Affordable, Comprehensive Period Relief For Your Worst PMS Symptoms…You can order a 30-day supply of Period Vitamin (one bottle). This includes free expedited shipping, so you’ll start experiencing PMS relief in as little as two to three business days. A high-stress lifestyle coupled with improper eating habits can wreak havoc on a woman’s delicate hormonal balance. Even healthy women who follow a good diet may find glitches in their hormones. Symptoms of hormonal imbalance may include PMS, osteoporosis, weight gain, altered sex drive, allergies, uterine fibroids, urinary tract infections, changes in the skin, fatigue, anxiety, water retention, hair loss, facial hair growth and even depression. By keeping hormones in balance, women can find it easier to maintain a healthy weight, keep a regular menstrual cycle, as well as exude optimal energy levels. Studies show that women who participate in a daily meditation or yoga experience less hormonal swings than those who do not mediate stress in some fashion [1].
Rest is also important. Many women have such hectic lifestyles that they give their body little time to re-adjust from life’s demands. This disrupts the natural hormones cycles in women. Find small ways to incorporate rest and relax throughout the day. Sleep is when our body recovers from any imbalance it may have suffered throughout the day. Lack of sleep swings hormones into over-drive. Try to get at least 8 hours of sleep every night. Incorporate more fresh, organic fruits and vegetables, plus an abundance of raw nuts and seeds into your diet. Foods such as processed carbohydrates, fried foods, soft drinks, enriched flour, processed vegetable oil and soy products may alter hormone balance. Avoid non-organic dairy products which may contain harmful bovine growth hormones, steroids and antibiotics. These wreak havoc on a woman’s system. These fats act to create responsive and healthy cell membranes, allowing hormones to adhere to the cell more easily. Omega-3 fatty acids also aid the body in keeping the cellular receptor sites (where hormones bind) repaired and in optimal condition.
Consider eating more foods with omega-3’s or taking 500 mg of a high quality organic oil, such as hempseed, flaxseed or olive oil. It’s been shown that stimulants, such as caffeine, cause the adrenal gland to over-produce hormones. Try to cut-down or cut-out your caffeine intake. Add at least 30 minutes of exercise, three times a week, into your routine. Form a routine that you can stick to on a consistent basis. Giving your body a healthy helping of full spectrum sunlight can help stabilize hormones. Get out and take a walk around the block a couple of times a week. This will help get you the exercise you need, as well as the sunshine your body craves. Examples include saw palmetto, dandelion, motherwort, wild yam, or blessed thistle. Hemp tree has also been known to effectively balance hormones in the case of PMS, menstrual cramps and breast pain. Chaste Tree Berry has been shown to balance the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus. Evening primrose oil is very high in essential fatty acids and is particularly indicated for hormonal imbalance related to PMS symptoms.
Dong Quai, Asian Ginseng, and Ashwagandha are commonly used in Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine to balance hormone excesses or deficits. Ashwagandha has the unique ability of being able to better the functioning of the receptor sites allowing hormones to more easily bind to our cells. Licorice and Black Cohosh have also been shown to raise progesterone levels. Studies on the adaptogenic herb, Rhodiola, have shown it to better thyroid function, improve immune function, and help the body adapt to stress. Taking a good quality vitamin and mineral supplement will also help balance your hormones naturally. Make sure it contains vitamin C, vitamin E, calcium, magnesium and the full spectrum of B complex vitamins. I personally recommend taking IntraMAX®, because it’s the best vitamin available. Is there something you do to help balance your hormones naturally? If so, please let me know in the comments below! Watch an In-Depth Video on How to Balance Your Hormones NaturallyVideo Length:
Vitamin E for Acne Scars, Does Vitamin E Help with Acne ScarsWhether you’re 47 or 17, male or female, whether your breakouts are once a month or multiple times a week, the reason they come back and back is frustratingly simple: Human error. The minute a breakout clears, suddenly, you’re a person with clear skin—one who no longer needs to be quite so vigilant with their skincare routine. But the only way to keep skin blemish-free on any sort of long-term basis is to constantly treat it as an active, broken-out complexion. The right products make a serious difference, but the key is major, unwavering consistency. Caused by a bacteria that lives on our skin, acne comes to life at any age when our hormones produce excess oil, essentially throwing fuel on the fire. “Our skins’ oils are a wonderful environment for acne bacteria to thrive in, unfortunately,” says Dr. Robert Anolik, clinical assistant professor of dermatology at the NYU School of Medicine. Add dead skin cells, dirt, stress that can cause further oil production, irritation from everything from diet to skin products, and a breakout is going to result unless you (constantly) work to prevent it.
