Nearly half of all women between the ages of 40 and 59 suffer from vaginal dryness at some point. It can put an abrupt halt to your sex life, interfere with exercise and hygiene habits, and even prevent you from wearing your favorite clothes. For many perimenopausal and menopausal women, especially those getting off HRT, vaginal dryness is often acute: it’s one of the top ten problems afflicting menopausal women.

“I’m me again. The vaginal dryness is better, and my libido is back!”

Nora, customer

Vaginal dryness is behind a lot of female sexual dysfunction because the lack of lubrication can make sex painful. Women with vaginal dryness often come to dread sex and end up avoiding all types of sexual activity. It’s no wonder that so many women with vaginal dryness experience a disturbing plunge in their libido.

Though women can suffer vaginal dryness at any age, this symptom can become chronic during perimenopause and menopause. Changes in hormone production and regulation, especially for estrogen, have a direct effect on vaginal tissue.

When is vaginal dryness most likely to occur?

For menopausal and post-menopausal women, vaginal dryness and other symptoms of hormonal imbalance can become increasingly problematic. But vaginal dryness is also an issue for women who have high stress for long periods and can also occur after giving birth. And HRT doesn’t guarantee protection either: women on HRT often continue to suffer vaginal dryness and irritation.

Although vaginal dryness during perimenopause and menopause is extremely common, it is not inevitable. When hormonal imbalance is the cause of vaginal dryness, a few simple steps will often improve natural vaginal lubrication. This is the easiest and most logical approach for most women.

Relieving vaginal dryness

These natural remedies for vaginal dryness are safe and effective, though you should allow a few weeks for them to work. The results are well worth the wait.

• Phytotherapy is highly recommended for vaginal dryness. Our Herbal Equilibrium has been formulated to address the ten most common symptoms of hormonal imbalance. The isoflavone complex in this supplement has been shown to assist vaginal health at the cellular level.
• Follow a hormone-balancing diet. Your body needs the right nutritional support to make and balance your hormones. The easy-to-follow eating plan we provide can make a huge difference for women with hormonal imbalance and symptoms like vaginal dryness. You should know that low-fat, high-carb diets literally starve your body of the nutrients it needs to make sex hormones. The estrogen needed for vaginal lubrication is made from cholesterol — often severely lacking in women on low-fat diets. Consider adding soy and flax seed — both are good sources of phytoestrogens.
• Boost your water intake. Drink at least ten 8-oz glasses of water a day. This simple step can be surprisingly helpful.
• Try a high quality vaginal lubricant. Some women achieve immediate relief from vaginal dryness and irritation simply by using personal lubricants. You may want to try one while you improve your hydration, nutrition and endocrine support to naturally restore your own vaginal moisture. A wide variety of vaginal lubricant products are now available for use in this sensitive area, including some without the parabens and other xenoestrogens that act as hormone disruptors. At Women’s Health Network, we use a vitamin E vaginal suppository that women rave about. Call us directly at 1-800-448-4919 to find out more.

For some women nothing short of hormone supplementation will help. If you’re one of them, you can ask your healthcare practitioner about locally–released bioidentical ERT (estrogen replacement therapy) in the form of an estriol vaginal cream, the Estring, or bioidentical progesterone creams.

We’ve been very successful with our Hormonal Health Programs at helping relieve the underlying causes of vaginal dryness and other symptoms of hormonal imbalance. For many women, this is the best place to start.

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Causes of hot flashes and night sweats

Hot flashes and night sweats are among the most frustrating menopause symptoms because they come without warning and disrupt your life and your sleep. Women not only want to know what is going ON?!, they also wonder how to make the sweating stop.

What happens in a hot flash?

Science is still trying to sort out what’s going on when hot flashes occur. One likely scenario is that falling estrogen levels affect how much of the neurotransmitter serotonin is available in the hypothalamus. When estrogen falls, so does serotonin, and that triggers a cascade of signals in the brain that changes how the temperature-regulating area within your brain — the hypothalamus — perceives temperature, resulting in a false sensation of heat.


The hypothalamus is “tricked” into responding as if you’re overheating. It sends “cool-down” signals telling your blood vessels to dilate, your heart rate to increase, and your sweat glands to open up wide. The result is a sudden, intense — and unpleasant — rush of heat, often accompanied by drenching perspiration, dizziness, and even heart palpitations. You may also feel nauseated or weak, or have a crawling sensation on your skin. 


Why do hot flashes and night sweats happen?

Hot flashes happen in menopause because it’s a time when the body is handling a lot of changes. Decreases in estrogen are a normal part of menopause, but when your body is trying to juggle a lot of demands — and isn’t getting enough support — its ability to compensate for unbalanced hormones is overwhelmed. The resulting hormonal imbalance can send false messages to your brain, telling it that you’re overheating and need to cool down (plus other unpleasant symptoms that may make matters worse!).

These hot flashes can happen at any time, day or night, and they’re often the first symptoms women notice as they approach the midlife transition in perimenopause. For many women, hot flashes and night sweats persist right through menopause. Women with hot flashes and night sweats often may experience related symptoms of hormonal imbalance, such as insomnia, anxiety, fatigue, and headaches.

