Since you can't always avoid stress, understand what it does to your hormones and bones so you can act to preserve your health.

No one can avoid stress, in fact, trying to avoid it is not even a good idea. That's because short-term stressors challenge our bodies and psyches so that we become better, healthier than we were. However, long-term stress can be very damaging unless properly supported. Before taking a look at how to do that, let's look at what happens to hormones and bones under long-term stress.

For example, when women are under stress, their adrenals secrete both adrenalin and cortisol. Too much cortisol for too long weakens connective tissue, suppresses her immune system, and plays havoc with her hormonal system.

In long-term stress, progesterone can’t enter its cell receptors due to the presence of adrenaline, resulting in the symptoms of progesterone depletion. Thus a blood test to check for progesterone levels may show normal levels. However, since the cell receptors can't uptake it, the net effect on the body is one of progesterone deficiency. (This is why many health practitioners consider saliva tests for hormones to be far more clinically relevant than blood tests.) This, in turn, can lead to bone loss and estrogen dominance.
The bone loss takes place because progesterone levels are too low, and therefore not doing its job of stimulating the bone-building cells (osteoblasts) to replicate and make more bone cells.

The estrogen dominance takes place because hormones operate in relation to each other. and the falling levels of progesterone make estrogen levels higher than progesterone. In terms of bones, estrogen directs the bone repair cells (osteoclasts) to activate. With progesterone too low to order new bone cells to be built, the estrogen-driven bone repair cells tear down old bone but lack the bone-building cells with which to repair them.

The result, in short, is an ever-increasing rate of bone loss.

HOWEVER: there's hope. The key to reducing - even eliminating this destructive scenario is to support the adrenals. In other words, by taking supplements that assist the adrenals in doing their job (managing stress!), these glands experience reduced stress themselves and are thus able to better manage the rest of the demands stress has placed upon them.

Exactly which products or combination to use for this task is somewhat individual. That said, there are specific herbs that are perfect for the job. They include Ashwaganda, Withania somnifera, Licorice Root, Rehmannia, Siberian Ginseng, Eleuthero and Rhodeola.

Many health practitioners who are aware of this dynamic recommend that women experiment with these various herbs or herbal combinations to find out which one (or ones) best support their own bodies.

Before trying this, however, do check with your own health practitioner to make certain there are no contraindications for your specific health situation. If you have high blood pressure, you might not want to use Licorice Root long -term, and if pregnant, you may need to avoid Ashwaganda and some other herbs .
                               ****************************************

Pamela Levin, R.N.
June 22, 2016

This article was excerpted from Natural Female Hormone Care lessons. For a free questionnaire to assess your own hormone balance, go to NaturalFemaleHormoneCare.com

Pamela Levin is an R.N. and a Teaching & Supervising Transactional Analyst
in private practice 46 years. She has over 570 postgraduate hours
in clinical nutrition, herbology and applied kineseology. She is an
award winning nutritional journalist and author of
a number of books and articles.
Pamela Levin, R.N.
June 22, 2016

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