What natural skin care ingredients you use ON your skin are important for the health and well-being of your skin.
But what you eat can have a significant impact on your skin, as well. For instance, refined sugar in particular can exacerbate a host of skin problems, like acne. (And it doesn't matter if you are in your reproductive years, premenopause, or menopause...all women get acne!) First, sugar prompts the secretion of androgens, hormones that cause oil glands to go into overdrive. Second, sugar causes an insulin response in the body, which leads to inflammation. When pores become blocked, then inflamed, bacteria get trapped under the skin, which leads to pimples and blackheads. This inflammatory response can also aggravate other conditions like rosacea and eczema.
So, along with taking skin-supportive nutrients, using the best natural skin care products on the market, and balancing your female hormones, give your kitchen pantry a major overhaul. Get rid of all refined carbohydrates and foods high in sugar, fat, and ingredients you can’t pronounce. Your diet should be overwhelmingly rich in vegetables and fruits (preferably organic), whole grains, raw nuts, legumes, occasional free-range poultry, and wild-caught fish like salmon, tuna, and mackerel.
In traditional Asian medicine, health and well-being are believed to be a balance of two equally important, but opposing, principles—yin and yang. Yin is associated with attributes such as femininity, receptivity, calmness, coolness, and moisture. Yin also regulates the fluids, blood, and tissues of your body, as well as its structural components, including flesh, tendons, and bones.
Yang, on the other hand, is associated with masculinity, aggression, heat, and dryness. It also regulates your body’s energy, which acts as the spark plug to your structural elements.
In younger women, this balance seems to be maintained almost effortlessly. But maintaining an optimal yin-yang balance becomes much more difficult once you reach middle age and menopause and menopause symptoms set in.
To restore your yin—and, as a result, balance your estrogen levels—you can take a variety of yin-supportive herbs.
One such supplement is royal jelly, which has been used for centuries to balance female hormones. Take 1/4 teaspoon of the liquid form of organic royal jelly twice a day. Royal jelly is available at most health food stores.
One of the unfortunate effects of menopause that seems to happen to many women is thinning hair. When estrogen levels drops and hormones are less balanced, hair tends to fall out faster and grow back slower. Fortunately, an essential oil has been found to help.
One of the most widely accepted natural treatments for hair loss and promoting healthy scalp circulation is lavender. A study reported in the Archives of Dermatology indicated that 3 drops of lavender (along with 2 drops each of thyme and cedarwood and 3 drops of rosemary in a carrier-oil blend of 1/2 teaspoon of jojoba oil and 4 teaspoons of grapeseed oil) promoted hair growth and healthy scalp circulation! In fact, 44 percent of the treatment group enjoyed new hair growth, as compared to 15 percent of the control group. And there were none of the adverse side effects frequently found with conventional treatments for hair loss.
If you would like to try this treatment option, you can use lavender three ways:
1. Use a diffuser to disperse micro-particles of the essential oil in the air.
2. Apply through your skin by bath, compresses, massage, or simple topical application.
3. Spray infused waters in the air or onto your skin. (Lavender also is a component of some wonderful natural beauty care products.)
Essential oils can be purchased in health food and beauty stores, but keep in mind that the quality of the oil may vary. For the highest quality, look for oils packaged in small dark blue or brown vials. Also, prices within a particular brand line will vary, as some essential oils are far more expensive than others. A product line with similar pricing throughout may be offering oils of inferior quality.
Along with providing your skin with important nutrients, proper female hormone balance is essential for healthy, moist, and resilient skin, particularly because of the action of estrogen on the skin. Estrogen is responsible for the deposition of fat under the skin, which gives rise to the soft and fine-textured skin that many women enjoy during their younger years. Estrogen also keeps the skin looking and feeling plump and healthy.
During your active reproductive years, your body produces enough estrogen to properly support the structure and texture of your skin. But when you enter the menopausen, your estrogen levels start dropping, which causes your skin to become drier, and the underlying collagen connective tissue, muscle, and fat tissues that give skin its support also begin to shrink, leading to more apparent creases and wrinkles.
