So many men and women who complain about “hormonal issues” have estrogen dominance. Estrogen dominance is the condition of increased estrogen levels relative to progesterone levels in the body. Estrogen dominance may be the result of overproduction of estrogen by the body, changes in estrogen metabolism and excretion, or an imbalance in the estrogen to progesterone ratio.
Both men and women can suffer from estrogen dominance. It isn’t necessarily that the body is producing too much estrogen but it could be from the overabundance of toxins that mimic estrogen in the body and the body’s inability to detox fast enough from them.
Estrogen isn’t “all bad”. It is an important hormone needed for things like cardiovascular health, fertility, brain health, and bone health; the problem comes in if the body can not get rid of the toxic estrogen properly.
Symptoms of Estrogen Dominance
- Endometriosis and Fibroids
- Pelvic Pain and Breast Tenderness
- Weight Gain. Women gain weight around the butt and thighs for women and men usually around the belly.
- Fat cells can increase estrogen levels by converting androgens into estrogens. This is known as aromatization. This becomes a vicious cycle because estrogenic toxins are then stored in the fat cells and extra fat can increase circulating androgens.
- Man Boobs and Enlarged Prostates in men.
- Leptin Resistance.
- Hypothyroid. Too much estrogen can slow down the conversion of the inactive thyroid hormone (T4) into the active thyroid hormone (T3) in the liver. Additionally, the excess toxins like to hide in the thyroid receptor sites, slowing down thyroid function.
- Decreased Libido in men and women
- Menstrual irregularity, heavy menstrual flow, cramps in women
- Mood changes
- Migraines with the menstrual cycle
- Infertility in men and women
- Bloat
- Water Retention in the hands and feet
- Fatigue
- Constipation
- Slow Metabolism. Estrogen blocks the thyroid hormone receptors and inhibits proper thyroid function.
- Cancer. The leading cause for mitochondrial failure is iodine deficiency, and Mitochondrial failure leads to cancer.
How Estrogen Dominance Occurs
Estrogen Dominance is not only exposure to increased amounts of estrogen but also a disruption of estrogen detoxification through the liver, the gut, microbiome, bile, and kidneys. This is also referred to as Phase 1, 2, and 3 detox.
Think about Phase 1 as the “water coming into the bathtub”, Phase 2 is how quickly the “water can drain out of the bathtub”, and Phase 3 is how efficiently the “water can go through the water pipes out of the house.”
Phase 1 is how the liver is able to break down the estrogen.
Phase 2 is how the liver is able to move the estrogens out of the liver.
Phase 3 is how the gut is able to package the estrogen and excrete it out of the body.
It is imperative to focus on the liver and microbiome for clearing estrogens; unhealthy bile from the liver and an unbalanced microbiome in the gut will raise estrogen levels.
Causes of Increased Estrogen Dominance
Dirty Liver
The liver is responsible for producing the ESTROGEN BINDING PROTEIN. When the liver is “dirty,” it has a difficult time doing this. The liver is also where Phase 1, 2 and 3 estrogen detoxification occurs.
Iodine Deficiency
Iodine is used by the endocrine system to regulate estrogen production in both women and men. Without ample iodine, estrogen dominance can occur.
A study by dr David Brownstein shows 96% of test subjects in America were found to be extremely iodine deficient.
Additionally, iodine is used to clean the blood so the liver can do its job in producing the Estrogen Binding Protein. Iodine also helps break up a fatty liver and without it, the risk of fatty liver will increase.
Tap water
When millions of women consume birth control and hormone replacement therapy, both of which contain estrogen, they urinate this out, it travels to the water treatment plants and the plants do not filter it out. As a result, tap water has perpetually increasing amounts of estrogen. Ocean waters are now approximately 4% estrogen.
Sugar
Eating refined sugar not only robs you of important minerals, but it also produces excess estrogen in the body. When white sugar is consumed minerals are taken from the body in order to digest it such as sodium, calcium, chromium, manganese, cobalt, copper, zinc, and magnesium. This disrupts the mineral ratios in the body.
Conventional Meat, Poultry, and Dairy
90% of the livestock animals in the U.S. have estrogen implants placed behind their ears by the “assembly-line factory farmers” in order to make their livestock fatter faster for decreased time to market and increased profit. Eating estrogen-laden foods increases estrogen in the body.
Pesticides, Herbicides and Fungicides
One good reason to eat organic produce versus non-organic fruits and vegetables is that conventional produce is sprayed with pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides that contain xeno-estrogens, molecular look-alikes to the estrogen hormone, which can steal human receptor sites designed to attach only to real estrogen or real progesterone, leading to estrogen dominance in men and women.
Improperly Combined Foods
When foods are improperly combined, the body is unable to digest the meal, and it goes into acute metabolic acidosis, leading to an increase in estrogen in the body.