Hot flashes are a wake-up call

While hot flashes and night sweats can literally wake you up, they’re also a way to alert you to a need for changes in your life — more sleep and relaxation, better diet, more exercise, and mindfulness. All the things your body needs for balance and health, it needs more of during the menopause transition.

Addressing other factors that contribute to hot flashes can help too:

• Certain foods like sugar, coffee, alcohol, fried and high-fat processed foods, and hot spices are known to trigger hot flashes in some women and should be avoided.
• On the other hand, Chinese medicine practitioners recommend “cooling foods” like apples and other non-citrus fruits, nuts, seeds, and fatty fish (full of omega-3 fatty acids), cooked dark leafy greens such as kale or spinach, and green tea — all of which are nutrient dense (and, in the case of green tea, can help you transition away from coffee without caffeine withdrawal).
• If you have high levels of anxiety, it can make you up to five times more likely to experience hot flashes and night sweats. Research has shown that mind-body practices to quiet anxiety, such as meditation, can reduce hot flashes.
• Exercise has been shown to improve the control and stability of the thermoregulatory system. In one study, hot flashes decreased by 60% in sedentary women who undertook a 4-month program of 45 minutes of moderate cardiovascular exercise five times a week. If you’re not able to take up jogging, jumping rope, or biking, start with gentle exercise such as yoga, stretching, or t’ai chi. These can help with both physical wellbeing and stress reduction.

What about HRT or a “magic pill” for hot flashes?

Today, the choice to use HRT (hormone replacement therapy) is a personal one, but it used to be conventional medicine’s go-to solution for menopausal symptoms. Now more women are experimenting with single-ingredient supplements from the drug store or so-called “magic pills” that don’t address the underlying problem of hormonal imbalance and cannot offer the lasting results that more comprehensive approaches do. For example, single herbs like black cohosh only work for a minority of women.

There are effective, natural options that work to restore balance to the three key hormones that fluctuate during perimenopause and menopause: estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. These options offer the best long-term relief — without subjecting you to the known risks and frequent side effects of HRT.

A better solution — an approach with rich support for hot flash relief

When you reduce the demands being made on your body while increasing support, you will see a decrease in both the frequency and severity of your hot flashes and night sweats, and it will help relieve other symptoms of hormonal imbalance.

Our exclusive Herbal Equilibrium formula has helped tens of thousands of women find natural symptom relief by restoring hormonal balance naturally. In fact, 85% of our customers report significant improvement within 30 days or less.

“One day I was giving a speech…and the sweat was just pouring off me! My night sweats were so bad I literally would have to change the sheets in the middle of the night. Now, I’m having no symptoms, no night sweats — nothing.”

Lynnea, customer

The post Hot flashes and night sweats appeared first on Women's Health Network.

“If I’m so tired, why can’t I sleep?” How to find natural relief for insomnia:

Few symptoms are quite as disruptive as insomnia because it affects both physical health and mental health so dramatically. Your body is struggling to function, and it’s hard to stay sharp and focused when you’re perpetually overtired. Lack of sleep also jangles your emotions and can leave you feeling not at all like yourself.

“As I got older the insomnia really kicked in. I’ve been on the Program for about half a year now, and it has helped a whole lot with my sleep problems. People have definitely noticed the change in me. I’m bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.”

Chris, customer

Your brain maintains a “circadian clock” which regulates levels of adrenal hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, and controls patterns in body temperature, brainwave activity, and hormone production. This internal timekeeper is connected to changes in daylight, darkness, and the seasons, and resets itself according to shifts in the earth’s rotation.

Normally, these circadian rhythms and your adrenal glands work together to keep cortisol — a “wake-up” hormone — low at bedtime, so you can sleep. Cortisol should rise to its daily high when it’s time for you to wake up. But this internal clock can be easily upset by ongoing stress of almost any kind. Long-term stress can lead to adrenal imbalance suppressing the body’s natural sleep–wake rhythm.

Especially detrimental to your sleep cycle is “perceived” stress — perhaps, a problem at work or a difficult personal relationship. These sorts of issues aren’t life-threatening emergencies, but your body can’t tell the difference. It operates in survival mode, keeping you on alert, prepared — and wide awake.

Which profile best describes your experience with insomnia as a symptom?

• Insomnia and adrenal imbalance. You may feel both “tired and wired,” which can be directly related to adrenal imbalance. Even though you feel exhausted, you still can’t fall asleep easily. Or you may drop off initially, only to wake a short time later, fully aware and ready to go. You may have low energy in the afternoon, but get a second wind right before bedtime. You may feel the need to use caffeine and/or sugary foods to boost your energy level.
• Insomnia and hormonal imbalance. If you’re in perimenopause, menopause, or have PMS, you may have restless sleep. Night sweats may wake you up and interrupt your normal sleep cycle, so it’s hard to fall back asleep. If you have other symptoms of hormonal imbalance (mood swings, irritability, or uncomfortable physical changes) your insomnia may be related to hormonal fluctuation.

Discovering natural relief for your insomnia

Despite what the ads say, prescription sleep aids are not a solution to insomnia. They often have after-effects, and can be highly habit-forming. Your first step is to demystify your insomnia and determine what’s causing it. For women who are under stress, simply providing adrenal support and making a few lifestyle adjustments can break the cycle of adrenal imbalance and relieve symptoms like insomnia.

