DEFINITION
Estrogen dominance is a condition in which a woman can have deficient, normal, or excessive levels of estrogen, but has too little progesterone to balance the estrogen level. Estrogen Dominance is common in both cycling and menopausal women.
COMMON CAUSES
Stress (pregnenolone steal)
Luteal insufficiency (insufficient ovarian progesterone production)
Use of oral or injected contraceptives
Conventional HRT
Adrenal Fatigue
Hypothyroidism
Poor diet (usually high carbs, low fat)
Consumption of trans-fats
Nutritional deficiencies (especially magnesium, zinc, copper and B complex vitamins)
Xenohormone exposure
Anovulatory cycles (cycles where menstruation occurs, but no ovulation, and therefore no ovarian progesterone is produced)
Obesity (in postmenopausal women, estrogen is made in the fat cells; excess fat cells make excess estrogen.)
COMMON SYMPTOMS
Anxiety, irritability, anger, agitation
Cramps, heavy bleeding prolonged bleeding, clots
Water retention/weight gain, bloating
Breast tenderness, lumpiness, enlarged fibrocystic breasts
Mood swings, depression
Headaches/migraines
Carbohydrate cravings, sweet cravings, chocolate cravings
Muscle pains, joint pain, back pain
Acne
Foggy thinking, memory difficulties
Fat gain, especially in abdomen, hips and thighs
Cold hands and feet (low thyroid function because estrogen lacks thyroid hormones)
Blood sugar instability, Insulin Resistance
Irregular periods
Decreased sex drive
Gall bladder problems (bile becomes thick and sluggish)
Infertility
Insomnia
Osteoporosis
Endometriosis, Adenomyosis
Functional ovarian cysts; Polycystic ovaries
Uterine fibroids
Cervical dysplasia
Allergic tendencies
Autoimmune disorder
Breast, uterine, cervial, or ovarian cancer
Disclaimer:
This information is not meant to diagnose, treat or replace traditional treatment, and has not been approved by the FDA or HPB.