Food for hormones, part II

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is based on the incorrect assumption that your body becomes incapable of producing appropriate amounts of hormones simply because we reach a certain age. Your body does alter its hormone production as you pass through the stages of life, but hormone problems are a function of how healthy you are, not how old you are.

New research is continually emerging. Women are now using synthetic, natural “plant-derived” and synthesized “bio-identical” compounded pharmaceutical hormones. The problem for the consumer is education. They simply do not know what their baseline hormone levels are before and during product usage and what effects long-term usage will produce.

Concern about the potential risks associated with HRT has left post-menopausal women and healthcare providers searching for safe and effective means for cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factor reduction.

The Woman On the Move through Activity and Nutrition study was a five-year clinical trial (2002-2006) designed to test whether a lifestyle intervention would reduce measures of sub-clinical CVD. The lifestyle-change group significantly decreased weight, body mass index, waist circumference, total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, improved fat intake and increased leisure physical activity when compared with the health education group. Lifestyle modification was effective for CVD risk factor reduction in post-menopausal women.

The key is to rejuvenate, not replace, hormones.

Understand how the negative feedback system works in our bodies. Like the thermostatic device used by our furnace, our bodies compare the actual hormonal level with the desired hormonal level and adjust accordingly. So, when we replace our hormones with synthetic ones, our bodies simply stop making as much.

The steroid hormones, which include the hormones secreted by the adrenal cortex and gonads, as well as most placental hormones, are neutral lipids derived from cholesterol. They are lipophilic (lipid or fat loving).

“Feed” your hormones by providing the nutrients necessary for their production. Pantothenic Acid (B5) supports cholesterol and fat control. High levels of B5 can be found in green vegetables, bran, yeast, whole grains, fruit, nuts, eggs, chicken, meat, liver and kidney.

If you would be interested in knowing more about a specific area or approach in natural health or nutrition, send me an e-mail at [email protected]. I’m open to your suggestions on topics of interest.

1. This article is for educational purposes only and contains information that is the opinion of the columnist.

2. Your individual health status and any required health care treatments can only be properly addressed by a professional healthcare provider. We encourage you to make your own health care decisions based upon your research and in partnership with a qualified health care professional of your choice.