Practicing good “sleep hygiene” can help you get the rest you need each night. For more solid, restorative sleep, turn off your television and computer well before bedtime. Keep your bedroom cool and dark, and go to bed at a reasonable hour. Avoid alcohol, caffeine, and big meals or snacks in the hours before bedtime.

For insomnia — our Adrenal Health Program

In our experience, insomnia in women is very often a symptom of adrenal imbalance. The Adrenal Health Program helps relieve symptoms and promotes natural adrenal balance with advanced nutritional supplements, our exclusive adrenal support formulas, and practical dietary and lifestyle guidance.

• If you’re ready for relief, order now with our risk-free trial.
• To learn more, go to How the Adrenal Health Program works.
• To assess your symptoms, take our on-line Adrenal Health Profile.

If you have questions and want to talk to a real woman, call us toll-free at 1-800-448-4919. We’re here to listen and help.

The post Insomnia and sleeping problems appeared first on Women's Health Network.

That’s great for the multibillion dollar weight loss industry, but not great for you — or your long-term health. In fact, studies show that the average woman wastes nearly 31 years of her life dieting to lose weight. The research is clear: if diets worked, they would work the first time.

Here’s the truth: If weight loss feels impossible for you, there’s likely a metabolic or physiological imbalance that’s causing your body to hold onto excess weight.

In order to truly lose weight – and keep it off – you must first address the underlying physiological imbalance causing your weight loss resistance in the first place. Here’s how to do that.

“With age comes wisdom”, Oscar Wilde famously wrote. But for the majority of women, age and hormonal changes also bring unwelcome weight gain and unfamiliar weight loss resistance.

Which means that with each passing year, it becomes easier to pack on unwanted pounds, and even harder to lose the excess weight — despite extreme diets, calorie restriction, and intense exercise. Most of us were taught that weight management is simply a matter of calorie control and self discipline. But every woman who has ever been on a diet knows this is not true and is, in fact, misleading. This well-worn myth causes a tremendous amount of unnecessary guilt and shame.

Here’s the truth: If weight loss feels impossible for you, there is likely a metabolic or physiological imbalance that is causing your body to hold onto excess weight, despite your best efforts to lose it. These biological imbalances can be connected to your hormone levels, adrenal glands, low thyroid function, or even the brain’s neurotransmitter activity.

On top of these biological obstacles, women are also leading increasingly stressful lives, fueled by  high-sugar, low-nutrition diets for quick energy. When a diet of empty-calorie foods is coupled with an internal metabolic imbalance, it’s almost certain that you will develop a resistance to weight loss.

Which profile best describes your experience with weight gain?

• Weight gain and hormonal imbalance. Is most of your weight gain in the form of belly fat that just won’t budge? As early as your mid-30s, estrogen levels can begin to fluctuate and cause an imbalance with other sex hormones. The body attempts to restore this hormonal imbalance by seeking out more estrogen wherever it can find it. This is why belly fat can suddenly appear out of nowhere at the beginning of perimenopause – the hormonally active “visceral fat” that makes up belly fat actually produces estrogen. If left untreated, the body produces more and more belly fat to compensate for this estrogen imbalance. Learn more about how to lose belly fat in 5 easy steps.

• Weight gain and low thyroid function. The thyroid gland controls your metabolism, which regulates the body’s ability to burn calories and fat for energy. When your thyroid hormones are low, both your metabolism and energy levels plummet — resulting in more stubborn fat accumulation. Other signs of low thyroid include fatigue, constipation, hair loss, feeling cold all the time, depression, and weight loss resistance. Thyroid dysfunction sabotages weight loss in other ways too. When thyroid hormones T3 and T4 are imbalanced, key chemical messengers like beta endorphins and leptin (the “hunger hormone”) become mixed up and disrupt our eating behavior. These changes can strengthen cravings, block feelings of fullness, and reduce energy – all factors contributing to weight gain. If you suspect your thyroid is connected to your weight gain, read more about losing weight despite thyroid dysfunction.

• Weight gain and sleep deprivation. If you find yourself getting less than 7 hours of quality sleep per night, or suffering from menopause insomnia or sleep apnea, you may be chronically sleep deprived — which can make weight loss nearly impossible. This is because regular, quality sleep determines your body’s circadian rhythm, which impacts everything from energy to production of leptin, the hunger hormone that signals when you’re full after a meal. Have you ever noticed that you’re more likely to reach for sweet or salty junk food when you’re tired? You simply can’t lose weight without adequate amounts of deeply restful sleep. Read more about Dr. Mary James’s top tips for how to improve sleep naturally.

