There may be a link between beauty products and estrogen dominance. Estrogen imbalance is responsible for many illnesses in America.
What is Estrogen Dominance
It’s possible that we are all — men, women and children — suffering a little from estrogen dominance, because there is so much of it in our environment. You would have to live in a bubble to escape the excess synthetic estrogens we’re exposed to through pesticides, plastics, industrial waste products, car exhaust, meat, soaps and much of the carpeting, furniture and paneling that we live with indoors every day. I’m always surprised when clients have no idea what I’m talking about when I speak of it in the salon. So what is it exactly?
Estrogen in men and women.
Women produce 2 types of hormones- progesterone and estrogen. All of the things above we breath, eat and absorb dermally break down in our bodies as synthetic estrogen, which in turn, can create a hormone imbalance. Synthetic estrogen simply means its not estrogen your body created, but absorbed from the environment. When our hormones are balanced everything is functioning great, when they aren’t a million different things can go wrong. From just feeling sluggish or in extreme cases, cancer.
In most cases for women, we get the largest doses of synthetic estrogen from what goes in & on our bodies. Its scary but in a world where GMO”s( genetically modified organisms) are in most supermarket foods, & petrochemicals (derived from crude oil includes: ethylene, toulene; often in nail polish, and butylene) and preservatives are in most cosmetics , its a reality.
Its unrealistic to think you can avoid all these things, but even slight efforts can make a huge difference in your health. Where do beauty products play in to this? Well they obviously go directly on our bodies. Many mainstream and VERY advertised products contain the highest amounts of preservatives, sulfates, parabens, and chemicals. Choosing organic, or plant based(natural) skin, makeup and hair products are a great start. Here are a few other easy things that make a big difference. Here’s more on this in a post from dermstore.
Here are a few(ahem) symptoms..
Symptoms Of Estrogen Dominance
- Allergies, including asthma, hives, rashes, sinus congestion
- Autoimmune disorders such as lupus erythematosis and thyroiditis, and possibly Sjoegren’s disease
- Breast cancer
- Breast tenderness
- Cervical dysplasia
- Cold hands and feet as a symptom of thyroid dysfunction
- Copper excess
- Decreased sex drive
- Depression with anxiety or agitation
- Dry eyes
- Early onset of menstruation
- Endometrial (uterine) cancer
- Fat gain, especially around the abdomen, hips and thighs
- Fatigue
- Fibrocystic breasts
- Foggy thinking
- Gallbladder disease
- Hair Loss
- Headaches
- Hypoglycemia
- Increased blood clotting (increasing risk of strokes)
- Infertility
- Irregular menstrual periods
- Irritability
- Insomnia
- Magnesium deficiency
- Memory loss
- Mood swings
- Osteoporosis
- Polycystic ovaries
- Premenopausal bone loss
- PMS
- Prostate cancer (men only)
- Sluggish metabolism
- Thyroid dysfunction mimicking hypothyroidism
- Uterine cancer
- Uterine fibroids
- Water retention, bloating
- Zinc deficiency
- Pre-mature aging & wrinkles
Well isn’t that overwhelming!! I mean who doesn’t have at least 5 of those symptoms at any given time? Small adjustments can make a big difference and one way is to avoid estrogen in beauty products. What goes in or on your body, remember that, are the largest factors. Being aware is the first step. So check out your beauty products and here are some other tips.
Tips To Limiting Synthetic Estrogen in Life and Beauty Products
- eat only organic meat and dairy , or at the very least food that says “no added hormones”
- get a tap filter, Brita sells a great one for about 60$ and help the earth & save $ by not buying bottled h20
- don’t microwave your food in plastic (my mom doesn’t use one at all)
- use an organic body lotion- or extra virgin olive oil.
- get a few houseplants, the extra co2 improves air quality
- switch to mineral makeup
- don’t smoke, duh
- stop drinking pop, especially diet (hangovers excluded)
- read labels and ask questions!
Choose Clean Beauty Products
Seriously, quit opening the shampoo bottle to smell it. It kills me when I see a client do this, although I DO IT TOO. I guess its just human nature, but trust me; the fragrance is the LEAST important thing in the bottle.
The last one is very important. Ask questions. There is nothing I CANNOT stand more than a dumb hairstylist. You know the one. Selling something just because they’re told by the reps or hair companies that its a great product without finding out for themselves. Is that someone you really want to get beauty advice from over the long haul? No. Whether its health advice from a physician, or beauty advice from an esthetician or stylist, the “professionals” in your life to be educated and knowledgeable.
I really dislike the word “lifestyle”. It seems so smug. I’ve been on the “green” walk since 2002, before it was coined “green”. Making the decision to choose cleaner, healthier options for my body and planet. I still learn new things all the time. I’m sometimes hyper vigilant, sometimes not so much. But the one thing I know, it’s not going away, its getting worse. Unfortunately, its the world we live in today. Adopting some of the things above will help your body and our planet. In no time you will be loving your verde vida!