How to improve Women’s Health: 7 Tips for Balancing Hormones and Nutrition

A woman’s well-being and general health are intricately tied to her hormonal balance. Hormones are chemical messengers in our body that govern different processes, such as mood, sleep, and metabolism¹. For many of us, hormones are synonymous with the menstrual cycle, however, that’s not the only set of hormones impacting our well-being. If you’d like to give your body a hand in living up to its maximum potential, there are strategies to help in balancing hormones.

Making sense of the balance

Let’s quickly talk about the hormones you might hear about and encounter in your day-to-day. Our body is a complex mix of different processes governed by hormonal signals. For the purposes of this post, let’s talk about your sleep hormones, hunger hormones and menstrual cycle hormones.

Your sleep is primarily controlled by the hormone melatonin, so keeping it balanced is key for restful sleep².

Your hunger is controlled by two main hormones leptin and ghrelin, which affect your hunger cues and how you process food, as they impact insulin activity³.

Your menstrual cycle is mainly controlled by estrogen and progesterone. The cycle is divided into four phases⁴:

• Early follicular phase – this is the bleeding phase, where estrogen and progesterone are low;
• Late-follicular phase – between the end of the bleeding and your ovulation; estrogen is high and progesterone is low;
• Ovulation – when you release an egg; your estrogen is medium and progesterone low;
• Luteal phase – from ovulation to bleeding, where estrogen is medium and progesterone high.

So, how can you keep all of these in check and working normally?

Top 7 tips for supporting your well-being

Luckily, there are 7 simple tips that can help you ensure that your hormones are balanced. Balanced hormones help you feel and function at your best.

1. Prioritize protein. Protein is a nutrient that affects overall health, as it makes up muscle and makes enzymes that control processes in out body⁵. High protein intake helps control appetite, helping you feel full⁶. During the luteal phase, our body increases musclebuilding, so additional protein can be beneficial⁷.
2. Get plenty of fiber. Fiber is great for our gut bacteria and can help balance hunger hormones⁸. Getting enough fiber may improve sleep quality⁹. Additionally, fiber can help lower estrogen levels, which can be beneficial under certain circumstances, as that may lower chances of certain types of cancer¹⁰.
3. Make time for working out. Regular exercise helps our body respond to insulin well, which allows our normal glucose digestion¹¹. It is also great for balancing hunger hormones¹². Exercise is known to be beneficial for sleep¹³. However, during your early follicular phase, you might find exercise harder¹⁴, in that case, choose lower intensity exercise like pilates.
4. Don’t forget the microelements. We need micronutrients like vitamins for balancing hormones. Iron, zinc, and magnesium are great for supporting sleep¹⁵. Vitamin D together with high intensity workouts can help with hunger hormone balance¹⁶.
5. Pay attention to these vitamins for the menstrual cycle. During menstruation, we need more of certain micronutrients for balancing hormones. B-group vitamins can help lower PMS risk¹⁷. Zinc can also lower pain during your period and plays a role in helping your metabolism work well¹⁸. Maxler Zinc Picolinate + Copper is a highly bioavailable complex of two key minerals that support health, beauty and can help you balance hormones.
6. Add in healthy fats. Our body requires healthy fats, especially omega-3s. They beneficially affect many processes in the body. They may help increase insulin sensitivity and may positively affect stress^19,20. Plus, they are great to include during your luteal phase and menstruation, as they may help with pre-menstrual pains²¹.
7. Relaxation and sleep. All processes in our body are inter-connected. Sufficient sleep is beneficial for our ability to control appetite, digest lipids and glucose and maintain a healthy hormone balance²². Schedule time to unwind and de-stress regularly. Optimize your sleeping conditions for best results – you can learn how to do that here.

Making good choices

The first step to a healthier, happier you is to learn to live together with your hormones. To do so, you may need to make a series of small adjustments that will help you maximise your potential. Maxler can help you make these changes so you can see a radiant, energetic version of you.

Start your journey to a healthier and happier you by incorporating our tips into your faily life. The path to your best self is within your reach, and Maxler is here to help make getting to where you need to be easier.