The Key to “Balancing” Your Hormones (P.S. it’s not carrot salad)
As women, we’re naturally more attuned to rhythms- the lunar cycle and our cycle, the changing of the seasons, etc. But how do you go with the flow when your hormones aren’t on the proper rhythm? You end up with symptoms like painful and irregular cycles, endometriosis or PCOS, migraines and fertility issues, low libido and mood swings, hair loss and body hair growth, and weight gain. In essence, a lot goes wrong. Our daily lives are heavily impacted by our hormones… PLUS your hormones impact and are impacted by other systems in the body.
This is why I focus on thyroid, gut, AND hormone health in my practice!
Your Body’s Detox Pathways
Your body is up against a lot of toxins every day, and it has multiple systems to process and move these toxins out. Your main detox pathways are:
Skin/ Sweating
Circulatory System
Kidneys
Lymphatic system
Digestive system
your liver!
Your liver performs over 500+ functions, including regulating your hormones. A well-functioning liver is essential for women’s health, particularly in maintaining hormonal balance! And while yes, your liver is built to handle toxins, it’s not built for the level of toxins present in our modern world (women are exposed to over 200 toxins in the average morning beauty routine!).
Supporting your liver is KEY to unlocking vibrant health because it affects everything from your cycle hormones to your thyroid function to your blood sugar (more energy, weight loss, and resolving PCOS symptoms) and even your immune system!
Your Liver & Hormonal Balance
The liver is integral to hormone regulation. It helps metabolize excess estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone by breaking them down and preparing them for elimination. When the liver is functioning optimally, it can manage hormone levels, preventing excess buildup and its potential negative effects, such as:
Mood swings, Low libido, and Irritability
Weight gain, Breast tenderness, Migraines, and Brain fog
Irregular or Painful Cycles including PCOS and endometriosis
By supporting liver detoxification, you can promote hormonal balance, reducing symptoms associated with imbalances or conditions like PMS, fibroids, PCOS or menopause.
How Liver Detox Works
Liver detoxification occurs in two main phases:
Phase 1: Conversion
In this phase, the liver processes fat-soluble toxins, breaking them down into less harmful metabolites. Enzymes transform these toxins through oxidation, reduction, and hydrolysis. While this phase helps prepare toxins for elimination, it can sometimes create intermediate compounds that may be more harmful if not further processed.Phase 2: Conjugation
During phase 2, the liver cells combine the intermediate compounds from phase 1 with other substances to make them water-soluble. This process facilitates their excretion through urine or bile, ultimately eliminating them from the body.
Ideally, your liver is equipped to cycle through these phases, removing toxins and supporting overall health. However, there are several environmental and lifestyle factors that can hinder this detoxification process.
What’s Overwhelming Your Liver
Several toxins and lifestyle choices can impair liver function, undermining its ability to detoxify effectively:
Environmental Toxins:
Pesticides and Chemicals: harsh household cleaners, pesticide-sprayed produce and grains, processed foods and fast food, makeup and skincare
Heavy Metals: aluminum exposure through deodorant and other heavy metals are common in cheap goods (shein)
Dietary Factors:
Processed Foods: High in sugar, unhealthy fats, and preservatives, these can burden the liver and reduce its detox capacity.
Alcohol Consumption: Excessive intake (more than 2-3 drinks a week) can lead to poor liver function and can worsen women’s hormonal symptoms and mental health
High-Fructose Corn Syrup: This can contribute to liver fat accumulation.
Lifestyle Choices:
Sedentary Lifestyle: Lack of regular exercise can slow metabolism and contribute to liver fat buildup.
Chronic Stress: It can lead to hormonal imbalances that put additional strain on the liver.
Inadequate Sleep: Poor sleep patterns can negatively affect liver regeneration and detox mechanisms.
Love Your Liver: Detox Support
If you’ve lived your whole life in the modern world which, barring any time travelers reading this, is all of us- your liver needs a HARD reset. Being able to jumpstart your liver will jumpstart the rest of your healing journey and help you feel better, faster.
The gold standard for loving your liver is a functional medicine detox. This isn’t like a “detox tea” or “juice cleanse” that you see on instagram- a functional medicine detox is a structured protocol designed to re-open your liver detox pathways and strengthen your body’s ability to detox. When you’ve lived your entire life surrounded by toxins, your liver has stored a LOT of these toxins in fat cells and trying to detox without a specific program designed to open the detox pathways will result in those toxins being released but they’ll be trapped in the body (aka you’ll feel sick because your body is being bombarded with a wallop of toxins with nowhere to go)!
The functional medicine detox I use personally and also recommend to my clients is the one from Equilife. For first timers, I recommend the full 21-day detox because it will give you the best results the fastest! And I certainly recommend doing this with the support of a practitioner because you’ll have a lot of questions, and if you’re investing the time and money into the detox you want to make sure you’re supported!
Click HERE to explore working 1:1 with me
Daily Practices
Aside from a proper liver detox like the one mentioned above, there are small healthy habits you can implement to give your liver some love:
Eat a Whole Foods Diet: Focus on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats to provide nutrients that support liver health.
Castor Oil Packs: castor oil is renowned for its healing properties and is particularly useful for aiding liver function. I sleep with my pack on twice a week.
Stay Hydrated: Adequate water intake aids in the elimination of toxins, but make sure you’re drinking filtered water with electrolytes (otherwise you’re adding more toxins for your liver to deal with!)
Back off the Alcohol: really and truly, casual alcohol consumption is wreaking more havoc on your hormones than you realize. Aim for 2-3 drinks MAX per week and see how much better you feel.
Sleep More, Stress Less: easy advice, I know. But prioritize 8-9 hours of deep sleep nightly to allow your body to repair itself and add in a 15 minute mindfulness practice to your mornings!
