3 “foods” every woman should avoid to help their hormones
Personally, I get frustrated seeing posts online touting “eat this one food for instant weight loss”, “these three foods cured me of blah blah blah issue”, etc.. I’d try these things just to get tightly wound by “rules” struggle seeing results despite how disciplined I am.
I don’t want to throw the same things at you without giving you a deeper understanding that other coaches don’t understand:
1. it’s a full picture issue, and typically a few food adjustments aren’t the only thing that need work and…
2. reducing inflammation and getting back on track take time (think a minimum of 3-6mo before quality results).
Cutting these things out may not instantly improve your hormones, especially because there is typically several factors impacting our wellness. However, once these are eliminated, inflammation can begin to lower and the body can start to re-balance itself. Our bodies are like a Swiss Watch (read my explanation here) so working on the quality of what goes in our bodies whether through food/drink or supplements is an excellent step towards better supporting your well being.
I get it- there’s a LOT of noise to wade through. I’ve tried to navigate that wilderness for nearly a decade. But here is what I’ve realized ACTUALLY works best for long term, quality well being.
SUPPORT your CELLS.
If your foundation- cellular health- sucks, EVERYTHING’S gunna follow suit- your hormones, your metabolism, your thyroid, your liver, your weight, you see what I mean. If you’re putting in things that wreck your cellular health, thing’s are going to catch up with the rest of your being.
With that being said here are MY top items to stop consuming that wreck your cellular health, and therefore, your hormones.
Canola, safflower, vegetable, and sunflower seed oils
These oils have been highly processed and are originally byproducts not intended for consumption. These oils have pushed gorgeous, traditional, nourishing oils/fats like olive oil, tallow, butter, and ghee to the curb because of clever “donations” to the American Heart Association (AHA) decades back to get the AHA to promote these “heart healthy” oils. Today these oils found their way into nearly every food and some drinks, wreaking havoc on our health! Highly inflammatory, and truly shouldn’t be consumed due to their toxic properties. Whiiiiiiiich brings me to my next item…
2. “Plant based” products (plant “butter”, “meats”, protein powders, plant “milks”, etc.)
Before any vegans get at me, I too, was once a plant based girlie ✌🏼 (yup for twooooo years I was massively committed). I was convinced by docs like Forks Over Knives and similar groups the horror's meat and other animal products, like milk, do to a body. Personally I was all on for the “science-y, biology” side of things, rather than an animal activist, so these docs really stuck with me as I was trying to heal my horrible period pain and maybe lean up a bit.
Eventually several people mentioned long term implications of being vegan, and provided resources that encouraged me to reconsider my plant based choices. After having an open mind and realizing how veganism isn’t great for long term health (especially if you plan on bearing children) I stumbled across The Wise Traditions podcast and The Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF). I learned how many of these new “plant based” groups have a stupid agenda and actually are pretty harmful as vegans miss out on vital nutrients like Vitamin A found in Cod Liver Oil (NOT beta-carotine or retinyl, but retinol, the easiest form for our body to work with and also requires LESS consumption for a higher impact than other forms in plant based foods").
The WAPF has been a GOD SEND helping me reeducate myself on non-agenda/”Big Bucks Marketing” information. Honestly, I was bamboozled, and they’ve gotten a whoooooooole lotta people under their spell. If that’s you or a loved one, I HIGHLY encourage you to just give the WAPF/The Wise Traditions Podcast information a chance and reconsider what you’ve been told by Plant Based groups.
Here are my top reasons to eliminate plant based products from your diet:
They frequently contain the oils (vegetable, canola, sunflower, etc) mentioned above
There are WAY better ways to get protein in, especially when women should aim for 100g of BIOAVAILABLE protein A DAY (that’s right, you probably aren’t getting NEARLYYYY enough protein each day). Bioavailable means you can’t just rely on peanut butter to get you your protein for the day, animal products are powerhouses for bioavailable protein.
Many plant based milks can’t even compete with the incredible quality of actual dairy. Plus they usually spike your blood sugar and have gut irritants which make things worse :P
If you DO struggle with dairy products, consider why. Were/are you on birth control? Is the quality of dairy you’re drinking absolute garbage (aka the cheap milk at Walmart that is using the lowest quality milk ever)? Is your gut needing help? Until you’re able to drink actual milk STOP drinking almond, oat, etc and find a good quality coconut milk with ONLY coconut as the ingredient listed. NO FILLERS/ADDITIVES.
Of course I’m completely PRO veg/fruit- I’m not saying to become a complete carnivore, but realize animal products have INCREDIBLE nutrients we either can’t ascertain from plants OR would have to eat pounds upon pounds of to get the same nutrient amount as a few ounces of animal product can provide.
Again, this all comes back to supporting our amazing cellular health
If you are concerned about humane animal treatment and that’s what’s keeping you back from animal products- FIND a local farmer and do your research for where to purchase from that cares about the practices they use on their farm. This is a great way to support local, small farmers, and keep Big Food from gaining extra momentum.
3. Daily multivitamins and Vitamin C supplements with ascorbic/citric acid
Ok, one more time for anyone who hasn’t gotten it yet. We’re aiming for strong cellular health. If there are things that weaken the cells, we wanna know what they are and eliminate/avoid it when possible. And for this point, multivitamins and vitamin c (ascorbic/citric acid) supplements are it. Bye-bye.
Lemme explain.
Let’s cover multivitamins first.
These typically have synthetic ingredients, improper mineral ratios, or are using the weaker version of the nutrient we need (remember me mentioning Vitamin A? Multi’s typically usually use the form that isn’t bioavailable and as potent as the animal product form). There are manyyyyyyy well meaning brands out there that think they have a great product but unfortunately they tend to skimp out on the cheaper ingredients or add filler.
Personally I take desiccated Grass-Fed Beef Liver, Cod Liver Oil, Magnesium Glycenate, among other things everyday (FOR MY BODY, each person may have different needs and should consult a wellness provider first). Beef Liver has actually been dubbed “Natures Multi-Vitamin” and packs a punch of nutrients in all the right places and is a WHOLE food.
It’s crucial to go to FOOD FIRST for nutrients THEN supplement where necessary (typically with whole food supplements).
Second, “Vitamin C” in the form of citric or ascorbic acid. It’s a no from me. Both of these are not ideal for cellular health and actually backfire on our bodies due to their synthetic chemistry and function.
I’m all for ACTUAL Vitamin C but not if it is from the components I just mentioned.
Once I realized the importance of actual vitamin c, not from synthetic/subpar ingredients, I did a little research.
Nearly ALL “Vitamin C” supplements at EVERY store I went to were using these garbage components!!! It’s shocking and extremely frustrating!
Not only is it in our “Vitamin C” supplements, but it’s used as a preservative in the majority of our food/drinks. It is nearly impossible to escape or avoid citric/ascorbic acid. Next time you’re about to buy a drink/snack with “added vitamin c” check to see if it’s using those ingredients.
What I use instead, because, like I said, Vit. C IS actually important and we don’t wanna be missing out on this key nutrient.
Acerola Cherry supplement and of course I also try my best to consume fruits and veg that are high in Vitamin C on their own, like colorful bell peppers, oranges, and citrus.
Take Aways:
Do your best to start avoiding these things as much as possible. Have grace with yourself as you go and don’t try to hold yourself to a perfect record, never having these things again, but do your best each snack and meal at a time.
Remember we want to have strong cellular function. Each of these three things weaken our cells and eventually catch up to our hormone health.
Sharing this with a friend can help them strengthen their hormones too AND gives you a buddy to walk through this journey together!
One on one coaching IS available AND I have a BRAND NEW EBook to check out as well!