• Weight gain and adrenal fatigue. The adrenal glands were designed to help you survive short-term, stressful situations by releasing cortisol and adrenaline to mobilize quick energy for a “fight or flight” situation. This was helpful back when we lived in caves and were regularly forced to outrun predators in order to survive. Unfortunately, the adrenal glands have not adapted this “fight or flight” response to modern life, which is filled with micro triggers that cause the same release of the stress hormone, cortisol, regardless of the nature of the threat. In fact, your body releases the same amount of cortisol whether you’re running from a bear or sitting in traffic. Over time, these daily stress triggers add up to create a state of chronic stress and “adrenal fatigue” in which your body is constantly releasing cortisol and storing every calorie you consume to help you survive the perceived crises of daily life. A high-sugar diet, too much caffeine, and chronic sleep deprivation also contribute to the cortisol roller coaster, packing on additional unwanted pounds. Other indicators of adrenal fatigue and chronic stress include debilitating fatigue, low libido, anxiety and memory issues. Read more about the connection between chronic stress and weight gain.

• Weight gain and neurotransmitter imbalance. The brain’s neurotransmitters, including serotonin, GABA and dopamine, are sensitive biochemicals that help to regulate mood, cognitive function and eating behaviors. When these chemicals are deficient or out of balance, the brain triggers cravings for dopamine, the “feel good” neurotransmitter — which usually leads you right to simple carbs and sweet treats. This blood sugar spike stimulates excess insulin production, making your cravings grow even stronger. Depression can also be connected to weight gain; high cortisol and low serotonin levels often lead to overeating, lack of motivation to exercise, and general fatigue. Other neurotransmitter imbalance symptoms include anxiety, brain fog, mood swings, depressed feelings, distractability, and interrupted sleep. It’s important to talk to your doctor or therapist about feelings of depression or anxiety.

• Weight gain and gut health. Digestive issues are often linked to food sensitivities, gut microorganism imbalance, or bacterial overgrowth. Many women don’t realize that uncomfortable symptoms like gas and bloating are actually caused by a bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine. If left untreated, this kind of gut dysfunction can result in sweet cravings, weight gain, and excess cortisol release. Probiotics and digestive enzymes can help heal the gut lining to improve nutrient absorption and boost weight loss efforts.

• Weight gain and inflammation. Has your weight gain coincided with unfamiliar joint pain or symptoms of an autoimmune disease? There’s a connection. If your diet or lifestyle is triggering systemic inflammation, your natural ability to regulate insulin and cortisol plummets — resulting in stubborn weight gain, especially around the belly.

Restore balance first to lose the weight once and for all

We understand how discouraging it can be to try repeatedly to lose weight without successful results. That’s why our weight loss philosophy is based on decades of research and experience with women of all shapes and sizes:

It’s next to impossible to lose weight until you restore the underlying imbalance causing weight loss resistance in the first place — it simply doesn’t work the other way around.

Of course, there are artificial “quick fixes” and prescription pills that force your body to lose weight at an unnatural rate. But everyone knows that until you address the underlying biological cause of weight loss resistance, this weight will always come back. When you treat and ultimately heal the underlying imbalance that has been blocking your ability to lose weight, you will be able to achieve and maintain your ideal weight — without chronic diets or intense exercise. Our Weight Loss Resistance Program is structured so that you can overcome your own physiological barrier to weight loss naturally.

“The program is easy to follow and the recipes in the book are delicious. I began feeling results by week two of the program and seeing results by week 3.”

JKT, Trust-Pilot verified customer

Our Weight Loss Resistance Program was designed by doctors to help you identify and overcome the metabolic obstacle that’s preventing you from losing weight. You get our exclusive metabolism-boosting formula with targeted phytotherapeutic nutritional supplements, our exclusive protein-packed WheySational shake, plus dietary and lifestyle guidance from doctors who understand the hormonal and metabolic challenges women experience — and how to solve them.

• Select your imbalance profile and get started with a Program. It’s 100% satisfaction guaranteed, or your money back — even if you’ve used the whole thing!
• Learn more about the Programs.
• Find out if you have an imbalance interfering with your weight loss process with our free Weight Loss quiz.

If you have questions and want to talk to a real woman about how you can lose weight, call us toll-free at 1-800-448-4919. We’re here to listen and help you reclaim your health to feel the way you want to feel — inside and out!

^[1] Fuller, Nick. Interval Weight Loss for Life: The Practical Guide to Reprogramming Your Body One Month at a Time. Australia: Penguin Random House Australia, 2018.

The post Hormonal weight gain symptoms appeared first on Women's Health Network.

Anywhere from 30–70% of perimenopausal and menopausal women experience some symptoms of urinary incontinence. This loss of bladder control takes three main forms:

• leaking urine randomly (“urinary incontinence”)
• leaking urine on coughing or sneezing (“stress incontinence”)
• urgently needing to empty your bladder (“urge incontinence”)

We encourage you to see your healthcare provider to rule out any structural abnormality, infection or other medical condition that may be causing your urinary problems. But if your symptoms arise during perimenopause or after weaning off HRT, you are probably just suffering one of the common consequences of declining estrogen.

Just like the tissue in the adjacent vagina, the tissue in urethra (the opening to the bladder) is highly estrogen–dependent. The drop in estrogen that occurs in perimenopause can lead to urethral atrophy or thinning of the tissue in both areas.

You can use a mirror to check yourself. The normal appearance of the urethral tissue is pink, plump and moist. With declining estrogen it may appear very pale or almost white. This means the opening to the bladder may be weaker and less able to maintain good bladder control, or less resilient to irritation or infection.

