Exciting New Research - Tummy Troubles Cause Hormonal Havoc

Healthy digestion is high up on the list of health priorities for many women.   However, did you know, tummy troubles are considered the top triggers of hormone imbalances in women?  

Those niggling symptoms of bloating and irregular bowel movements are important signs that things are not right.  They are your bodies way of crying out for help.  Ignoring these can lead to heightened imbalances in female reproductive hormones such as estrogen, progesterone and testosterone and those associated with metabolic performance such as insulin.  This combination creates the perfect blend for unexplained weight gain, especially around the middle.

New and Exciting Research  

While traditional research indicates rises in obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) to be due to a combination of genetics, inflammation and environmental influences [i] [ii] [iii][iv] [v] [vi] [vii] [viii] [ix] [x], exciting new research suggests tummy troubles or ‘digestive dysbiosis’ also play a role and contribute to female reproductive disorders [xi] [xii] [xiii] [xiv] [xv] [xvi][xvii] [xviii]. This is one reason why getting on top of your health and maintaining a healthy body weight may prove so challenging! 

 

Break Free and Restore Health 

Getting on top of your tummy troubles and health is like peeling back the layers of an onion and takes expertise, experience and time. Establishing the cause of your bloating and digestive upsets is an involved process, requiring professional symptomatic screening techniques and targeted dysbiotic testing. But this is only the first stage.  Repairing the damage and restoring balance with medicinal herbs and targeted probiotics is fundamental to finally becoming symptom free.

Narelle Stegehuis, CEO of Mass Attack is a practicing naturopath with over 30,000 hrs of in-clinic experience and health editor for Empower magazine. Specializing in the natural treatment of women's hormonal imbalances, she has a trained eye for hormonal weight gain. She is both an accomplished writer and recipient of the Australian Naturopathic Excellence Award. To find out if your hormones are making you fat, visit http://www.massattack.com.au

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[i] Hossain P, Kawar B, El Nahas M (2007) Obesity and diabetes in the developing world–a growing challenge. N Engl J Med 356: 213–215.

[ii] Lazar M. A (2005) How obesity causes diabetes: not a tall tale. Science 307: 373–375

[iii] Doria A, Patti M. E, Kahn C. R (2008) The emerging genetic architecture of type 2 diabetes. Cell Metab 8: 186–200.

[iv] Rankinen T, Zuberi A, Chagnon Y. C, Weisnagel S. J, Argyropoulos G, et al. (2006) The human obesity gene map: the 2005 update. Obesity (Silver Spring) 14: 529–644. 

[v] Walley A. J, Asher J. E, Froguel P (2009) The genetic contribution to non-syndromic human obesity. Nat Rev Genet 10: 431–442.

[vi] Freedman A. S, Freeman G. J, Rhynhart K, Nadler L. M (1991) Selective induction of B7/BB-1 on interferon-gamma stimulated monocytes: a potential mechanism for amplification of T cell activation through the CD28 pathway. Cell Immunol 137: 429–437.

[vii] Wellen K. E, Hotamisligil G. S (2005) Inflammation, stress, and diabetes. J Clin Invest 115: 1111–1119. 

[viii] Weisberg S. P, McCann D, Desai M, Rosenbaum M, Leibel R. L, et al. (2003) Obesity is associated with macrophage accumulation in adipose tissue. J Clin Invest 112: 1796–1808. 

[ix] Xu H, Barnes G. T, Yang Q, Tan G, Yang D, et al. (2003) Chronic inflammation in fat plays a crucial role in the development of obesity-related insulin resistance. J Clin Invest 112: 1821–1830.

[x] Arkan M. C, Hevener A. L, Greten F. R, Maeda S, Li Z. W, et al. (2005) IKK-beta links inflammation to obesity-induced insulin resistance. Nat Med 11: 191–198. 

[xi] Meadows R (2011) Gut Bacteria May Override Genetic Protections against Diabetes. PLoS Biol 9(12): e1001215. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1001215

[xii] Cani P. D, Amar J, Iglesias M. A, Poggi M, Knauf C, et al. (2007) Metabolic endotoxemia initiates obesity and insulin resistance. Diabetes 56: 1761–1772.

[xiii] Cani P. D, Bibiloni R, Knauf C, Waget A, Neyrinck A. M, et al. (2008) Changes in gut microbiota control metabolic endotoxemia-induced inflammation in high-fat diet-induced obesity and diabetes in mice. Diabetes 57: 1470–1481. 

[xiv] Creely S. J, McTernan P. G, Kusminski C. M, Fisher M, Da Silva N. F, et al. (2007) Lipopolysaccharide activates an innate immune system response in human adipose tissue in obesity and type 2 diabetes. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 292: E740–E747.

[xv] Chung S, Lapoint K, Martinez K, Kennedy A, Boysen Sandberg M, et al. (2006) Preadipocytes mediate lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammation and insulin resistance in primary cultures of newly differentiated human adipocytes. Endocrinology 147: 5340–5351.

[xvi] Spor A, Koren O, Ley RUnravelling the effects of the environment and host genotype on the gut microbiome. Nat Rev Microbiol 9: 279–290.

[xvii] Khan, K.N., et al., Toll-Like Receptors in Innate Immunity: Role of Bacterial Endotoxin and Toll-Like Receptor 4 in Endometrium and Endometriosis. Gynecologic and Obstetric Investigation, 2009. 68(1): p. 40-52.

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How to avaoid weight gain during the festive season

With a shift towards "fresh is best", it is not unusual to see amongst the platters of party pies and snag rolls a scattering of fresh fruit and veggie platters. This is great...not only for the kids but, most importantly, for the adults who, on many occasions, may be doing back to back parties, especially if there is more than one child in the family.

With more of our processed food containing Trans Fatty Acids and 'hormonal disruptors', also known as endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), it is little wonder that after a weekend of playing taxi and event manager, with a nibble here and a nibble there, one can be left feeling like their wardrobe favorites are getting a little on the snug side.

The problem is that party foods are 'trigger foods' and they get the better of us by setting off what appears to be an irrational chain reaction that causes us to over-eat and binge. We see it in our kids with a 'sugar buzz', but what actually is happening to us?

These foods entice us in and once you start its hard to stop. They are almost addictive in nature due to the refined sugars and additives in many of them. We end up scoffing down one piece of cake, beating ourselves around the head with guilt momentarily and then lining up for another slice later. The dreaded 'leftovers' in the fridge can call like a bright beacon, and all the healthy stuff just won't scratch the itch...it's the cake once again and there it is waiting for you. The unfortunate result is weight gain and broken goals, dreams and seams!

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The Impact Of the New Age

Industrial civilization first invented the machine and then took it as its life model. In the name of productivity; our health, environment and our landscape is threatened. We are enslaved by speed and have succumbed to the fast life, which disrupts our habits, pervades the privacy of our home and forces us to eat fast foods.

Discretionary time has shrunk, so theres less time to be active & less time to spend sourcing & preparing fresh food.

Along with this is the emergence of “ready to go” meals lining our supermarket shelves. With continuing drought threatening our food chain – it is becoming increasingly difficult to purchase reasonably priced vegetables & produce. Often consumers are forced to purchase poor grade, highly manufactured products due to financial constraints. To read full article click here