While that all sounds like doom-and-gloom, keep your head up because there are plenty of nutrients you can take to rebalance and restore your hormones levels naturally, resulting in plumped up and moisturized skin. The following nutrients either create estrogen-like activity in your body or help you to produce more of your own estrogen. They also slow down the metabolism and excretion of the estrogen you do produce, thereby raising your own estrogen levels. You can use as many or as few of the following nutrients as you need to achieve your desired level of hormonal support.
- Boron is a trace mineral found in apples, grapes, almonds, legumes, and dark-green leafy vegetables. There is some evidence that boron enhances estrogenic activity. In one study, when women on estrogen therapy supplemented their normally low-boron diet with 3 mg of boron, their blood levels of estrogen were significantly elevated. Based on this research, I suggest taking 3 mg of boron per day.
- Para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) is a fat-soluble B vitamin necessary for the production of folic acid. It helps to safely and effectively impede the breakdown of estrogen in the liver. I recommend taking 400–500 mg of PABA a day in divided doses.
- Wheat germ oil is rich in vitamin E, which has mildly estrogenic properties. In fact, wheat germ oil contains the fatty acids and other nutrients that your body needs to support and produce hormones such as estrogen. I recommend taking 2,000–2,400 mg of wheat germ oil in capsule form a day, in divided doses.
- Cobalt slows down the excretion of estrogen, thus allowing you to better maintain your own production of estrogen. It is able to do this by stimulating the production of heme oxidase. This, in turn, promotes the breakdown of cytochrome p450, a substance that normally metabolizes and detoxifies estrogen. By breaking down this substance, cobalt helps to prevent estrogen metabolism and excretion. I suggest taking 400–500 mcg of cobalt a day. To further improve your cobalt status, you can also take 100–500 mcg of vitamin B12 a day. Research shows that cobalt is supplied in your body by B12. If you have adequate levels of B12, you likely have adequate amounts of cobalt, as well.
- Black cohosh is an estrogenic herb that was often prescribed in colonial times to treat a variety of menopausal symptoms. I recommend taking 40–80 mg of a standardized extract of black cohosh twice a day. This dose should contain 2–4 mg of the active components (triterpenes, calculated as 27-deoxyacteine).
Excess facial hair, called postmenopausal facial hirsutism, is a fairly common effect of menopause--especially in those who have decided to not use conventional hormone replacement therapy. Understandably, this condition can be extremely upsetting.
The following strategies are free of side effects and address the underlying problem so that the growth of facial hair actually stops. Because hair grows in cycles, these treatments require about two to three months of use before you see results. In the interim, you can remove the worst of the hair by plucking or sugaring. Like waxing, sugaring removes hair at the root, but it doesn’t damage the surrounding skin. And it’s painless! I recommend using the wonderful sugaring product from MOOM to remove unwanted hair while you treat the underlying problem.
First, if you’re in your perimenopausal or menopausal years, female hormone balance is key to reducing unwanted facial hair. Refer to my recommendations throughout this blog for achieving female hormone balance.
In addition, there are natural botanicals that, when used topically on the face, are known to inhibit 5-alpha reductase—the enzyme that activates testosterone in facial follicles, causing facial hair.
• Green tea extract (epigallocatechin gallate, or EGCG) inhibits 5-alpha reductase and also has been shown to reduce skin inflammation.
• NDGA (nordihydroguaiaretic acid), an extract of chaparral, blocks receptor sites for 5-alpha reductase and also inhibits the skin’s pro-inflammatory cascade.
• Zinc, azelaic acid, and vitamin B6: Even at low doses, zinc and azelaic acid (from the yeast Pityrosporum ovale) are potent 5-alpha reductase inhibitors because they work synergistically. Vitamin B6 enhances their activity and their ability to penetrate the skin. In a study published in the British Journal of Dermatology, when very low doses of these agents were applied together, their combined activity blocked 5-alpha reductase by an amazing 90 percent.
You can find most of these nutrients sold separately at health food stores or vitamin shops. Or you can use a product called Reductase-5, which contains these botanicals.
Estrogen deficient–fast processors have more acidic body compositions and can’t handle the acidic foods that estrogen deficient–slow processors thrive on. Fast processors often complain of often severe menopause symptoms like night sweats, vaginal dryness, menopause hot flashes, and dry skin and hair.