The rule of thumb on combining foods the right way is:
Eat fruit by itself; proteins with vegetables, or starches with vegetables are fine. Never combine proteins with starches like steak with potatoes, turkey with bread, fish with rice, or chicken with pasta. This will result in the foods not digesting and will result in increased estrogen.
Overeating
Too much food in the stomach strangulates the internal lining of the stomach preventing gastrin, hydrochloric acid, and pepsin from being properly secreted, and hence, acute metabolic acidosis can ensue, once again creating more estrogen.
Plastic
Plastic bottles, containers, bags, and other items contain phthalate and bisphenol A, or BPA, known as xenoestrogens, which can leak.
Unfortunately, many plastics claim to be BPA-free but have switched BPA to other similar bisphenol xeno-estrogens, including BPS and BPF.
Parabens
Methylparabens, propylparabens, butyl parabens, and any other parabens are xeno-estrogens which lead to Estrogen Dominance. Parabens are typically found in hair care and skin care products.
Lack of Progesterone
Excess estrogen can also come from extremely low levels of progesterone since they both attach to the exact same receptor site in the body.
Progesterone is a hormone that requires saturated fat for the body to manufacture. Whereas estrogen has been shown to cause cellular mutation, progesterone, much like iodine and oxygen, induces apoptosis, halting cellular mutation and causing new, healthy cells to be regenerated!
Inflammation and Oxidative Stress
Inflammation and Oxidative Stress of any sort slow down Phase 3 estrogen detox.
Consumption of Soy
Soy is estrogenic; all soy is GMO and mimics estrogen in the body, leading to estrogen dominance.
Consumption of GMO foods and All Grains
GMO foods and grains are highly inflammatory, cause microbiome imbalances, cause Leaky Gut and inhibit Phase 2 estrogen detox.
Aromatase converts testosterone into estrogen, which heightens estrogen dominance. Aromatase is worsened with excess belly fat, and fat cells hold the bad estrogens, increasing Estrogen Dominance further; it is a vicious cycle.
Stress
Stress in the body creates oxidation and inflammation, disruption of Phase 1, 2, and 3 detox pathways in addition to causing Leaky Gut and Microbiome imbalances.
Phase 3 Compromised Transporters
Phase 3 transporters move many things in and out of the cell. As we age, the cell walls become “rigid” and toxins have a harder time getting out of the cell.
Those toxins include medications, chemicals, and hormones, including estrogen. Once they are out of the cell, they move into the kidneys, urine and bile and intestines.
What slows down these transporters are inflammation, oxidative stress, toxic overload, and medication.
Leaky Gut and Compromised Estrobolome
Estrobolome is the estrogen detoxifying microbiome; in other words, it is the aggregate of enteric bacterial genes whose products are capable of metabolizing estrogens. Its job is to help excrete and circulate estrogens out of the body. It can be affected by antibiotics, drugs, and diet.
What happens when this is compromised, the estrogen that is meant to pass through the gut and out with the feces, “escapes” and gets reabsorbed into the body. Beta-Glucuronidase is what allows the estrogen to escape.
Birth Control Pills and HRT
Estrogen Supplements that Could Backfire
There are a few popular supplements for Estrogen Detoxification that could actually back up the liver due to your genetic predisposition.
The estrogen supplements below require optimal detoxification of sulfur because they contain sulfur-rich ingredients.
DIM(Di-Indole Methane)
Vegetables including broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy, cabbage and kale are anti-estrogenic, meaning they help lower the “bad” estrogen. You can find them in a concentrated form called DIM (Di-Indole Methane), as you would have to eat a very large amount to do any good.
However, many people have issues with these sulfur-containing vegetables, and the sulfur detoxification pathways become disrupted. Consuming them may backfire and back up the liver.
Furthermore, these vegetables are known to slow down thyroid function and worsen symptoms of hypothyroidism.
Glutathione
Glutathione is known to be the master antioxidant and helps with liver detoxification. Some glutathione supplements that are meant to support detoxification will actually make matters worse because of the sulfur component.
Sulforaphane
This comes from broccoli sprouts and is known to help with Estrogen detoxification. Once again, because of sulfur, can back up the liver and worsen the detoxification process.
Mushrooms
Mushrooms are used for estrogen detoxification, but if someone is sensitive to mold, mushrooms could backfire, causing inflammation, liver back up, and allergies.
How to Reverse Estrogen Dominance
Acceleradine Iodine
Acceleradine Iodine regulates estrogen production and cleans the blood so the liver can detox the estrogen properly. Iodine decreases estrogen in the receptor cells which helps reverse Estrogen Dominance.
It also helps with fibroids, PCOS, and other issues related to hormonal imbalances. Acceleradine is also anti-inflammatory and a powerful antioxidant, which helps neutralize the inflammation and oxidative stress that leads to Estrogen Dominance.