You’re a typical hormonal-acne patient if, well past puberty, you’re breaking out around your period, usually in the jawline area, says Anolik. “Hormonal acne can be relatively easy to treat or very severe,” he says. Whatever the case, and whatever course of treatment you choose, a consistent routine is key—as is enduring a waiting period of two to three months for said routine to work, he says: “Even powerful prescription treatments can take a few months to really clear things up, and that’s our biggest challenge. People who get frustrated and don’t stick to their treatments get stuck in a cycle of trying and quitting too early, and feeling like nothing works.” This is true of even very mild cases. “One of the main reasons things like ProActive work is because they’re systems,” says Anolik. Faithfully follow a routine of cleanser, mild exfoliation, and treatment product every day, and your acne should improve; switch products, or use them sporadically, and breakouts will return.
) ), the time Anolik recommends giving a system time to work. While over-the-counter products don’t treat the hormonal component of acne, salicylic acid—a.k.a. willow bark, a.k.a. what aspirin is made of—smooths away dead skin cells that clog pores, decreases inflammation and has a mild antibacterial effect on acne bacteria. “It works,” says Anolik, who recommends using salicylic acid-based products in conjunction with benzoyl peroxide preparations that target acne bacteria with greater strength. Benzoyl peroxide can definitely cause dryness and irritation; if you decide not to use it, know that you’ve got to be even more vigilant about the bacteria on your skin, so cleanse and treat more often. /products/clarifying-dermagel?variant=23516237318) are great, clean substitutes. ) combines tea tree and salicylic acid for powerful (yet easy on skin) results. Over-the-counter retinol or vitamin A can also have an exfoliating, slightly antibacterial effect on skin; ) incorporates vitamin A with other natural ingredients for gentle but thorough treatment.
Anolik says retinols can be incredibly effective, especially higher-strength prescription retinoids: “They’re the gold standard in acne and aging treatments.” The prescription versions, from Tazorac to Differin, are usually covered by insurance in the case of acne. Vitamin C can also treat pores and exfoliate; ) comes with a vitamin C toner; ) packed with vitamin C. Clays—especially in the form of overnight masks or spot treatments—can treat oil, dead skin cells and, left on overnight, fight bacteria to some degree. ) mixes pink clay with salicylic acid (white willow) for a one-two punch. Alcohol-based toners have been an anti-acne step since forever, but are so harsh and drying on skin that they can cause skin to produce even more oil, and they can irritate; as with benzoyl peroxide or any other irritant, they can further inflame a case of acne. ) can serve as a mild exfoliant, to unclog pores and deposit a bit more treatment ingredient, like tea tree oil or salicylic acid.
) are particularly brilliant, combining both ingredients. Many theories about diet and acne abound; Anolik is most convinced by the ones surrounding sugar and dairy. “Dermatologists really didn’t believe in all the dietary restrictions for acne, but studies in the past ten years have convinced us a bit,” he says. “Dairy and high-glycemic foods do seem to play a part.” High-sugar diets are known to feed bacteria; any diet that increases overall inflammation in the body doubtlessly plays a part. Specific diets—from Ayurveda to low-carb to veganism—definitely work for some people. If you’ve made a concerted effort with over-the-counter regimens and/or diet and still aren’t seeing results, a dermatologist is absolutely worth it. There are many levels of care: Prescription retinoids (Retin A, Tazorac, Differin et al) and/or topical antibiotics are the mildest, along with blue-light treatments like Isolaze, which kill bacteria and clear pores, with virtually no downtime.
Light lasers like Clear and Brilliant can clear pores and treat the red and brown tones left by old acne lesions. “Some patients think they’ve got a severe problem, when they really only have a few pimples, surrounded by red and brown marks from old breakouts,” notes Anolik. Oral antibiotics represent a more aggressive (and unsustainable long-term) solution; birth control pills and hormone-mitigating medications like Spironalactone and Deldactone can get many more-severe patients’ acne under control. Most aggressive is Accutane; while it can be severely drying and can cause birth defects if taken during pregnancy, it represents a cure for truly-severe acne cases, says Anolik. “Used correctly, it is something of a miracle for people who’ve tried everything and failed,” he says. Most situations are thankfully much less dire—and can be treated with a firm regimen and…constant vigilance. Below, our favorites for treating hormonal acne—they’ll work if you keep using them, over and over and over.