What can you do about urinary dysfunction?

Once your healthcare provider has eliminated any medical conditions, your strategy should be to support your body’s inherent ability to make and balance its hormones. Your major options are:

• Nutritional support and nutritional supplements (including essential fatty acids) to provide the nutrients your body needs to make sufficient estrogen.
• Endocrine support, including phytotherapy such as Herbal Equilibrium. But we also recommend soy or other dietary sources of phytoestrogens for long-term support.
• Adequate hydration. We recommend at least ten 8-ounce glasses of water a day.
• Kegel exercises to strengthen urethral muscles and enhance control. This involves repeatedly contracting and relaxing the muscles of the pelvic floor.

Some women will need advanced intervention, such as professional bladder control physical therapy, bladder biofeedback training, or topical prescription-strength estrogen treatment to the area.

The post Urinary incontinence appeared first on Women's Health Network.

Excess or unwanted hair growth can be an irritating or downright embarrassing problem for women. But cosmetic concerns aside, excessive hair growth may be an underlying sign of a hormonal imbalance that needs to be taken seriously.

If you’ve experienced a change in your hair growth, such as thicker, darker or more widespread hair, it’s a good idea to take a look at what might be causing your hair growth. And particularly in women over 35, a key culprit may be sex hormone imbalance.

Is facial hair a sign of too much testosterone?

The simplest and most common explanation for excessive hair growth is hormone changes related to perimenopause or menopause. If you’re over 35 and experiencing changes to your hair growth, that’s the most likely reason why. Women undergoing menopause are particularly prone to increased hair growth on the face, chin, chest, nipples, or genital regions.

Many women believe that the “male” hormone testosterone causes their own excess hair growth because of where it shows up. While women produce small amounts of testosterone, too, the real cause of excess hair growth in women is more complicated than testosterone production alone.

Is facial hair a sign of too much testosterone?

The simplest and most common explanation for excessive hair growth is hormone changes related to perimenopause or menopause. If you’re over 35 and experiencing changes to your hair growth, that’s the most likely reason why. Women undergoing menopause are particularly prone to increased hair growth on the face, chin, chest, nipples, or genital regions.

Many women believe that the “male” hormone testosterone causes their own excess hair growth because of where it shows up. While women produce small amounts of testosterone, too, the real cause of excess hair growth in women is more complicated than testosterone production alone.

Hormone balance and hair growth

Perimenopausal hormone changes affect not only how much testosterone is present in the body, but also the relative levels of testosterone compared with other “female” hormones like estrogen and progesterone. This matters for hair in some women because, depending on your genetics, your hair follicles may have high sensitivity to testosterone, which promotes hair growth.

In addition, when estrogen levels outpace progesterone, it can also promote hair growth. So a good place to start is to support your body in naturally balancing its hormones during perimenopause and menopause.

But it’s important to realize that there may be another hormone imbalance underlying some of these shifts: insulin resistance.

Insulin resistance, PCOS, and excess hair

If you become insulin resistant, your body loses its ability to respond to glucose and properly metabolize food. As one of your body’s “major” hormones, insulin is involved in just about everything your body does. It’s responsible for the metabolism of glucose — the body’s main fuel.

A lot of complicated factors contribute to insulin resistance, but some that we know about include eating a diet that’s high in sugar and refined carbohydrates, imbalanced gut flora, and lack of exercise. Unchecked, it can eventually lead to type 2 diabetes, which is a serious health issue.

Insulin resistance is sometimes the reason your body has trouble balancing its “minor” hormones, including estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. However, insulin resistance and excess hair are both associated with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). For women with insulin resistance, menstrual irregularities, and heavy hair growth, it’s worth exploring whether PCOS is involved. Women with PCOS commonly have elevated levels of insulin and testosterone — so it’s no wonder that one of the common symptoms of PCOS is excess facial hair.

What to do about excess hair

Many women spend countless hours plucking, tweezing, and waxing face and body hair, but these are temporary (and painful!) solutions. If unwanted hair is a sign of an underlying hormonal imbalance that needs to be addressed, it makes sense to approach it at the source by balancing your hormones.

Whether it’s simply the expected hormonal shifts of perimenopause or more serious conditions like insulin resistance and PCOS, the underlying hormone imbalance usually responds well to a natural approach that includes a balanced diet — one that emphasizes fresh, whole fruits, vegetables, and grains and fewer processed, high-carbohydrate foods — with further endocrine support from medical-grade nutritional supplements, probiotics, and gentle exercise.

We’ve had great success in helping women restore hormonal balance with our natural approach. For women whose excess or unwanted hair growth is hormonal, our approach can help reduce or eliminate excess hair, without the pain and discomfort of hair removal treatments.

The post Unwanted hair growth appeared first on Women's Health Network.

Possible causes of skin issues: hormonal imbalance, thyroid imbalance

Is your skin feeling or looking different lately? Are you noticing new wrinkles, fine lines, flaky, dry or itchy skin that make you pause when you look in the mirror? You might also find you avoid certain clothes so you can hide the parts of skin you don’t want other people to see. You may even dash into the bathroom to scratch itchy patches of skin.

