Hormones
Thyroid, Your Weight, and Metabolism
How’s your thyroid? Do you know your level of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH)? It’s estimated that about 60 million Americans, both men and women, struggle with thyroid problems. Most don’t know it. Women struggle with their thyroid more than men. A common sign of a thyroid problem is difficulty losing weight, despite doing all the…
Read MoreWomen, Food, and Hormones: Why Keto Doesn’t Work for All Women
Keto diets can be disheartening for women, especially when they witness their male co-workers or partners shedding pounds with relative ease. I first tried to lose weight with a ketogenic diet several years ago. It simply didn’t work for me, unlike my husband who managed to quickly lose several pounds. Neither did keto work for…
Read MorePCOS: Natural Solutions for a Common Hormone Imbalance
What is polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)? It is a complex endocrine disorder that affects 20 to 30 percent of women. In medicine, we use the term syndrome to describe a collection of signs and symptoms that don’t necessarily have a single identifiable cause or pathological process. PCOS causes the sex hormones in women to become…
Read MoreHot Flashes and Night Sweats: New Data That You Need to Know
The most classic symptoms of low estrogen are hot flashes and night sweats, collectively known as vasomotor symptoms. Vasomotor symptoms are an extreme thermoregulatory response associated with profuse sweating, flushing, and increased heart rate. Vasomotor symptoms can last for seconds to minutes, and frequency varies throughout the day and night.
Read MoreEndometriosis: Diet and Lifestyle Changes That Help
Endometriosis is an often undiagnosed problem that affects 10 to 15% of women.1 What happens with endometriosis is that the cells similar to the endometrium, or uterine lining, implant outside the uterus, usually on the ovaries or other pelvic organs, causing inflammation and sometimes extreme pain.
Read MoreBioidentical Hormone Therapy, Part 1: What’s Safe? What’s Smart?
I’ve been prescribing bioidentical hormone therapy since 1994. In the 25+ years since that first prescription for bioidentical hormones, we have evidence for and against their use. This has led to confusion, misinformation, and even guidelines from mainstream medical societies that are not consistently evidence-based.1 Fortunately, a masterful new book sets the record straight: Tapestry…
Read MoreHormone Therapy for Women: What Are the Known Risks?
Discussion about hormone therapy for perimenopause and menopause is complex. Questions about safety, timing, and duration typically require a nuanced conversation about a person’s history, diet, lifestyle, risk factors, genetics, blood tests, and cognitive function. This article illustrates why the discussions are complicated and how I approach them. I practice Precision Medicine, which means that…
Read MoreHormone Testing: What to Check and Why
Questions about hormone testing are common among my patients and on social media. Women want to know which hormones they need to check and why. They also want to know what hormones and other biomarkers can be tested at home. In this video and accompanying article, I cover the biomarkers that I check for myself…
Read MorePerimenopause, Menopause & Hormone Balance: Office Hours at goop
Over recent years, I have been interviewed by Gwyneth Paltrow and her goop lifestyle brand about perimenopause and hormones as well as other popular topics such as the ketogenic diet, stubborn weight loss and the secrets to staying younger. Perimenopause & Menopause Women in their 40s and 50s are hungry for information on another way…
Read MoreBuild Resilience and Hormone Balance
Do you want to learn more about hormone balance, the female brain, perimenopause, what supplements we should all be taking, and how to transform health care? At the beginning of this week, I had the honor to be invited by Maria Shriver to chat with her on Architects of Change Live about just that. We…
Read More