Most babies enter into this world in a perfect state of balance and harmony within. How God has created the human body and all its intracacies is beyond amazing - every mitochondria, DNA, chromosome - all working together to provide optimum bodily function. However, once we are born our bodies are exposed to an imperfect world. One of great consumerism and one in which new parents are saturated with a plethora of products in which to slather onto their babies skin. We are encouraged to use Johnson's baby oil and Vaseline petroleum jelly - both highly concentrated in petroleum based chemicals, aka Mineral Oil...and thus the body starts to absorb xenoestrogens and hormone imbalance begins.
Some babies do not even make it out of the womb in balance, depending upon what their mothers ate, breathed and applied to their skin. Progesterone is a vital hormone in the development of a baby. Consider that a woman in her prime produces 20-40 mg. of progesterone a day, but during pregnancy her body increases hormone production to 3000 a day!!! Progesterone is what helps the baby's brain to develop, keeps the baby intact in the womb and prevents miscarriages, just to name a few reasons why it is so important to have hormone balance during pregnancy.
Today the average age of menses in a young girl is 10.5 yrs. old. Sixty years ago it was age 14 - before the age of introducing mineral oil as a cheap filler into American cosmetics and hygiene products, in the 1950s. Before they even become teenagers young girls are using lip gloss, eye shadows and lotions laden with artificial fragrances, which are again - xeno estrogens. A recap, or perhaps new for new blog readers - a xenoestrogen is a faux estrogen inside your body. Our bodies contain bio-idential hormones, that which are natural to our bodily make-up - including estrogen (3 types), progesterone, testoserone, and cortisol to name a few. Chemicals we breathe (paint, salon fumes), lotions and fragrances we apply to skin, and foods we consume grown with hormones - all contribute to a foreign hormone in our body, coined as "xenoestrogen" by Dr. John Lee. Per Dr. Lee, in the United States 95% of all women are estrogen dominant and low on progesterone - due primarily to the environment in which we live. As consumers we are barraged with ads on beauty and youth, and sometimes we believe if a product has a foreign name and costs a lot it is safe. But this is not always the case. Recently I checked out a French brand used by a friend, and since it costs more than the Swiss-formulated brand that I use she figured it was free of mineral oil. I assumed it would have been as well, but did some checking and found out it was not. So what does this have to do with weight loss?
Basically, it is this. Very simply stated - estrogen retains fat cells and progesterone helps burn them. A women who is hormonally balanced is going to have a much easier time losing weight than one who is not. I have to attribute my success in losing over 72 lbs. without exercise in large part to diet changes, but also to the fact that my estrogen and progesterone levels are pretty much in balance. I had my levels tested last fall and found I was only slightly low in progesterone. Knowing that my body is no longer ovulating monthly (and thereby not producing progesterone) - I wanted to ensure my body remain as close to core balance as possible, and began supplementing with AB Prolief bio-identical progesterone cream.
A quote from the Women to Women web-site reads:
"Core Balance is an ideal state that occurs when your biochemistry and metabolism are functioning well, and your core physiology and emotional health are balanced. Your body easily maintains a natural, optimal weight and you feel energized, clear, and fit. Life is good, you look great, and you’re on top of the world.”
If you are having trouble losing weight - assess your hormone balance, or rather, imbalances. Symptoms of hormone imbalance include PMS, night sweats, migraines, asthma, fibromyalgia, weight gain around the middle, sleeplessness, irritability, fibroids and cysts, depression...just to name a few. Contact me if you would like a more complete list, or would like to learn more.
Many women exercise five days a week and still have trouble losing weight. As long as the hormones are heavily tipped in favor of estrogen the challenge is going to be uphill all the way. Start looking at the ingredients listed on your products - many have chemicals that mask themselves as estrogen inside our bodies. As you become a wise consumer and begin to buy products that are safe, pure and beneficial - your body will take note. Supplementation with a bio-identical hormone cream will most likely be warranted to help regain balance within.
To regain one's health we need to do more than watch what we eat, we also need to watch what our "skin wears" and strive for hormonal balance. Stress is a factor that cannot be overlooked. Stress "eats up" our progesterone as it is converted into "stressor hormones". We all have stress in our lives, but how you handle it is key to healthy function.
Years ago I was in a work situation that was stressful. My work revolved around deadlines, not that anyone who had to provide me the information for such deadlines seemed to care. One day I just decided that I was not going to deal with it any longer. No, I did not quit my job, but I made a decision to "LET GO AND LET GOD". A dear elderly friend of mine quoted this to me time and time again and it finally sunk in. We cannot control what happens in our lives, but we can let it go and let God handle it. Since that day I feel my body began a small journey towards regaining hormone balance. Once I learned to retrain my eating habits, it all just seemed to fall into place. It is amazing how one's bodily temple can be restored when you allow the power of the Spirit that dwells within to take control. Who is in charge of your daily life? God created us in perfect balance and harmony and it is His desire that we live as such, because it is only in doing so that we can fully serve Him.
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