Vibrant, glowing skin is one of the first indicators of health, and if you’re struggling with skin issues, it may be a sign that changes are occurring beneath the surface. Plus, it can be uncomfortable, frustrating, and embarrassing.

It’s common to chalk up changes in skin to age or dry weather, but in fact, skin changes can be a sign that something is “off” inside your body. Common causes for chronic dry skin are: hormonal imbalances, thyroid imbalances, and nutritional deficiencies. Nutritional deficiencies can be involved with both thyroid and hormonal imbalances since your body depends on a consistent supply of rich nutrition to make and balance your sex and thyroid hormones.

“My coworkers have noticed that my skin has color again; my complexion has improved, the dark circles are diminishing, and there have been comments on my weight loss and general brightness.”

Laurel, customer

Hormonal imbalance — which typically accompanies menopause and perimenopause — causes dry skin because of declining levels of reproductive hormones that normally stimulate oil glands. As hormone levels fall, so does oil production, causing skin to become rough, dry, itchy or flaky. Deficiencies in essential fatty acids and other nutrients contribute directly to dry skin by failing to give your skin cells the materials they need to replenish themselves. This can also make women more susceptible to hormonal imbalance, exacerbating the problem.

Thyroid hormones also stimulate oil glands and when your thyroid hormones are imbalanced, as in the case of hypothyroidism or sub-clinical hypothyroidism, dry skin can be one of the first symptoms to arise.

Which profile best describes your experience with skin issues?

• Dry skin and hormonal imbalance. If your skin undergoes changes due to a sex hormonal imbalance, it will seem dry, itchy, or possibly flaky. Though using oils and moisturizers can help in the short-term, the dryness will likely persist until the issue is solved internally.
• Dry skin and thyroid imbalance. Imbalanced thyroid hormones can make skin not only dry, but yellowish in color, cold to the touch, and often pale. Skin issues due to thyroid imbalance might also occur with other thyroid symptoms, like heat or cold intolerance, puffiness in the skin, fatigue, and unusual changes to body shape and weight.

Skin solutions — naturally

When your skin doesn’t look its best, it’s hard to feel your best. Dry, itchy skin not only prevents you from doing (and wearing) the things you want, but it can be uncomfortable or even painful.

But don’t blame your skin troubles on your age. We can help you find the root cause of your skin symptoms and show you how to support your body with the nutrients and natural hormonal support you need for healthy skin and good health all around.

Our Hormonal Health Program — a holistic approach to healthy skin and more

Skin issues can often be connected to hormonal or thyroid imbalances. Our Hormonal Health Program helps return your body to balance naturally and soothes your skin from the inside out. Our hormonal support formulas and practical dietary and lifestyle guidelines have been proven effective with thousands of women.

• If you’re ready for relief, order now with our risk-free trial now.
• See more about the Program.
• To assess your symptoms, take our free on-line Hormonal Health Profile.

NOTE: If you think your skin issues are related to a thyroid imbalance, see more about our T-Balance Plus.

We’re always here to answer your questions when you need answers about your health issues. We’re real women right here in Maine and we understand how skin conditions can relate to your overall health and sense of wellbeing. Call us toll-free at 1-800-448-4919.

The post Skin issues appeared first on Women's Health Network.

Premenstrual syndrome, or PMS, is one of the most common expressions of hormonal imbalance, affecting over half of all women — and there are a frighteningly large number of possible symptoms. And most women with PMS symptoms may be suffering in silence, worried that if they speak up, it might affect the way others see them in a negative way.

“I’d always had PMS symptoms — from moderate to extreme over the years. From acne to mood swings, depression, low energy, very sore breasts and, bloating, I felt like a victim when it came to my hormones. Now, I feel balanced and comfortable, and truly, my periods sneak up on me sometimes.”

Brooke, customer

While most of us are familiar with PMS, it is not well understood by conventional medicine, and is often either ignored or mistreated with prescription drugs meant for other issues. In addition, conventional medicine tends to focus only on temporarily smoothing over a few PMS symptoms rather than resolving the hormonal issues that are the true underlying cause.

Sensible natural options can offer lasting relief

While PMS can affect any woman who is having menstrual periods — from her first period on — it appears most often in adulthood. Women who experience PMS earlier in life are more predisposed to have a difficult perimenopause. But if PMS first occurs during your 40’s, it is often actually an early sign that you are entering perimenopause. Either way, the sooner you take action to stop your PMS symptoms, the better it will be for your body — now, and as you near menopause.

There is a tendency for PMS to worsen over time, and some women reach the point where they are symptom-free only a few days a month. Fortunately, most women can relieve their PMS symptoms. Many of the best options are natural approaches that target the root causes of PMS symptoms.

What causes PMS symptoms?

The most common symptoms of PMS can have a dramatic effect on your quality of life because they’re often physically uncomfortable and emotional disruptive. They can undermine your confidence and force you to make abrupt changes in your schedule. As with most aspects of health, the more information you have, the better the chance of finding the right solution for you.

