Your stable physical and mental state largely depends on hormones. Maintaining hormonal balance is enough to lead a healthy lifestyle.
However, we often do not notice that our daily habits upset this balance, leading to hormonal disruption.
Hormones are a kind of chemical transmitter that controls most of our body’s functions.
Signs of hormonal imbalance
Hormonal disruption can lead to problems such as:
- acne
- headaches
- digestive problems
- burnout
- unexplained weight loss or being overweight
- excessive sweating
- sleep problems
- fluctuations in blood pressure
- weak or brittle bones
- irritability and anxiety
- prolonged fatigue
- depression
- decreased libido
- infertility
Here are some harmless habits that can lead to hormonal imbalances.
Causes of hormonal disruption
Work or play at night
Adequate sleep is very important for maintaining a healthy balance of our hormones. Lack of sleep leads to increased cortisol and blood sugar levels.
For this reason, frequent nights out or work at night can play a trick on your hormones. You may feel that you are wasting precious time while sleeping, but you are not. Regular sleep evens out cortisol levels and brings your body into balance.
Consumption of caffeine after 6 p.m
Coffee in the evening may seem quite harmless, but if it becomes a habit, then it can already negatively affect your hormones.
Consuming caffeine after 6 p.m. can raise the stress hormone cortisol levels, making you feel anxious and restless. To avoid the unpleasant consequences and benefit from this drink, drink coffee in the morning or the morning.
Avoiding fatty foods
Eating only low-fat foods is not as healthy a habit as it seems at first glance. Avoiding fats robs you of good cholesterol and soluble vitamins, important for hormones to function properly. Foods that are artificially devoid of fat contain stabilizers and fillers that can negatively affect hormonal health.
A full and moderate diet will provide you with enough fat, so there is no need to give up oil, fish, dairy products, and meat.
Use of hand sanitizers
It’s important to maintain a certain level of hygiene, of course, but overdoing it with antiseptic gels or hand wipes may not be that beneficial.
The point is that antibacterial agents upset the balance of good and bad bacteria in our bodies. They often contain triclosan, which affects the level of estrogen, which in turn disrupts the work of thyroid hormones.
Intensive workouts
Physical activity is essential to stay healthy, but exercise that is too grueling increases adrenaline and cortisol, the stress hormone.
Although this hormone plays an important role in human survival, when too much of it becomes too much, it can lead to swings in blood sugar levels and inflammation. In addition, it threatens problems such as decreased libido and infertility.
How can you tell if you are exercising too much, you ask. It is worth knowing that, for example, too long cardio workout suppresses the hormones of joy. Therefore, it is important to balance strength training, endurance training, and stress-relieving activity. Optimal workouts are those where you can get results but still feel good.
The habit of drinking from plastic bottles
Plastic contains chemicals that mimic hormones – xenohormones. One such hormone is bisphenol-A, which has been linked to many hormonal disorders and cancer.
It is especially dangerous to drink from bottles that have been exposed to direct sunlight, which allows chemicals to penetrate the water easily. It is better to give preference to bottles made of glass and steel.
Lack of time for yourself
When you live your life constantly working or in the so-called fight-or-flight mode, you start to get annoyed at the slightest provocation. This is already a wake-up call that hormonal imbalance is present or is just around the corner.
When you freak out on trifles, do not find time for yourself, and do not rest properly, hormonal balance is disturbed in your body.
We need to make time for ourselves, relax, meditate, sometimes hug our beloved pet, or do nothing on the weekend. Our body needs vitamins and minerals to function properly. A person under constant stress uses up these important substances to cope with stress, and as a result, we have various hormonal disorders.
The habit of not removing makeup at night
The cosmetics we use every day contain the chemicals xenoestrogens.
These hormones are estrogen blockers, disrupting their normal functioning in the body. Chemicals called phthalates can be found in hairsprays, nail polishes, and various makeup products.
For this reason, please do not be lazy and take off the remnants of makeup, as well as from time to time give rest to our face and body from cosmetics.
Passion for sweets
Excess sugar causes fluctuations in hormonal levels and negatively affects blood sugar levels. Sugar leads to sudden surges in the hormone insulin and decreases the sensitivity of the hormones ghrelin and leptin, which regulate appetite.
This can ultimately lead to elevated testosterone and estrogen levels, which can make you irritable and anxious.
It is important to notice these symptoms in time to avoid health problems.
There are several signs that a hormonal imbalance has occurred in your body, such as hair loss, discolored nails, cold hands and feet, and other symptoms to watch out for.
Treatment of hormonal disorders is individual and depends on other characteristics of your body. But it is also important to adjust your lifestyle to avoid many problems in the future.
