Fibroids...Everything You Need to Know

Uterine fibroids are extremely common. In fact, about 75 percent of women experience them at some point in their lives.

Fibroids are usually benign (non-cancerous) tumors that grown inside the womb, but what causes them, and why are some people more prone to getting them?

Let's start with a look at our hormones...because this is where it all begins.

Estrogen, Progesterone, and Testosterone all need to be in balance.

Progesterone is the “letdown” hormone – it lets down blood flow, it lets down breast milk, and it lets down the baby at birth…I call it the elastic hormone, because it allows the cervix to expand so that the baby can slip out.

Any woman who experiences monthly cramps, PMS, long painful labor during childbirth, or difficulty breast feeding needs to consider that she may have too much estrogen and not enough progesterone the "let down" hormone.

Now let's look at our liver...

The liver is responsible for breaking down our hormones – all hormones start out active, then once they have been used to carry out various bodily functions they need to be deactivated – and removed from the body through sweat and urine…if not removed these hormones can remain ACTIVE….so the body stores them away from our vital organs, i.e, breasts, stomach and hips…

This is why it can be so difficult to lose weight in these areas - the body does not want to allow these ticking time bombs (active hormones) back into our system.

If we don’t get rid of these “used” hormones the body creates fat stores to house them! and since they are still active, they grow, meaning they create more fat cells...

What Causes Estrogen Dominance?

Our western diet is full of foods that mimic estrogen….

We (men included) are consuming estrogen like compounds that mimic and mess with the natural estrogen produced in our body…this in turn messes with our other sex hormones.

Signs and symptoms for men are reduced testosterone, and man boobs…

Ever watched The Hand Maidens Tale? If so, it’s not fiction…I’ll leave that there for another blog post!

The biggest cause of estrogen dominance for women is synthetic birth control…

Then diet:

• Essential Fatty Acids: Our hormones are made from the fats in our diet so make sure they are good fats...oily fish, avocado, coconut oil, olive oil, grass-fed butter, ghee, nuts, and seeds.  If you only remember one thing from this article - remember this one! 
  
• Excess sugar can mess with the hormone insulin, mess with one hormone, and you mess with them the system -  known as the endocrine system
• Eggs from chickens fed on antibiotics, hormones and genetically modified grains
• Meat from animals fed on antibiotics, hormones & GMO grains
• Vegetarian “meat” alternatives made from soy & tofu - aka plant estrogen
• Water from plastic bottles – plastic is one molecule away from estrogen, so it can mimic natural estrogen.

Health Effects:

We are all unique…just like our finger print, so the effect of excess estrogen can manifest in any of the following ways:

• Fibroids
• PCO’s
• Endometriosis
• Infertility
• Breast Cancer 

Early warning signs of estrogen dominance... 

• Anemia from losing too much blood each month, leading to extreme fatigue
• Large hips and breasts disproportionate to the rest of the body
• PMS 

Signs and Symptoms of Fibroids...

Some women who have fibroids have no symptoms, or have only mild symptoms, while other women have more severe, disruptive symptoms.

The following are the most common symptoms for uterine fibroids, however, each individual may experience symptoms differently. 

• Heavy or prolonged menstrual periods
• Abnormal bleeding between menstrual periods
• Pelvic pain (caused as the tumor presses on pelvic organs)
• Frequent urination
• Low back pain
• Pain during intercourse

Why Are Some People More Prone to Fibroids?

The jury is still out – but the main theories are:

Vitamin D deficiency – The body makes vitamin D in a chemical reaction that occurs when sunlight hits the skin.

Darker-skinned people have more melanin, a compound that protects against skin damage, therefore darker-skinned people need more time in sunlight to make the same amount of vitamin D as lighter-skinned people.

This is important because vitamin D acts like a hormone in the body…and therefore impacts the rest of your hormones.

This could also be why African Americans are 3 x more likely to get fibroids. 

Hereditary – is it in your genes? aka DNA?

If your family (ancestors) did not consume a western diet, then your genes will have more of struggle trying to adapt to anything foreign - aka processed or genetically modified food.

In simple terms, genetically modified food messes with our genetics.

Chemical exposure – remember the liver acts like a filter, if it gets overloaded it can’t deactivate your hormones. 

The good news is that this is a simple and easy fix…

Yes, I said It’s Simple and it’s EASY...

• Don't mess with your hormones - use natural birth control – or be prepared for any of the above.
• Eat organic pasture raised eggs, milk and meat - meaning the animal ate grass not genetically modified grains!
• Drink from glass bottles – plastic products release estrogenic chemicals (including those that are BPA free).
• Eat food that has not been denatured – if it comes with a label it’s not natural. 
• Look after your liver – it’s like a filter – if it gets blocked it can’t breakdown your hormones once they have been used and they can remain ACTIVE and destructive.
• Take B-Complex it works on all of your liver pathways…amongst numerous other things.
• Vitamin D – either through direct sun exposure on the skin (20 mins EVERYDAY) or through natural supplementation.

In summary:

• Fibroids are muscular tumors that grown inside the uterus
• Fibroids are usually benign (non-cancerous) 
• Fibroids are a symptom of excess estrogen in the body
• Estrogen is a sex hormone – it needs to be balanced with progesterone and testosterone
• Estrogen is dominant in the first two weeks of your monthly cycle
• Progesterone is dominant in the last two weeks of your cycle

Lastly, eat like your health depends on it...

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