Common symptoms of PMS

Your path to PMS relief

No matter what you’ve been told, you don’t have to just live with PMS. Your solution starts with providing a foundation of support that enables your body to make and balance its hormones as it is intended to do. Good nutrition and dietary supplements foster appropriate levels of hormones (especially progesterone) at key times throughout the month. In addition, you may want to explore any emotional concerns that are simmering beneath the surface.

It’s possible for you to change your monthly experience by using the information provided here to clear your own path to finding relief from PMS. Or you can make it easier by joining the women who find success by following our guided approach. It’s specifically structured to create the conditions for a healthy, comfortable menstrual cycle by providing support for your body throughout the month.

The post PMS appeared first on Women's Health Network.

This comment from one of our readers perfectly captures the way that mood swings and irritability can negatively shape your life experience, and impact the people around you:

“I thought, when did my loving partner of 25 years become so difficult and hard on me? Then I realized — it was me. Yikes. Time for a change!”

Irritability and mood swings are two of the most frequent complaints we hear from women. While irritability and mood swings are closely related, there are some differences.

We use the term “mood swing” to describe a sudden or dramatic change in emotional state, or a reaction that isn’t appropriate to the triggering event. “Irritable” describes a state of being in which the person is angry, impatient, or chronically frustrated.

Unfortunately, both mood swings and irritability often go hand in hand during times of hormonal imbalance, including PMS, perimenopause, and menopause. But if you are living in a state of chronic hormonal imbalance, regardless of menopause, mood swings and irritability may become the norm. Stress, thyroid function, and blood sugar imbalance can also exacerbate symptoms of “moodiness”. Fortunately, there’s a lot you can do to help regulate your neurochemicals naturally — so you can get back to feeling the way you want to feel.

Let’s start by identifying the potential causes of mood swings and irritability. These can include…

Fatigue and inadequate sleep, which is especially common during perimenopause and menopause thanks to hot flashes, night sweats, and insomnia.

Low thyroid function, which can present as depressive mood, low energy, ADHD and irritability.

Menopause, when you may begin to experience hot flashes, brain fog, irritability, weight gain, low energy, and wild mood swings due to declining levels of estrogen and progesterone.

Blood sugar imbalance, which can look like fatigue, weakness, irritability, or “moodiness” — especially between meals.

Vitamin deficiencies — especially B1, B12, D3, and Folate — are crucial to maintaining proper cognitive function and adequate red blood cells. Folate and Vitamin B12 play a particularly important role in the production of serotonin and dopamine, the neurochemicals responsible for cognitive energy, motivation, and happiness.

How to Improve Mood Swings Naturally

Wild mood swings and increased irritability are tightly linked to the hormonal shifts that are characteristic of perimenopause, menopause, and PMS. These hormonal fluctuations estrogen, testosterone and progesterone can create symptoms like mood swings and irritability when your body doesn’t get the right kind of bioavailable hormonal support to maintain it’s natural hormone balance. Herbal Equilibrium was designed by doctors to address the most severe symptoms of hormonal imbalance, especially mood swings and irritability, using the highest-quality herbs and phytonutrients available.

“I was a real bear, ready to bite anyone’s head off. I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t happy. I was moody and snapping all the time. Now I can honestly say that I wake up in the morning and I am happy. My patience has returned and my husband has noticed a big change.”

Irene, Trust Pilot-verified customer

★★★★★

While supplements can be a transformative source of support for women dealing with mood swings and irritability, many women benefit from taking a holistic approach to their lifestyle changes. These can include:

1. Manage mealtime. Eating optimal nutrients from whole-foods sources, with adequate amounts of protein, fresh vegetables, leafy greens, and plenty of filtered water.
2. Balance blood sugar. If blood sugar imbalance is contributing to your mood swings and irritability, consider eating smaller, healthy meals at more frequent intervals to avoid dips in blood sugar throughout the day. Just be sure to reduce or eliminate sources of sugar on your plate and in your daily diet. The sugar roller coaster will only make mental and emotional imbalances worse.
3. Prioritize your mental health. Easier said than done, we know! But it’s important to identify the sources of stress in your life, and understand the ways that chronically elevated cortisol — the stress hormone — can wreak havoc on your mind, mood and emotional state. Reach out to a loved one or friend to help you determine the best way to reduce or eliminate some of the sources of daily stress in your life. You’d be surprised how much asking for help, even if it’s just offloading carpool duty one day per week, will unburden your mind and help you prioritize your mental health.
4. Consider counseling. A professional therapist or counselor can also help you navigate the stressors you can’t avoid, and develop coping mechanisms to help you maintain healthy boundaries and a stable emotional state. Counseling can help you develop necessary skills to work through fear, depression, anxiety, irritability and anger.
5. Vitamins. Certain mood-related symptoms can be linked to vitamin and nutrient deficiencies, especially B vitamins, vitamin D3, folate, and even Iron. Consider adding a high-quality multivitamin to make sure you’re getting an adequate supply of the necessary vitamins your body needs to make neurochemicals to support mood and overall well being.

Women often come to us saying, “I thought I was losing my mind” because they’re shocked by the fierceness of their irritability and the sharpness of their mood swings. It’s a relief to know that their moods have a physical basis and can be relieved. Even severe irritability can be alleviated by providing your body with the support it needs to achieve hormonal balance.

