fertility
With 90% of the standard American diet consisting of primarily ultra-processed food and fast food, it is one of the main components of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. We aren't talking about how these foods affect our hormones. In women, insulin is essential for maintaining balance during egg maturation. Consuming highly refined processed sugar can cause our blood sugar (insulin) to spike, causing it to overflow, which confuses the body for egg maturation, slowing down the process of a women's natural hormone cycle. If this occurs too often, it can lead to an increase in testosterone in women, leading to conditions like PCOS.
Obesity is a real problem not just for our longevity but also for our hormones. It can be detrimental to our fertility. In men, when we gain too much weight, this affects our testosterone levels and decreases our sperm count and sperm strength. This can affect our motivation, happiness, and ability to care for ourselves. For women, the heavier they are, the harder it is on their ovulation cycle, and their hormones also take a hit. Ultra-processed foods are one of the main components of obesity and overweight-related diseases.
Microplastics
12-million tons of plastic find its way into our ocean every year. This has affected our ecosystem, environment, food, and much more. Now, we are seeing research say that these plastics are beginning to affect our hormones and genetic makeup, which could affect future generations. A study done on cardiovascular patients found traces of microplastics in the plaque build-up in these patients. These plastics can be found in plastic wrappers, cereal boxes, aluminum cans, plastic water bottles, and anything made with plastics, which could increase your risk of getting microplastics in your body.
These microplastics can disrupt our hormones. Long-term exposure to plastic chemicals has been shown to disrupt our thyroid endocrine function, affecting our metabolism, growth, and reproduction. When plastic is heated, or in warm temperatures, it can disturb a woman's and man's reproductive system, lowering sperm count and declining egg maturation. Plastic is everywhere, even with kids' toys, water bottles, coffee cups at Starbucks or cafes, and much more. The more we use glass and other sustainable sources, the less exposure we will have to these harmful chemicals.
Sleep deprivation
Sleep is more important than being awake for our overall recovery, energy, and being able to function each day. When we don't get adequate sleep, it can affect our metabolism, mental health, and even our fertility. In women, when our sleep-wake cycles are disrupted, it can affect their ovulation triggers, shortening their ovulation cycle or causing them not to ovulate. Similarly, in men, when they don't get adequate amounts of sleep, it impairs the secretion of sexual hormones, leading to a decrease in testosterone; this affects a man's sperm motility and decreases libido and more.
Hormone imbalances can affect your sleep and wake cycles, causing insomnia and other debilitating issues. Getting your hormones checked by a doctor can be a significant first step in getting closer to the root cause of your sleep problems.
Emotional suppression
Emotional suppression, also known as internal stress, can increase cortisol levels in the body, affecting reproductive hormones. Not allowing ourselves to feel emotions or process stress healthily can create a bottleneck effect and systemic inflammation. This can increase sugar cravings and metabolism dysfunction, break down our immune system, and wreak havoc on our overall nervous system.
When our nervous system is dysregulated, it confuses the messages between our hormones and our body. This is what causes cyclical problems in women and ED in men. In theory, overstimulation, overwhelm, and increased stress shuts these areas of the body down, disconnecting them from our innate control. This can have a long-term effect on our mental and emotional health, leading to depression, anxiety, and infertility.
Overtraining
Exercise is one of the most important things we can do for our long-term health, but there is a dose depending on your current health, eating habits, stress levels, and ability to recover. People who train more than 90 minutes a day with minimal recovery are actually at risk for hormone imbalance, thyroid conditions, and infertility. Our hormones take a hit when we don't allow our body enough time to rest. Training at high intensities for a long duration decreases women's and men's hormones and increases the release of cortisol; over time, you may notice feelings of fatigue, stress, brain fog, and low levels of libido, testosterone, estrogen, and more.
Gut Health
Our gut microbiome is what helps to break down food, toxins, and bacteria. This helps to boost our digestion and immune system and promote our mood and energy. When these are thrown off by a imbalanced microbiome this causes inflammation to build and overtime this can take away from our normal hormonal response. They have seen with improper immune function this can lead to chronic inflammation in women and can cause pregnancy loss.
Keeping your gut health in mind is crucial, especially while you are pregnant. The better your immune system functions, the more protection you have from sickness and diseases, and the safer the baby can be.
Your hormones require structure and routine to stay in harmony with each other. They are a delicate part of our human function. Below are some top ways to naturally keep your hormones balanced.
Quality Sleep
Sleep is when the magic happens internally. Our body recovers and rejuvenates our reproductive, stress, and metabolic hormones during the hours we are asleep. During sleep, cortisol levels are regulated, which helps to lower stress levels, and quality sleep positively affects a woman's progesterone, estrogen, leptin, and follicle-stimulating hormones.