Acceleradine also triggers healthy apoptosis (natural death of traumatized and unhealthy cells), which helps reverse Estrogen Dominance. Acceleradine is the only iodine that is enhanced with Scalar energy, radiation free, 100 percent absorbable, and can reverse damage done to the DNA.
Accelerated Ancient Salt
Accelerated Ancient Salt plumps up the volume of fluid inside and outside the cells which help clean the liver, supports apoptosis, induces DNA repair, and cleans the body of excess estrogen. It also helps with bile production, breaking down fats in the liver, and encourages improved digestive health.
Accelerated Fast
Accelerated Fast puts your body into ketosis and fat-burning mode within 30 minutes.
It helps to control appetite and increases physical and mental energy, as it teaches your body to utilize its own fat stores for energy. As your energy increases and your cravings for sugar decrease, you are able to intermittent fast, reduce Insulin Resistance, cleanse the liver, clean up the excess estrogen, reduce inflammation and reduce oxidative stress.
Where Accelerated Fast is different from any other exogenous ketone or fasting supplement is it has multiple herbal cofactors in the formula to increase ATP production in the cells (which is your true ENERGY), to “De-Fat” the liver where fat burning occurs, hormones are regulated, and sugars are processed. The liver is where the body can detox the xeno-estrogens that lead to Estrogen Dominance.
Accelerated Leaky Gut Bundle
Gut infections slow down and inhibit detoxification of excess estrogen.
Three supplements : Megaspore, MegaPre and MegaMucosa, help heal the gut, improve nutrient absorption, and optimize Phase 3 estrogen detoxification by repairing the Estrobolome (Estrogen Microbiome).
Thorne Berberine
Berberine helps reduce inflammation, oxidative stress and toxicity while lowering glucose levels and increasing nutrient absorption; all of these factors help reverse Estrogen Dominance
Laxa Komfort
Laxa Komfort is a combination of natural herbs that helps to balance the vitiated Vata (Air), Dosha (Humour) & helps in daily and comfortable bowel movements. Daily Bowel movements are essential to keep the body from recycling estrogens.
BIOptimizers Magnesium Breakthrough
Magnesium helps with Phase 2 Liver detoxification of estrogen, in addition to performing over 600 other biochemical reactions in the body.
NOW Choline & Inositol
In addition to helping with Phase 2 liver detox, methylation of estrogen, and cell membrane support for Phase 3 detox, choline may help facilitate the burning of stored fat and has been shown to prevent abnormal or excessive liver accumulation of cholesterol and triglycerides. It also may help support insulin sensitivity and overall hormonal balance.
Dr Amie Hornaman's Hormone Fixxr
Hormone Fixxr helps increase healthy testosterone in women which helps improve motivation, build lean muscle, burn fat, and improve mood.
How to Detox from Estrogen Dominance
Eat Organic Food
By eating organic food, you will minimize the GMO’s, Glyphosate, and toxins that mimic estrogen in the body, leading to higher estrogen dominance.
Eliminate Alcohol
Alcohol increases estrogen in two ways:
- Alcohol increases Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth which will increase the recycling of estrogen, leading to estrogen dominance.
- Alcohol increases estrogen on its own.
- Alcohol will increase aromatase conversion of testosterone into estrogen in men and women.
Intermittent Fasting
Intermittent fasting lowers the blood glucose levels which in turn helps:
- reduce inflammation
- reducing Estrogen Dominance
- reducing belly fat
- Improving the overall balance of hormones.
By reducing belly fat, a reduction in aromatase occurs which causes testosterone to convert into estrogen. Furthermore, during an intermittent fasting window, the body is engaged in autophagy, where the body “cleans up” the useless and damaged tissues, decreases the inflammation that causes pain, and helps heal the gut and improve nutrition absorption. All of these factors lead to healed tissues and reverse estrogen dominance.
Eat Wild Fish and Wild Animal Protein
Omega 3 fats and proteins provide the needed anti-inflammatory nutrients for hormonal balance in those with endometriosis, without causing inflammation in the body.
Eliminate Processed Foods and Sugar
Processed foods and sugar increase beta-glucuronidase, cause Leaky Gut, increase inflammation, and increase the recycling of estrogen.
It also helps stabilize blood sugar and encourage insulin sensitivity and improves bile production for liver detox. Furthermore, they help suppress the cravings for carbs and sugar that dysregulate insulin and lead to estrogen dominance.
Sara Banta
Sara Banta is a Stanford University Graduate with a Degree in Economics and Psychology, and a certified Natural Supplement Expert & Graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. Sara is the Founder of Accelerated Health Products and host of the health & wellness podcast, Accelerated Health Radio.