We’ve been able to help thousands of women find relief from their irritability and mood swings so they feel better, and more like themselves. Learn more about natural ways you can support your hormones and overall health.

The post Mood swings and irritability appeared first on Women's Health Network.

Many women believe the myth that getting older means losing your desire for sex. While it’s true that women’s bodies change as we get older, low sex drive is not just “part of aging” — and an abrupt decline in your desire isn’t something you have to accept.

We would argue, in fact, that you shouldn’t just accept it, because it may be a sign that something important is out of balance in your body.

What’s happening to cause low libido?

As you enter perimenopause, your ovaries gradually decrease their production of key sex hormones — progesterone, estrogen, and testosterone. Estrogen and testosterone both have direct effects on women’s libido — in fact, researchers have been debating which one is more important for years! But there are also indirect effects that can be as important, or more important, than decreases in the absolute amount of these sex-boosting hormones.

Recent research into the factors that contribute to low libido in women found reported that one key factor in low libido was vaginal dryness and thinning, leading to discomfort and pain during intercourse. Another is sleep disturbance, which is often due to symptoms such as night sweats. Both are related to the fluctuations in estrogen that accompany perimenopause. Progesterone, especially when estrogen levels are low, can also produce depression in women — another factor that tamps down on sex drive.

Adrenal glands and sex drive

But women’s bodies have a “backup plan” for maintaining hormone balance through menopause: the adrenal glands. Our adrenal glands are involved in many functions throughout the body aside from handling our response to stress — and one of these functions involves producing sex hormones. As the ovaries slow down secretion of hormones, the adrenal glands compensate by producing DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone), a precursor to estrogen and testosterone. DHEA gives many women a “soft landing” as their front-line source of sex hormones decreases.

In some women, however, adrenal imbalance limits DHEA production so that even the secondary source of estrogen and testosterone isn’t available. If you experience high levels of stress on a regular basis, adrenal fatigue can deplete your sexual response and leave you without the drive for sex.

A healthy sex life can provide a cascade of benefits. If you want to restore your sexual desire, rest assured there are natural steps that can lead you there.

A natural path back to sexual desire

Figuring out how to restore your sex drive means determining where the problem lies. So to begin with, ask yourself which of the following symptom sets best describes you.

• Are fluctuating hormones causing my low libido? Levels of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone can shift as women move through menopause, and each of these sex hormones affects our libido in different ways. Menopause symptoms like moodiness, vaginal dryness, and fatigue are known to suppress libido—not to mention hot flashes, night sweats, and insomnia.
• Am I experiencing an adrenal imbalance? The adrenal glands are responsible for producing sex hormones, especially after menopause. If you’ve been under stress for long periods — even years —there’s good chance your adrenal glands may be imbalanced, causing fatigue, mixed-up sleep patterns, cravings for caffeine, sugar, and/or salt, and weight gain around the middle.

It’s certainly possible that you have both issues happening at the same time — wild menopause hormone fluctuations coupled with inadequate adrenal response due to long-term stress. But usually, one description resonates more than the other. (If you’re not sure, supporting your adrenal balance will usually help with menopause symptoms in any case.)

Give your mind and body more support through menopause

We don’t think much about the fact that sexual desire and pleasure happen in the brain, even if the “action” is happening somewhat lower down. But it does, and that’s why restoring libido needs to address issues at both ends of the sexual spectrum: mind and body.

Barbara Carrellas, sex educator and author, says:
“The erotic impulse does go to sleep if we don’t use it, or if we’re bored. I like waking up both the erotic mind and the erotic body, and the good news is, with a little bit of an effort to become more sexual, sensual, or erotic, the body wakes up and responds.”

There are a range of options for engaging your brain — erotica, fantasizing, even dressing up (or not!). But those strategies work best in the context of whole-body wellness that helps to quiet troublesome symptoms of hormonal imbalance and stress.

We understand that sexuality is complicated and multi-faceted, and for some women, life is perfectly fine without having sex at all. But so many others miss the intimacy they once had with their partners and the positive benefits of orgasm. Navigating life without the pleasure and connection of sex can change your image of yourself, how you see your relationships, and your connection with your partner.

Regaining the active sex life you want and need is absolutely possible. Finding the cause of your low libido is the best place to begin. We’ve helped countless women suffering from hormonal and adrenal imbalances revive their passion for sex — and life.

Bring back your libido — with our Hormonal Health Program

Shifting hormones can lead to disappointing changes in libido. Our Hormonal Libido Combo provides support for your hormones through high-quality nutritional formulations, herbal hormonal support, and a deliciously satisfying eating plan that is easy to follow.

“I had NO desire whatsoever for an intimate relationship. All my friends had told me, ‘You’re not going to have any desire in perimenopause.’ So when it came back I was stunned — and so was my husband!”

Pamela, customer

To assess your symptoms, take our quiz and get personalized recommendations for your hormonal health. If you think your low libido may be connected to an adrenal imbalance, find out how to naturally support your adrenal glands.

If you have questions about our Health Programs, you can always call us toll free at 1-800-448-4919 and talk with real women here in Maine who have been in your shoes. We’re here to listen and help.

The post Low libido appeared first on Women's Health Network.