Setting yourself up for success when it comes to sleep is crucial for your longevity. Aiming to get 7-8 hours each night, going to bed at the same time each day, and waking up at the same time is a great way to balance your circadian rhythm and put your body in a healthy wake-sleep cycle. Getting quality sleep is very important for women who are doing IVF. The more your body can recover, the better your hormones can do their job. You can supplement with minerals and amino acids such as magnesium, l-theanine, l-tryptophan, Gaba, and 5-HTP; all of these aid in the release of melatonin and can be a great supplement to help you relax in the evenings.
Mindfulness
With anxiety and depression on a continuous rise, taking care of your mental health is more important now than ever, especially when it comes to hormones. Anxiety alone can disrupt our reproductive hormones. It all starts with awareness of your stress, anxiety, and depression. If you are struggling mentally, please see a professional who can guide you toward the right treatment plan, whether that be a therapist or a coach who can help you build the proper lifestyle changes to see progress.
A lot of the time, our thoughts can get the best of us; having a meditation practice and journaling practice can be a great habit that can increase your self-awareness. How you speak to yourself is how you will behave; the better you can treat yourself mentally, the less your body will feel like it is in a fight or flight. Fight or flight is a constant state of stress where your body is trying to survive something it is afraid of. Finding presence in moments of stress is a great way to manage your emotions and anxiety. A tool you can use is identifying your senses, what you can hear, see, smell, and taste. By identifying these, you can get in tune with the world around you, which can help lower your stress levels.
Whole Nutrient Dense Foods
Our hormones are regulated by how well we can manage our stress and how we decide to fuel our bodies. High-sugar processed foods and fast food tear down our hormones and create dysregulation in our bodies. When it comes to creating harmony within our diet, we have to eat foods that promote healthy hormonal responses and keep our bodies in a state of homeostasis. Everyone is bio-individually different, so your diet will differ from one person to the next. To figure out the best approach for you, I recommend checking out my article on the energy balance approach and then reading the following list below to see what foods to incorporate into your monthly diet. All of the foods listed below have been shown to improve the quality of your reproductive health, whether your libido, monthly cycle, testosterone, or thyroid health. By Taking care of the whole body, you inherently improve your hormones.
Men | Women |
Grass-fed Beef Organs (Liver, Testicle, thyroid, etc.) | Grass-fed Organs (Liver, Ovarie, Thyroid) |
Grass-fed Beef | Wild caught Fish(salmon, Sardines, Anchovies) |
Pasture Raised Eggs | Pasture raised eggs |
Wild caught Fish(salmon, Sardines, Anchovies) | Grass-fed Beef |
Avocados, nuts and seeds, coconut, flaxseeds, chia seeds | Avocados, nuts and seeds, coconut, Chia seeds, flaxseeds |
Reishi, Shilajit, Maca root, Shivarti, Ginger, Tumeric, | Reishi, shilajit, maca, chaste berry, cramp bark, dong quai, ginger, shivarti, maca, |
Kefir, Saurekraut, | Kefir, Suarekraut, Tempeh |
Mustard greens, collard greens, kale, Beets, arugula, Beet root, Pumpkin, Squash, sprouted beans, swiss chard | Mustard greens, collard greens, kale, Beets, arugula, Beet root, Pumpkin, Squash, quinoa, sprouted beans and legumes, swiss chard, Bok choy |
Raw honey, bee pollen, berries, kiwi, pomegranant, cherry, pineapple, | Raw Honey, bee pollen, berries, kiwi, pomegranant, cherry, pineapple, |
It's crucial to incorporate these foods into a well-balanced diet that you can manage based on your activity levels, stress, and sleep. The more we can include foods that support our hormones, the more effectively we can maintain our hormonal balance, which is key to our overall health and wellness.
Balanced Movement
Exercise plays a vital role in regulating our reproductive system. It not only helps us manage our stress levels, but also aids in muscle building, enhances flexibility, and improves our cardiovascular and nervous system health. This, in turn, enables our body to respond better to stress and maintain healthy hormonal responses.
Having a 3-4 day exercise regimen that includes some resistance training, steady cardiovascular work, and short intervals of intensity can give you a balanced approach to exercise. They say doing 30-60 minutes of exercise per time you train can provide the best results.
Hormone tests
I recommend getting your annual check-up to see where your hormones are so your doctor can talk about the natural ways you can improve your hormones, whether supplements, nutrition, or whatever the most appropriate treatment plan could be for your health. Check out Everlywell or Function Health, where you can get comprehensive tests sent to your house and take your results to your doctor for assessment.
Takeaway
The fertility crisis is fundamental in the United States; it starts with awareness of what affects us from the inside out. The more proactive we can be with our health, the more we can improve, and the more we can decrease the turmoil this crisis is causing.
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