Hormones are all over the place. Literally. Without hormones, many of our normal bodily functions would cease to exist. As important as these substances are for us, it is relatively easy to throw them out of whack. Hormone imbalances can be the reason for many health conditions, both acute and chronic. While there are many reasons for hormone imbalance, the following are some of the most common:

Poor Gut Health and Food Allergies

Poor gut health can have a tremendous impact on your overall health. It can also affect the way your hormones work, too. Leaky gut syndrome (a condition in which undigested foods inappropriately pass through the intestinal lining) or a lack of beneficial gut bacteria has been specifically linked to estrogen increase. Increased levels of estrogen may result in a number of conditions, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and obesity.

Being Overweight

As mentioned above, increased estrogen is a risk factor for obesity. This is because adipose (fat) cells release small amounts of estrogen. When you are overweight, your body contains more fat cells and thus produces more estrogen than it normally would. On the flip side, obesity is related to low testosterone because of impaired communication between the brain and testicles. 

Lifestyle Factors, including Limited Exercise

Exercise (or lack thereof) contributes to hormone imbalances for both men and women. As part of the natural aging process, testosterone levels decrease by approximately one percent every year over the age of 30. Exercising can help boost testosterone (though briefly); however, it also helps maintain a healthy weight which is important for routine testosterone production. For women, exercise helps reduce estrogen levels and avoid some of the conditions previously discussed. Other hormones that are affected by exercise include cortisol, serotonin, and dopamine. 

Cortisol levels typically peak in the early hours of the morning and are lowest at night right before bed; although exercise causes cortisol to increase briefly, overall it helps to maintain this natural cycle. Without exercise, cortisol levels are likely to remain high into the night, which can keep you up and struggling to sleep. Dopamine and serotonin are neurotransmitters that help to balance and elevate mood; through the release of endorphins, exercise also helps to keep these levels high.

Lack of sleep

Lack of sleep has profound impacts on our overall health – you may have noticed you may get sick or your mood drops after several nights of poor sleep. Poor sleep quality and quantity can also trigger hormone imbalances. Because cortisol helps regulate our sleep-wake cycle, sleep disruptions can impact the normal release of cortisol and further disturb normal circadian rhythms. Other hormones that can be thrown off by poor sleep habits include ghrelin, leptin, and insulin. 

These compounds are closely tied with circadian rhythms and help control satiety and feelings of fullness. When these are out of whack, you may find yourself craving that midnight snack… and eating in the middle of the night only perpetuates the issue and can lead to the development of other medical conditions.

Exposure to Toxins

Like it or not, we live in a world contaminated by toxins. Whether they are in the food we eat, the products we put on our skin, or the pollutants in the air around us, our world has become saturated with harmful chemicals. Some of these compounds may be directly harmful to our bodies (i.e. carcinogens or cancer-causing chemicals) whereas others, although perhaps derived from natural compounds, can send our hormones haywire. 

Often overlooked, many food and cosmetic ingredients contain estrogen, estrogen derivatives, or other ingredients that impact hormonal health (soy, nuts, parabens, and phthalates are just a few). It’s hard to avoid these things completely, but educating yourself on product components can help a ton.

Learn more about HRT and Hormones with our Denver Integrative Whole Body Health Center in Golden.