Our bodies produce less hormones as we age. But research shows that there are some actions we can take to slow the aging process and activate our own genes and body chemistry to live active lives longer and better than ever.
We women want glowing skin, a good-looking bod that stays at a healthy weight, gobs of energy, and a positive outlook on life. The levels of our various hormones and their fluctuations throughout each 24-hour period play a big part in shifting our body in or out of balance. Many of us struggle to regain the buoyancy of our youth.
Can we find the way to send our bodies back in time? No … but we can make smart nutrition and lifestyle choices that will tap into our body’s ability to repair and self-regulate. We can be mindful of which foods we choose to consume, the quality of sleep we get, and how positively we view our world.
Let’s take a look at some of the hormones that work together to balance our weight, mood, energy, and skin quality.
Estrogen makes us feel beautiful. It makes beautiful skin and hair and makes us feel sexy and alive. When it’s too high we may experience estrogen dominance and suffer with migraines, tender breasts, cysts, endometriosis, or fibroids. Low estrogen causes our hair to thin, our mood to tank, our body to dry up, and our skin to lose elasticity. Estrogen in balance lets us feel youthful.
Some foods to help support a healthy estrogen level are turmeric, avocados, olive oil, nut butters, and pomegranate.
Progesterone lets you get a restful sleep, keeps you feeling mellow, helps you to flush out excess fluid responsible for bloating. Progesterone and estrogen balance each other like a see saw. When they are balanced so are you. But when progesterone is low and estrogen is dominant the consequences can be headaches, rough periods, and cysts.
Some foods to help support healthy progesterone levels are strawberries, chard, pumpkin seeds, whole grain bread and lentils.
Thyroid hormones keep you feeling energetic, help you balance you weight, think clearly, and enjoy thick hair and moisturized skin. But if thyroid issues start to emerge all hell breaks loose! Depression, abnormal cholesterol levels, low sex drive, a failing memory.
Some foods to help boost thyroid function are salmon, oysters, beef, and brazil nuts.
Depend on the healthy foods you use when planning meals and snacks to impact the way your body ages and ultimately live a high quality life.