Hormone balance is the key to happiness and healthy living. As we age, our nutrition, as well as the aging process, greatly affects our bodies ability to maintain healthy hormone production and balance. This change in hormone balance is the underlying reason for many of the complaints we develop with age and are only a few of the many things that women and men experience with time.
- Difficulty sleeping
- fatigue
- decreased memory
- anxiety
- depression
- aches and pains
- decreased libido
- difficulty losing weight
The good news is that we are all living longer but the bad news is that we are exposed to more environmental toxins due to our longevity. These exposures challenge our bodies defense mechanisms daily. As we age, our ability to respond to these stressors weakens. 
Furthermore, these exposures can cause further hormonal imbalances. So, as you can see, it is this spiraling effect that leads to our body’s demise. If we are going to live longer, why not help ourselves to enjoy those extra years?
With the advances in medicine, we can now evaluate hormones in a way we never could 10 years ago. And there is so much more to hormone balance than just checking estrogen and testosterone levels. Our bodies require the correct fuel, including vitamins, minerals and other nutrients to make adequate levels of hormones in the correct proportions. With the correct fueling of our bodies, we can maintain the hormonal symphony needed for health and happiness.
Fatigue is a something we all experience. When fatigue becomes more the norm rather than the exception, it makes our lives very difficult. This fatigue leads to additional stress because we fall behind on things. We lose our drive to do the things we used to love. We form bad habits in an attempt to keep up. These bad habits include eating fast food, drinking more caffeine and exercising less. These habits at first may appear to be the answer but are actually feeding fuel to the fire! And thus, the downward spiral begins. Fatigue is usually multifactorial. It can be due to a lack of sleep, increased stress, poor nutrition, hormonal changes and even thyroid imbalance.
All of 
these factors also play a role in our memory, something that is so critically important to us on a daily basis. We have all heard about senile dementia and Alzheimer’s. And although we have been taught to think that these memory changes are a normal part of aging, it is not!! Let me repeat, memory loss is not a normal part of the aging process. It is due to hormonal and nutrient imbalances, lack of sleep and lack of exercise. Sounds simple! Right? Now the question is where and how do you begin to turn things around?
Stress reduction techniques, diet modifications as well as improving our exercise regimen is a great place to start. Diet changes can be anything from decreasing caloric intake to removing gluten or implementing the elimination diet. There are many dietary changes and stress reduction techniques that will help to get things back on track. How about hormones? Yes, hormones are a huge player in the field of health and wellness. Testing hormones through blood and saliva give the information needed to determine appropriate nutritional as well as hormonal supplements. Well balanced hormones, vitamins and minerals allow our bodies to operate efficiently. This efficiency gives us plenty of energy to function throughout the day yet helps us sleep well through the night. Sounds peaceful, right?
If you are struggling with fatigue, stress, weight, or even sleep, take a step back and look at the big picture. You need to take care of yourself first so you can be the happy healthy person you want to be! If we are going to live longer, let’s enjoy it! Let’s be the best we can be.
Dr. Sohayda has done extensive training in the field of health, nutrition and hormones and our nurse Erin has a B.S in Nutritional Sciences. Come in for a complimentary consult and Dr. Sohayda and our nurse Erin will develop a program personalized for your optimal fitness and health.