Fast processors do best by eliminating all acidic foods, such as red meat, citrus fruits, and hot spices, and even dairy, and instead following a vegetarian-emphasis diet that contains whole grains, beans, salads, and vegetables. I also recommend using "cooler" spices like lemon balm, cilantro, basil, marjoram, and chamomile in your cooking, and forgoing "hot" spices like red pepper and chili powder.
If you are an estrogen deficient–fast processor, here are the foods you should be eating:
• Most vegetables
• Gluten-free whole grains
• Legumes (beans and peas)
• Small amounts of raw seeds and nuts
• Organic eggs
• Wild fish such as salmon, mackerel, trout, and tuna
• Sea vegetables such as kelp
• Fruits like bananas, melons, and papayas
• Free-range poultry in moderation
Eating a diet rich in these types of foods will help will increase your energy, stamina, and resistance to disease. Plus, you’ll notice a dramatic decrease in troubling menopause symptoms like menopause hot flashes, night sweats, and vaginal dryness.
If you are an estrogen deficient–slow processor, you tend to have greater reserves of alkaline minerals such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, and zinc within your cells, tissues, and bones. Slow processors also have the body and hormonal makeup to be able to handle an acidic diet that is rich in red meat and dairy, but these foods lack the essential nutrients that all women need to maintain optimal health. For this reason, estrogen deficient–slow processors are best served by following a diet that is both highly acidic and nutrient-rich. This includes the following foods:
• High-fiber foods such as buckwheat and flaxseed
• Citrus fruits (oranges, limes, lemons, and grapefruit), berries, and pineapple
• All vegetables, especially sauerkraut, spinach, cucumbers, tomatoes, asparagus, and broccoli
• Free-range poultry
• Wild fish such as salmon, mackerel, trout, and tuna
• Free-range beef and lamb, as well as game meats like venison and buffalo
• Soy and soy-based foods
• Vinegar
• Raw nuts (almonds, walnuts)
• Heating spices such as turmeric (curry), ginger, cayenne pepper, chili powder and pepper, cumin, cloves, and cinnamon
By following this diet, slow processors are able to regain their energy and zest for life, reduce joint pain, and stabilize their female hormone levels. Not to mention, eating a healthy diet provides menopause relief from symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats.
I personally follow an exercise program for estrogen deficient–fast processors. Even though my female hormones are healthy and well-balanced, I fall more into this category because I am a petite and slender woman, and I have a fast-paced day-to-day life. To help balance my female hormones, I follow a workout routine that calms me.
Estrogen deficient–fast processors don’t want to heat up their bodies and sweat. It is more important to engage in slower, more expansive and relaxing aerobic activities that are moderately strenuous and can be done in a relaxed and leisurely way. For this reason, the best activities for women in this category include golf, gardening, swimming, and moderately-paced walking and bicycling. You can also try ballroom dancing—in particular, slower dances like the waltz.
In terms of stretching, the best types for this hormonal category include tai chi and hatha yoga, which are slower and more meditative. With these slower-paced exercises, you will tend to breathe more deeply and slowly. Moderate aerobic exercise relaxes, dilates, and expands the network of blood vessels in your body, and enables your heart to work more efficiently. Better circulation and oxygenation, in turn, improve the health of all of your organs, including your ovaries and uterus.
Of course, another benefit to this and all exercise is the reduction of menopause symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats!
If you are an estrogen deficient–slow processor, I recommend keeping your female hormones balanced with high-intensity activities such as power walking, cycling, running, triathlons, racquetball, tennis, and fast-paced styles of ballroom dance like the tango, foxtrot, and swing.
Women with these hormone profiles tend to be instinctively drawn to strenuous types of exercise that are more contracting and acidifying to counter their natural tendency toward alkalinity. I’ve seen women with these hormonal profiles maintain this level of intense physical activity well into their later years. In fact, it is not unusual to see slow processors participating in triathlons and bodybuilding well into their 70s and beyond!
Stretching and flexibility exercises are also important parts of your workout routine. Stretching keeps you limber and helps your muscles and tendons function well into your older years. The best stretching exercise is Pilates, as it tends to include more intense and faster-paced movements. In addition, yoga is beneficial for these women—particularly the high-energy Bikram (hot), ashtanga, and power yoga.
Another benefit of these exercises? They help reduce menopause symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats!
I told you earlier this week about the estrogen-deficient fast processor. Today, I'll tell you about the mirror image of this woman--the estrogen-deficient slow processor.
