Awareness, Acceptance and Action for women's health

Most women do not get excited about the monthly visit from “the delicate wave or Aunt flo.” In fact, most wish they did not have it and many actually take medication to stop it! What this tells me is how very little women know about their monthly cycle and their bodies needs. 

Its how the soils function, similar to that of our own gut,
that raises concern to the amount of waste being put
into it, the reabsorption of carcinogenic molecules from
the plastic is heading its way into the food supply.

Over the last 40 years, across all continents and altitudes, there have been HUGE changes in the environment and peoples lifestyles. Our food supply is dirty, our water is dirty, our air is polluted, we work more, spend more, accumulate more debt, don’t sleep, never rest and are always playing catch up with an ever "over excited" mind.

Nowadays, to some degree, we can say we are witnessing the results of a 40-year study in which the effects of birth control, hormone replacement therapy, increased environmental toxins (plastics, heavy metals, pesticides, unsaturated fats), a society full of expectation and deficiencies and along with other factors, are proving detrimental.

Over the past 40 years we have seen and experienced a dramatic rise in female related illnesses (descriptions at bottom of page):

• The average age for puberty has dropped abruptly to 10 years of age. 
• Endometriosis affects more then 5.5 million women. One of the leading 3 causes of female infertility.
• 75% of all women suffer with some premenstrual syndrome symptoms (PMS)
• 80% of all women have uterine fibroids. hundreds of thousands of hysterectomies are performed annually due to uterine fibroids.
• Dysmenorrhea affects approximately 40-70% of women of reproductive age. 10% describe severe symptoms.
• Amenorrhea affects 25-60% of female athletes, 25% of runners and 1.8 to 5% of the population.

Now a lot of women and medical practitioners are taught that these things just happen. I personally believe that the way you manage your life, how you eat,  your up bringing, education etc.. are all going to set the stage to how well you manage to regulate your cycle, symptoms and negative perceptions of a naturally occurring, magnificently orchestrated event designed for the purpose of new life, that doesn't have to be seen negatively at all. 

Understanding the issue through gaining awareness of your own body is the first step to healing. It takes awareness in order to feel pain, experience loss and know when your body needs nourishing, and as far as my observations have sent me, most women know when there in pain (and all know how to express it).

Though its the journey of acceptance through understanding, what is the cause of the pain? or what is the cause of this 'out of balance' experience? that so many women have difficulty piecing together.

There are many theories, ideas and opinions associated with women's health and thats merely because of the complexities and differences between working with males and females, just because you can heal Tarzan doesn't mean it'll work for Jane.  

Lets delve into a little science so that we can gain some awareness, in order to understand and accept what the real issue is. 

Cholesterol (don't be scared) is the basic building block for steroidal hormones. Without cholesterol the manufacturing of all steroidal hormones cannot take place in the tiny energy packets called mitochondria. Mitochondria are found within every cell of the body except red blood cells. In order to convert our beloved cholesterol into pregnenalone and then into one of the females most important hormones 'progesterone' (secreted by the ovaries), we must firstly be supporting a healthy thyroid (T3) production and secondly consuming plenty of vitamin A, sucrose, sunlight, selenium, potassium, calcium etc.. to supply the essential glands the minerals and usable material to support homeostasis (or as close to as possible). 

At rest your brain and red blood cells need sugar

and they will keep burning sugar regardless 

of where they get it i.e. muscle/organ tissue if need be

In a metabolically healthy and well-nourished body the formation of pregnenolone from cholesterol is
efficient and minimizes the need for cortisol (stress-yet essential hormone) by inhibiting ACTH. The cortisol is synthesised by progesterone within the adrenal glands when needed, we shouldn't be running off of cortisol, only using it at times of acute stress and need for survival i.e. when sprinting in a 60m dash or when you stub your toe. 

So, when we run into deficiencies in thyroid hormone, vitamin A, light, magnesium and potassium you'll likely be decreasing the conversion of pregnenolone and progesterone, therefore stimulating the production of cortisol and other adaptive stress hormones. When a females system becomes heavily compromised and has low resilience to environmental stressors, the system is only capable of sustaining the stress hormones cortisol and aldosterone production, leading to degenerative problems (catabolism/breaking down), progesterone deficiencies and most noticeably prevalent, 'estrogen excesses'.

What can be seen, understood and accepted from a progesterone deficient and estrogen dominant system and how can we find balance?

Signs and Symptoms;  

• Severe cramping, blood clotting, migraines and heavy bleeding
• Consistent Low body temperature and pulse
• Mood swings, anxity and frequenct insecurities
• Chronic constipation, IBS and low energy/fatigue
• Water retention, cellulite and liver spots 
• Consistant poor sleep and waking around 2-4am

"Estrogen is very dangerous if not checked by its opposing hormone, progesterone, which surges from the corpus luteum after ovulation and lowers estrogen and its effects by eliminating it from cells. When progesterone is available, it destroys the estrogen receptor and inhibits the enzymes that stimulate estrogen production. Progesterone is very strongly anti-estrogen and is key for balance"- Broda Barnes (1938).

To further expand on what were already aware of, as to what causes a suppression in 'normal hormonal regulation' i.e. deficient thyroid, vit A, stress, lack of light etc.. I'd ask you to consider and look at the comparative nature of the typical western female and the rural, lets say 'more traditional' female, in terms of lifestyles, aspirations, food consumption, skeletal development, exposures to environmental toxicity etc..

Native maori's of NZ, known to have the finest of
physiques, notice the wide upper jaws
perfect bite, skeletal development and zero cavities.

