Female Hormones Control your Bowels?

Yep.  Estrogen, progesterone, oxytocin, prolactin… All of these hormones affect our digestive systems.  So, certainly if a women comes to me with wonky digestion, we talk all about her hormones – how’s the menstrual cycle?  How was her digestive system during pregnancy?  How about when she was breast feeding?  What about during peri-menopause?

In naturopathy we’re lucky enough to see and make these connections.

Usually, if hormones are out of whack, women may find some interesting symptoms:

• Constipation before the period is common.
•  Looser stools or even diarrhea when the period starts.
• Pregnancy is variable – with heartburn, bloating, gas, constipation and more.
• Nursing moms often report the smoothest digestion of their lives (often abruptly changing when they wean their kids).
• Peri-menopausal women may find their digestion becomes a source of great frustration as hormones fluctuate. Heartburn one day, constipation another day and running to the bathroom quickly another day.

So what can we do?  Through taking a thorough history, performing a physical exam and sometimes lab testing, we can figure out what’s happening with these ever-changing hormones.  Add in thyroid hormones, blood-sugar hormones, hormones for mood and feelings, stress hormones – and you get a pretty interesting puzzle.

Treatments depend, of course, on the cause of dysfunction but generally, I suggest herbs, some supplements and dietary changes to help balance the hormones and ease transitions. Acupuncture can be helpful too.  I might suggest some comfort measures for an upset stomach or bowel, but I keep in mind that over time, when we balance the hormones, the digestive symptoms will clear up.

I’ve been practicing over 10 years now, and I still find each person’s body fascinating to decipher.  In naturopathy we really do look at the whole body and how the various parts work (or don’t work) together.  And, we try to get at the root cause of what’s going on and causing trouble.

If you’re having trouble with your digestive system, check in with an ND – we’ll ask lots of questions about your entire self, including your hormones, to figure it out.

For those who would like to check out some studies about this topic, here are some that I’ve found interesting…