An estrogen deficiency–slow processor woman is also in menopause and may experience menopause symptoms, but she has the opposite body type and temperament. Characteristics include:
• Plumper/difficult time losing weight
• Fluid retention
• Stronger bones and connective tissue
• Thicker skin and hair
• Placid temperament
Often women have characteristics that fall under both categories, but more of the characteristics fall in one over the other. In this case, you should identify yourself with the profile that most closely lines up with your personal characteristics.
Over the next few days, I'll tell you about exercises and foods to eat if you are a fast processor or slow processor.
During menopause, things aren’t as simple as just too much or too little of any given hormone. In my practice, I found that patients tended to experience a total shift in their entire physical and chemical makeup that manifested as one of two patterns. Their body and brain chemistry tended toward becoming either too fast or too slow. For this reason, I call the first pattern estrogen deficiency–fast processor. The second is its mirror image: estrogen deficiency–slow processor.
Today I'll give you the characteristics of a woman who is a fast processor.
Characteristics include:
• Anxiety
• Thin, dry skin and tissues
• Menopause hot flashes
• Night sweats
• Insomnia
• Vaginal dryness
• Sore joints
• Increased risk for heart disease and osteoporosis
Later this week, I'll tell you about slow processors, then give you information on how to deal with both chemical makeups!
I like to read other blogs, and recently came across
an entry posted by a woman blogging about menopause symptoms.
The writer quotes a doctor who says he still prescribes conventional hormone replacement therapy to certain groups of women,
despite the risks--which I found quite disturbing. However, this doctor did acknowledge the benefits that
black cohosh and
soy can have in safely and naturally relieving the effects of menopause--namely night sweats and menopause hot flashes.
I say ditch the dangerous HRT and use natural. Along with black cohosh and soy, you can find a variety of solutions for your menopause problems throughout this blog and on
my Web site.
According to a study that appeared online December 2, 2010 in Menopause: The Journal of the North American Menopause Society states that many doctors are still prescribing high doses of conventional hormone replacement therapy for menopause hot flashes, night sweats, and insomnia, even though the risks have been thoroughly proven and documented, and even though lower dose hormones are effective in alleviating these menopause symptoms.
I find this news so upsetting, considering how dangerous convention hormone replacement therapy has been proven to be--greatly increasing the risk of diseases like breast cancer and cardiovascular disease, to name just a few.
If you are one of those women still taking conventional hormone replacement to find menopause relief, please talk to your doctor about cutting back or stopping altogether. You can find many, many safe, suitable natural therapies for your menopause symptoms throughout my blog.
And for more information on female hormones and natural menopause relief, please visit my Web site.
A recent study published in the journal
Menopause claims that those debilitating menopause hot flashes that so many women suffer from can actually protect the heart!
More than 60,000 postmenopausal women were studied, and researchers found that those who suffered from menopause hot flashes early on were 17% less likely to have a stroke, and 11% less likely to have heart disease or a heart-related illness. And, women who did
not have menopause hot flashes until later in menopause were at a 32% higher risk of heart attack!
So, while menopause symptoms can be quite bothersome, this research might be a sliver of positive news for you if you suffer from hot flashes or night sweats!
Curcumin, the therapeutic agent in the culinary herb turmeric, has long been known to have amazing health benefits, including anticancer, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects. And recently, researchers identified a powerful phytoestrogen in curcumin called diarylheptanoid. Studies show that it interacts with estrogen receptors and has estrogen-like benefits that help to reverse, among other symptoms, the perimenopause symptom of vaginal dryness.
One very easy way you can increase your curcumin intake is to start using turmeric as a culinary spice in your cooking. For example, whisk a teaspoon into a pint of homemade salad dressing, or stir a teaspoon into a pan of risotto or into any savory sauce or gravy. In addition to its earthy flavor and health benefits, turmeric adds a bright yellow color to your food.
However, for consistent therapeutic results, I recommend supplementing with 1,000 mg of curcumin daily, taken with food.
For other tips of how to reduce the bothersome effects of menopause, visit my Web site.
Do you ever wonder if what you think are menopause symptoms
really are menopause symptoms? Well, by answering the following questions, you may be able to know for sure. If you answer yes to most or all of these questions, then you are likely entering the menopausal phase of your life.
