Waking between 2–4am is one of the most common sleep disturbances linked to metabolic and hormonal imbalance. While it is often blamed on stress or aging, there is usually a physiological explanation behind it. During healthy sleep, your body cycles through deep restorative stages where cortisol is low, blood sugar is stable, and the nervous system is fully downregulated. When you wake consistently during this window, it usually indicates that one of these systems has been di

What is estrogen dominance? There are three main reproductive hormones - estrogen, progesterone and testosterone. Women have mainly estrogen and progesterone. These hormones regulate the female reproductive system. Higher estrogen levels during the reproductive years have many benefits for women including lower risk of heart disease and increased bone density. But estrogen must be balanced by progesterone to limit the negative effects. Estrogen dominance for women is when the

This may not be a question that you’ve considered. Most women don’t. It's also something that most doctors don’t test women for. But the fact is that many, if not most women have low levels of testosterone. Testosterone is the male reproductive hormone, and men have much more of it than women. But for women, it plays a surprisingly important role. Testosterone is produced by the ovaries, adrenal glands and fat and skin cells. For women, testosterone levels peak around age 25

If you lack energy and are exhausted all the time you may be wondering what you can do. One thing to consider is the foods you are eating. Let’s take a look at how the foods you eat can affect your energy levels. How your diet affects your energy levels Food provides energy for your body. Some foods can cause quick energy bursts, but these often lead to a rebound effect of energy drain. Many foods contribute to increased cortisol levels. The increase in your body’s stress rea

When you are trying to lose weight one important tool is meal preparation or meal prep. In this article I’m going to take a look at the...

The importance of gut health is often overlooked. Healthy gut flora plays an important role in just about every aspect of overall health. Consuming probiotics is one way to improve gut health. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at how consuming probiotics can help with weight loss. What are probiotics? Your body is home to a microbiome, organisms found throughout the body, especially in the digestive tract. Probiotics are live organisms found in several foods which hel

Many women struggle with belly fat, even when they are not considered overweight. One thing that is often overlooked when trying to get rid of belly fat is the contribution of stress. Health risks of belly fat Even women who are not overweight suffer from health risks of excess belly fat. Excess belly fat means that fat is concentrated around internal organs. This visceral fat secretes hormones and is linked to several diseases. The way I look at this visceral fat is like a l

Many see exercise as strictly a way of burning calories so they can lose weight. But many of the benefits of exercise come from how it affects hormones. These effects on hormones can contribute to weight loss and many other health benefits. On the flip side doing the wrong amount or the wrong type of exercise can have negative effects on your hormones. When your hormones are out of balance, then it makes it much harder to lose the weight and keep it off. What exactly are horm

You have probably seen articles that explain the benefits of drinking moderate amounts of alcohol. But when wanting to lose weight you might want to consider your alcohol intake. Drinking alcoholic beverages can have a negative impact on your body’s ability to lose weight. In this article, we’ll look at several ways that alcohol can contribute to weight gain. How alcohol is processed in the body When considering how food is processed we usually look at the 3 main macronutrie

Intermittent fasting and Keto (ketogenic) diets are both popular ways to lose weight. Let’s take a closer look at these two methods of...