Balance Hormones Naturally

With the increase of environmental pollutants, stress, and poor diets, both men and women can face hormonal balances that can lead to health challenges.

Some of these challenges may include:

* Infertility and lack of virility or sex drive.
* Perimenopausal, menopausal, and post menopausal symptoms (headaches, irritability, fatigue, insomnia, hot flashes),
* Heart disease.
* Bone density loss.
* Lack of mental concentration and diminished memory.

From a Chinese medicine perspective, the kidneys play a vital role in regulating reproductive hormones energetically along with the liver, which rules our blood so may impact hormone levels.

Thus, often times when clients present with symptoms of hormonal imbalances, they also present with low qi (energy), blood, yin or yang aspects of the kidney energies and stagnation of the liver energy.

Stress (which effects the energy of the liver and kidneys), lack of exercise , and dietary factors can also play a role in lower than normal levels of testosterone in men or low estrogen and progesterone in women.

Thus, a Chinese medicine approach would:

* Strengthen the qi (energy), blood, and kidneys with herbs that are tonics.
* Balance the energy of the liver (which in women plays a large role in regulating the period).
* Reduce stress with qi gong movement and meditation (which also has a positive impact on the circulation to the kidneys and liver).
* Use food as medicine to harmonize the internal organs.

For example, many menopausal clients who suffer from hot flashes, fatigue, and weight gain have responded beautifully to custom Chinese herbs and integration of special qi gong movements that are designed to nourish the yin and hormones.

Custom Chinese herbs can also help to prevent the type of stagnation that leads to fibroids and ovarian cysts, or manage these conditions naturally.

Similarly my male clients who present with low testosterone also benefit from custom Chinese herb formulations which help the body to gently produce more testosterone.

I often advise clients not to self-treat with isolated herbs such as tribulus, black cohosh, dang gui, gingseng, or wild yam, as herbs used in isolation are rarely balanced and can create side effects and interactions with pharmaceutical medications.

For instance, black cohosh and dang gui can increase the blood thinning effects of certain drugs given to prevent blood clots.

Instead, it is important to discover the root causes for the low hormone levels and create a balanced formulas that addresses all of the internal organs involved.