- My last period was 6 months or longer ago (real menopause)
- My periods are lighter, less frequent, and of shorter duration (late perimenopause)
- I'm 46 or older
- I'm having hot flashes
- Intercourse is painful
- My desire for sex has faded
- I have difficulty achieving orgasm
- I have frequent vaginal infections
- I leak urine when I laugh, cough, sneeze, exercise, or wait too long to void
- I've lost my zest for life
- I have difficulty sleeping through the night
- I'm frequently tired
- I'm anxious and irritable
- I forget small details
- My skin is drier, thinner, and more wrinkled
- My muscles are losing their tone
- I'm gaining weight
- My joints and/or muscles ache
- I have itchy, crawly skin
- I sometimes feel as if electric shocks were going through my body
Visit my
Web site for all natural solutions to help calm and alleviate the unpleasant effects of menopause.
Did you know that certain medications are notorious for promoting urinary incontinence--an effect of menopause that effects millions of women?
Talk to your physician or pharmacist to find out if any of your medications may be contributing to this troublesome menopause symptom. If so, find out whether there are alternatives.
A few incontinence-promoting drugs include antidepressants such as amitriptyline (Elavil) and venlafaxine (Effexor); antihistamines such as Benadryl; antipsychotics such as haloperidol (Haldol); and calcium channel blockers such as verapamil (Calan) and nifedipine (Procardia).
You can find a much more complete list in a book called 20 Common Problems in Women’s Health Care by Mindy Smith, M.D. and Leslie A. Shimp, Pharm. D.
For more information on menopause symptoms and how to find natural menopause relief, visit my
Web site.
I came across
an article about overactive bladder/urinary incontinence--another effect of menopause that's not only difficult to discuss with others (like your doctor), but quite debilitating. While I like a lot of the treatment recommendations the author lays out in her article, including biofeedback, dietary changes, weight loss, and Kegel exercises, I am opposed to using medication and hormone replacement therapy for this menopause symptom, especially since relief can be found using the solutions mentioned earlier, as well as the following supplements:
- Pumpkin seed extract has been found to be powerful in the treatment of the hypersensitive bladder in menopausal women suffering from urge incontinence. I like Enzymatic Therapy’s pumpkin seed extract product Better Bladder for Women.
- Varuna is tailor-made for the treatment of urge incontinence. The bark of this medium-size tree, which grows along streams and river banks in India, is known for its ability to soothe bladder pain and neurogenically normalize bladder hypersensitivity. This herb is difficult to find on its own in reputable North American outlets, but I have included a high quality form in my bladder support product called Confident Control.
- Magnesium supplementation has been shown to significantly cut down the frequency and severity of urge incontinence episodes, reduce the number of urinations per day, and decrease nighttime urination. In one study, the women in the treatment group saw significant improvement within a month of taking 350 mg magnesium hydroxide orally (that’s one teaspoon of Milk of Magnesia) twice a day. If your doctor approves, that’s the dose I’d recommend.
This acupressure exercise helps to stimulate sexual desire, which often wanes as a result of menopause and menopause symptoms. The exercise uses a knotted hand towel to put pressure on hard-to-reach areas of the back. Place the knotted towel on these points while your two hands are on the other points I am going to describe.
1. Lie on the floor with your knees bent. Place the knotted towel under your right shoulder blade. Then place your left foot on your right knee.
2. Make a fist with your left hand and place it under your back, under the right part of your waist.
3. With your right hand, hold your inner left thigh.
4. Hold this position for one to three minutes.
For more information on natural menopause relief,
visit my Web site.
I hear from my patients time and time again how much
acupressure helps to
relieve their
menopause symptoms. So this week I'd like to share a few more acupressure exercises for menopause relief--targeting problems like lack of sex drive and vaginal dryness/atrophy.
Vaginal dryness is a common menopause complaint. It can lead to painful sex and loss of sex drive. Try this acupressure exercise to help alleviate vaginal dryness/atrophy.
1. Sit on the floor with your knees bent.
2. Extend your right leg out in front of you.
3. With your right hand, place your pointer and middle fingers in the middle of the sole of your foot. Hold this point for one to three minutes.
4. Do this same exercise with your left leg/foot.
For more information on natural options for menopause relief,
visit my Web site.
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