"Your symptoms are caused by a hormone imbalance," a sentence spoken by our doctors that is very familiar to us ladies. The doctor prescribes medication that we can't even pronounce the name of, but that should take care of your problem. It helps for a while, but the symptoms never entirely disappear, different symptoms arise, or the old symptoms come back when we stop taking the medication. In Ayurveda, we strive to heal the cause, not the symptom. Western medicine shows us, that hormones are a messaging system that coordinates between mind and body. Ayurveda teaches us that healthy hormones are produced by a balanced agni, balanced doshas, and healthy lining of the intestines. Through the example below, I would like to explain the hormonal balance through an Ayurvedic lens.
Balancing hormones
It's 12 'o clock in the afternoon, and my stomach tells me that it is lunchtime. I serve myself a bowl of soup and some rice. The meal passes through my stomach, where Agni (digestive fire) is responsible for assimilating the food. The stomach then passes this on to the GI tract. The nutrients will pass through the intestinal lining and are absorbed by the blood to nourish all the seven tissue layers of the body. When this assimilation process is completed correctly, your body will then create balanced hormones. Now you can see why when the first part of this process isn't functioning correctly; the end product will have no chance of working correctly. When your diet, doshas, or digestion is out of balance, this will eventually cause disfunction in your hormone production. This will subsequently cause more symptoms. Therefore it is essential to remove the root cause and do it correctly from the start.
Below I will share some insight into the different parts of a healthy body that will create healthy hormones.
Agni (digestive fire)
Your agni is the main fire that burns inside of you. A balanced agni is necessary for proper assimilation of food, thoughts, emotions, etc.
To create a healthy agni, it is recommended to:
Eat three freshly cooked meals These meals contain the most nutrients and Prana (life force).
Eating with the season. Studies show that your food will lose at least 30% of its nutrients within three days after harvesting. Imagine how much nutrients is left after traveling half the globe.
Preparing 60/40 augmenting/extractive meals Augmenting are those that are sweet and nourishing. Extractive are those that are bitter and astringent in taste and are detoxifying. Read more about this here
Don't overeat or under-eat This will weaken your digestion
Balancing doshas
Apart from a good diet, it is also essential to keep the dosha's balanced. The three different doshas being Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. Everybody has their own unique constitution. To help balance the doshas, it is recommended to:
Have a routine during your day (set sleeping times, set meal times)
Go to bed before 10 pm - wake up before 6 pm
Avoiding excessive stress
Eating balanced meals
Living with the seasons
How long does it take to balance hormones?
When food is assimilated properly through a balanced digestive system, you will create healthy hormones. The process from food to hormones takes about 35 days before complete so give it some time.
For more information on creating healthy hormones and menstrual cycle, I recommend downloading my free ebook. You can find it by clicking here