There are certain characteristics of various diets consumed by the more primitive, less influenced populations, which universally present a higher resistance and immunity to disease and freedom from deformities. In general, these are the foods that provide adequate sources of body-building and body-repairing material. The imbalances of foods and the diets consumed by the more urban-concreted-western women should be understood as a key influencer in their ability to regulate their own health status and prevent symptoms of modern dis-ease, and should also not be neglected when journeying through the healing process. 

                   

                     
Comparative food lists and health status from New Zealand (Aotearoa);

Traditional Maoris vs. Modern Maoris 

Shell fish vs. Japanese/Californian tinned mercury Tuna

Kiore (Polynesian rat) and Kurī (Polynesian dog) vs. Lamb and Cows 

Moa (huge flightless bird) vs. Fried chicken wings

Kumara, Yams, Taro (root veg) vs. Chips, crisps and packaged convenience  

Fern root vs……? 

Hinau, Karaka,Tawa (berries) vs. Pesticide rich, unripe, out of season fruit

Spring waters and tonics made from seaweed vs. Chlorine tap water or Lemon and Paeroa

With the help of the white man, tooth decay has become

rampant amongst the new zealanders, 

suffering from dental caries and abscessed teeth is very great

in the most modernized Maori.

Though this a global issue, its not just the dramatic changes in dietary food consumption that has probably changed and impacted the health of millions of women. With the added expectations governed by schooling education, media perception and representation of a female growing up in a concrete jungle and the added pressure to live by social norms. An increasing mental/emotional and spiritual burden has been placed on to already compensated and stressed physiologies.

We can see from the observations and findings of various expeditionists and travelling medical practitioners of the 19th and early 20th centuries, that the health status of individuals that have slowly moved away from their native dietary staples and ways of life, begin to experience and become exposed to narrowing skulls, crowding teeth, cavities, respiratory issues and generally smaller less athletic physiques through each generation.

These findings are now seen as a norm within most western societies and are often treated with pharmaceuticals that pay no attention to familiar lifestyles. I don't believe its possible for us all to head back and live as we once did outside of the concrete and these redialed cities, but we do have a large control over the life we choose to live, the food we put in, the genes we wish to pass on, the level of rest we want to give ourselves and the degree of attention we wish to pay our body/mind.      

Action: 

Now that you've taken the time to accept that most out of your out of balance experiences (PMS, menopause, hot flushes, endometriosis, infertility) are in fact NOT normal or at least shouldn't be as extreme/prolonged as they are, its now a good time to introduce a few steps to help you, help yourself and take action towards enhanced vitality. 

• Manage lifestyle stressors: Healing cannot take place if one is constantly fighting against the rage of expectation and environmental toxins. Elevated stress hormones are only designed to keep you alive at times of need, their long term suppressive effects will inhibit supporting catalysts that are required for optimal function, leading to an aurae of deficiencies.

• Learn to regulate blood sugar often: Eating frequently and balanced meals that come from the soil, consisting of carbohydrates, fats and proteins from traditional supporting foods. A lack of food frequency and food ratios, will often present symptoms of cold hands, feet, inner thighs and nose, a typical sign that the individual is not able to regulate blood sugar effectively (stress) and is mostly dominating her stress response i.e. pushing the blood away from the extremities and towards vital organs i.e. you can't live without a liver but you can without a hand. 

• Avoid Unsaturated Fats: Elevated estrogen levels perpetuate chronic stress and deplete glycogen storages in the liver. This combination signals the release of fatty acids into the blood stream to be converted into glucose and used as energy. Polyunsaturated fats inhibit cellular respiration pushing the body deeper into the vicious cycle of inflammation- Jeanne Rubin (2014) 

• Keep your bowels clean: A sluggish bowel results in the re-absorption of estrogen back into the bloodstream (enterohepatic recirculation) and increases exposure to endotoxin putting further strain on the liver. Thyroid deficiency is historically related to constipation so once again the health of the thyroid is a vital component to prevent or reverse estrogen dominance. Salt and sugar lower cortisol, adrenaline, and aldosterone and improve gut motility as does a diet that contain foods digestible by humans (Raw carrots are a good bowel motility food)- FPS (2014)

• Practice self acceptance: How much do I let my physical appearance dictate my personality and emotions? Just imagine if we had no mirrors, no photos or videos? Would you be more or less confident? I bet it would be much more common to see "mismatched" couples. Or more common to see "less attractive" people being much more assertive and "more attractive" people acting all shy and what not. Try to avoid living up to expectation and be you!

Prepare to surf the wave that life is serving up and enjoy the healing journey

Be wise

Beatle.

Endometriosis: Tissues that normally line the inside of the uterus (endometrium), grow outside the uterus, commonly involving the ovaries and bowels.
Dysmenorrhea: Painful cramping around the abdomen, lower back and inner thighs prior to menstruating.
Amenorrhea: The absence of menstruation at reproductive age, missing 3 or more in row is considered diagnostic of amenorrhea.
Homeostasis: A built in adaptive mechanism at work constantly adjusting our internal systems based on the environmental stimuli. Homeostasis is required for optimal metabolism and optimal metabolism is required to maintain homeostasis. A disruption in either negatively affects the other.
Progesterone: The main hormone produced by the ovaries, antagonistic to estrogen and essential in the promotion gestation (pregnancy).
Pregnenalone: Produced in large amounts by younger populations, our main defence against harmful side effects and coverts predominately into progesterone and DHEA.
ACTH: Adrenocorticotropic hormone, produce in the pituitary gland in response to stress.

Ref:
http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200251h.html#ch15
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/606136/Health-experts-study-changes-in-Maori-diet
Death by Medicine by Gary Null, PhD et al.

http://eastwesthealing.com

Radio Interview – Progesterone v. Estrogen – EastWest Healing Blog Talk
Serotonin, depression, and aggression: The problem of brain energy by Ray Peat, PhD

Broda barnes; Its not your mind, its your liver