As we already know, hormones have profound effects on your mental, physical and emotional health.
Having gone through breast cancer treatment myself, I experienced many issues due to the medication I was given, and it affected my health in a very real and serious way. I knew at that moment that if I was going to live the life I wanted to live, I needed to do something about it.
On my journey back to health, I have discovered many natural ways where I can keep my hormones in check to make sure they are balanced and doing what they need to do.
Last week, during my “Steps to balance your hormones” webinar, I discussed some of the great ways that you can implement small changes to help keep your hormones balanced so that you can live a happy and healthy life.
Here are 4 small and easy changes you could start making in your life today;
1. Engage in Regular Exercise
One of the biggest benefits of exercise, other than feeling and looking great, is the ability to reduce insulin levels and increase insulin sensitivity. Insulin serves several functions in your body, including allowing your cells to take up sugar and amino acids from the bloodstream, which maintains muscle and gives you the energy you need to make it through the day.
Even though insulin plays an important role in your body, too much of a good thing is never good, and the same goes for insulin – too much can be very dangerous. High insulin levels have been linked to inflammation, heart disease, diabetes and even cancer.
All the different types of physical activity have proven to increase insulin sensitivity and reduce insulin levels, even regular walking can increase hormone levels, which will improve your strength and quality of life.
2. Learn to Manage Stress
We know that stress can wreak havoc on your hormones. Two major hormones affected are the cortisol and adrenaline hormones which are also known as epinephrine.
Cortisol is known as “the stress hormone” because it helps your body cope with stress over the long term. Adrenaline is the “fight-or-flight” hormone that provides your body with a surge of energy to respond to immediate danger.
Many years ago, these hormones were mainly triggered by threats from dangerous predators, however, they are now triggered by our busy and overwhelming lifestyles. Chronic stress causes cortisol levels to remain elevated, which can lead to excessive calorie intake and obesity, including increased belly fat.
Increased adrenaline levels can cause high blood pressure, rapid heart rate, and anxiety. These symptoms are short-lived because this hormone is less likely to become chronically elevated.
Don’t stress about managing your stress, I have some Self Care Strategies to help you manage your stress – click here to start learning more
3. Get Consistent, High-Quality Sleep
It doesn’t matter how healthy your diet is, or how much exercise you get into your daily routine, your health and hormones will suffer if you don’t get enough rest. When you sleep, your body takes the time to catch up with what it has been through during the day and to fix and rejuvenate your body’s cells.
Irregular sleeping patterns are linked to imbalances of many hormones, including insulin, cortisol, leptin, ghrelin and growth hormones. If you do find yourself struggling to sleep, you could consider taking something like these hemp gummies. As well as helping you relax and get ready for a good sleep, they could also help with stress and anxiety relief, among other things.
It is not only the quantity of sleep you get that matters, quality of sleep is also important. Your brain and body need to have uninterrupted sleep so that it allows it to go through all five stages of each sleep cycle.
4. Stay Away from Sugary Beverages
Sugar is one of those things that we crave when we feel down, low on energy or something to treat ourselves at the end of the day, however, sugar and refined carbs are linked to various health problems. We know that sugar in any form in unhealthy, but, liquid sugars appear to be the worst by far.
Large amounts of sugar-sweetened beverages contribute to insulin resistance, especially in overweight and obese adults and children. Additionally, drinking sugary beverages leads to excessive calorie intake because it doesn’t trigger the same fullness signals that eating solid foods does.
Avoiding and cutting out sugar-sweetened beverages may be one of the best things you can do to improve your hormone balance. Do you want to get started on losing your sweet tooth? Here are some ways to lose your sweet tooth.
Hormones are involved almost every aspect of your health, and for your body to function perfectly, you need them in very specific amounts. Imbalances in your hormones can increase your risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and other health problems. Hormone imbalance is not always due to aging, there are a number of contributing factors that you need to take into account.
Are you ready to find out what you need to do to start balancing your hormones? Take this quiz and start your journey to a happy and healthy lifestyle.
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