Your body needs fat to maintain hormone balance...
7 Replies
linds99 - July 21

According to an article on womantowoman.com written by an OB-Gyn doctor, she has confirmed that many causes for hormone dysfunction exist, including low fat diets. (I am so guilty of this....I run away from anything that says FAT on it.) Anyway, I have low progesterone levels and higher estrogen levels (obvious hormone imbalance.) In her article she says you should : Eat real, natural fat and cholesterol every day as part of every meal. But do so safely and within reason. Put real butter or cold-pressed olive oil on your potato — it will fill you up and help slow your digestion of carbohydrates. (Better yet, have a sweet potato instead — it has a lower glycemic index and higher nutritional value.) Dip your bread in olive oil. Snack on nuts, nut butters, olives, and sardines. Have a moderate amount of protein at every meal — it’s usually a great source of real, natural fat. Be wary of overly processed dairy products. As in all things, try to obtain the best quality dairy products from reliable, organic sources. Favor cooking methods that use moderate heat, and avoid cooking with unstable vegetable oils. Very high heat methods, such as grilling, can turn even good fat into trans fat. Don’t use any vegetable oil for cooking unless it has enough saturated fat to be stable. Store all cooking oils in the refrigerator to avoid rancidity. Take a daily nutritional supplement with omega–3 fatty acids. Low-fat, low-cholesterol diets can be very unhealthy, especially for women. Why? Because all our major hormones are made from cholesterol: estrogen, progesterone, cortisol, DHEA, and testosterone. If we don’t eat enough, our bodies divert cholesterol from our endocrine system to use for brain function and repair. When that happens, it’s almost impossible for our bodies to maintain hormonal balance.


 

Tracy88 - July 21

Boy, you are a wealth of information. After reading your post, I felt good that those are all the things I do anyway. I just happen to be allergic to everything, and don't tolerate hydrogenated food ingredients, or preservatives and such. I started seeing a trainer and nutritionist in March, who helped me figure out which supplements to take that are conducive to TTC. I hope others read your post, because so many people think they eat well, but don't realize that the food industry is genetically modifying as much as they can, and that all the unnecessary ingredients in foods, just make people sick and want to eat more. They won't label their foods as genetically modified though because they don't want traceability.......people could start relating their health problems to the foods they are ingesting, and that would not be good for the food companies. I eat organic and anything that says "No GMO's" for many reasons. If anyone is interested, there is a documentary out called "The Future of Food". We got it from Netflix. I learned so much and got really pissed. Sorry I got off the subject of hormone balance, but if you watch that documentary, you'll see how it is all related and just how affected a person can be by what they choose to put in their mouth.

 

linds99 - July 21

Hi Tracy, I actually saw that documentary. They did interviews with the major food manufacturing firms (kraft, etc.) right? I remember feeling betrayed when I saw that too. I have always been health conscious since my parents are from Europe and we generally eat only fresh fruits and vegetables (mediterranean diet.) I've always read about trans fats, etc. and found myself afraid of the word fat. However, I am thinking otherwise now....so ya, a little fat in the diet, good cholesterol each day in moderation is crucial for women TTC. I also hope more women read this post.

 

Tracy88 - July 21

What part of Europe are your parents from. My mom is from Finland. Not quite Europe, but part of the European Union. I am a thin person, but for some reason I have had high cholesterol since I was 19. I wasn't really watching what I ate at that age, but over the years, took tiny steps to improve my diet, but for some reason the cholesterol would not go down. It wasn't until last year that it finally did and I know exactly what I did that made it go back to normal. I ate olive oil, cut all trans fats, and started taking the omega 3's etc... Your cells need fat in order to maintain healthy cell walls, so it really depends on the type of fats you are putting in your body. The Mediterranean type diet includes a fair amount of olive oil and generally good fats. Keep up the good work and spread the word!

 

lovemy3 - July 21

Hi there
That is very true, but there is also a flip side to that. If you are very overweight your ovulating may cease due to hormone imbalance. In the past if I have been heavier I have not gotten pregnant. For overweight ladies even losing 10 or 20 lbs can get them back on track.

 

Tracy88 - July 21

I've seen the losing weight thing work for many people, but that doesn't mean that just because you are overweight, you should not eat the "healthy" fats. People actually lose weight by changing the type of fats that they ingest and like Linds said, the way they cook those fats as well. Nobody, heavy or thin, should cut out the healthy fats, the body needs them. Thanks for sharing, you made a good point.

 

linds99 - July 21

Lovemy3, like a I said the key is moderation...like everything...not total exclusion (like I was doing) or over consumption as some obese women do. If you lost your period due to over nutritionizing (with too much food intake), and then gained your period back by cutting your food intake, you obviously have found a balance for yourself. That is great...you are on your way...(I have PCOS but I am thin. I've never lost my period, probably because i do eat healthy and exercise. I have read numerous times of overweight PCOS women who do lose their periods and then gain it back when they lose weight.)

 

lovemy3 - July 22

For me I find that following the "Canada Food Guide" which is very similar to the standard "Weight Watchers" works best for me, like you said in moderation. My weight is like a yoyo. I really struggle with it and have fought obesity for a long time. Thanks for the input i find reading these posts very informative.

 

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