Hello,
I’m wondering if anyone can help me with this. I have previously suffered with PMS but have found that over the last couple of years this has really evened itself out and I’m not suffering the mood swings/depression anymore – which is really great. But what I have started to notice (perhaps this has always been there) is that my skin is really lifeless, dull, pale, dry and tight (but sometimes oily too) just before my period, say a week or so before, but then just before my period arrives my skin, hair and nails go really lovely and my skin in particular is almost glowing. I don’t have regular periods – they can be anything from 27 days to 40, but usually they are early 30s. I have noticed it’s worse when I’m at work as we have heavy air conditioning in our office. I am convinced this is more than just a moisturiser/water intake issue though and I’m sure it’s hormonal. My skin is not completely clean and definitely breaks out more from ovulation right through to the point where it starts to improve when I have a period or just before.
I generally use a plain oil on my skin to cleanse and moisturise, something like olive/coconut/sunflower/almond oil and I’d prefer to try to stick to this routine for now if I can as I like to keep the products I am using natural. But I’m really interested in trying to sort out the hormonal side of things – I feel like this is something I need to cure from within rather than slapping on more products. Perhaps this might even start to regulate my periods too – although they have always been like this right since I started at age 13. I plan to keep upping my water intake, although I drink at least 1.5 litres a day at the moment anyway. Also I have been taking 3 teaspoons of Good Oil (omegas) per day, along with vitamin B complex and Iron+C. I have some Osteocare that I’m going to start taking too as it has zinc which I know is good for the skin. Also I am vegan so I think I need to up the seeds and nuts I am eating too.
Could anyone suggest anything homeopathic or a flower remedy that might help my hormones?
Thanks for reading,
HoneyRose
Hi, from a homeopathic viewpoint, there are remedies that will encourage hormonal balance but you would need to visit a homeopath rather than just buy something. You'd expect your periods to become regular from the treatment but there may still be fluctuations in the skin, hair etc. which will naturally be affected by changes in hormones. HTH Hom
Hi Honeyrose
My initial reaction to your dilemma would be to look at the liver and digestion to make sure unwanted toxins are being removed efficiently from your body (including excess hormones). Without doing a proper consultation and tests I am not sure what your hormones are doing but can give you some basic ideas on good diet for skin.
Carry on drinking lots of water, and make sure you are eating lots of foods rich in A, E, Zinc, Selenium and B vitamins. Avoid caffeine, saturated fats, alcohol and sugar and also keep eating a good mixture of seeds. Additionally, you may want to try milk thistle to help support the liver and a probiotic for the gut. And make sure you are having regular bowel movements.
I found this article which you may find interesting and explains a good way of eating to help out the skin; http://site.poshorganix.com/blog/natural-organic/skin-nutrition/
Also, on a more superficial level, have you tried face scrubs or cleansing cloths? Both will help exfoliate your skin and get rid of dead skin cells and I discovered the most amazing one the other day from Origins called 'Modern Friction'. I love it. It's expensive but lasts for ages and my skin is very happy with it. I used to suffer from very bad skin from my teens to my early 20s but thankfuly it's a thing of the past now. Origins, as far as I know, are very natural.
Hope this info is of help.
🙂
Hi,
Thanks for both your replies.
Just to add to what I'd initially written, I'm actually vegan as well so perhaps I'm not getting enough EFAs somewhere. I don't think my intake of seeds and nuts is high enough. I don't have any caffeine, drink, smoke or really have any sugar as I don't eat cakes/chocolate or any snack-type foods.
As for scrubs etc yes I do use them sometimes but often find they make my skin drier the next day so I have to be a bit careful here. I did have a facial about 6 - 8 weeks ago which I found really enjoyable and my skin felt lovely so I might try this again. The thing is it's nice at the time but I don't think it's solving the problem of this imbalance somewhere. Perhaps I will pop to the doctor and see if I can have some sort of test but when I asked once a few years ago they said no because hormone tests are never reliable as we fluctuate so much throughout the day.
I have some milk thistle at home so perhaps I will start a course of these and hopefully all these factors may combat it. I would love to get my periods regular too.
Honeyrose
There are saliva tests that can be done for hormone levels and you test throughout the day so it is much more accurate than a one off blood test. You could ask your doctor about this or find a nutritionist near you who uses them. The tests come from Geneva Diagnostics but it is best to have a practitioner to help you make sense of the results.
Hi Honeyrose
I support all that Frances B and Hom have written, but would like to suggest to
ensure a high intake of fibre, as found in oat bran, which attaches to the used and excess hormones excreted in the bile and carries them out of the body (not wheat bran which attaches to minerals). The best way is to have a drink of hot water with fresh lemon when you wake and then a tablespoon or so of oatbran made either into a porridge with boiling water, or added to a home-made smoothie to have for your breakfast. This means that the bile is emptied into the gut ready for the oatbran to clear out the unwanted hormones.
I would also add that I think it is important to get your gut bacteria balanced by taking a supplement of a mixture of Acidophilus and Bifidus, preferably some 20 - 60 billion per capsule (available in the chiller cabinet of good healthfood stores) to help get the gut toxin levels reduced. Imbalanced bacteria cause inflammation, even at a low level, and this will impact on hormone balance. Detoxing might be helpful, but I'd use milk thistle to boost your liver's capacity to detox before embarking on something like that.
Do you grind your seeds into a fine powder (in a coffee grinder or similar)? If you don't most of their benefit will be lost. They are a powerhouse of vitamins and minerals but you need to get at the contents. You can also boost your enzyme intake by sprouting mung beans, alfalfa, lentils and chick peas. These will help boost your system too.
You might find Solve your Skin Problems by Natalie Savona and Patrick Holford to be helpful see [url]this link[/url]
Wishing you the best of health
Caroline
You might find Solve your Skin Problems by Natalie Savona and Patrick Holford to be helpful see [url]this link[/url]
I just thought I'd mention that the link you gave shows this message:
Your search "Solve your Skin Problems by Natalie Savona and Patrick Holford " did not match any products.
on a strange page with a lot of crossings out, although the book DOES appear to be there if you scroll down a bit :confused:
You could perhaps edit the above, or PM me a fresh link if this post isn't seen in time, and I'll do it for you 🙂
Holistic
Moderator
I just thought I'd mention that the link you gave shows this message:
on a strange page with a lot of crossings out, although the book DOES appear to be there if you scroll down a bit :confused:
You could perhaps edit the above, or PM me a fresh link if this post isn't seen in time, and I'll do it for you 🙂
Holistic
Moderator
Hello Holistic
I have just used the link below on my computer and it took me straight to the site. There are other books on the page but the Natalie Savona one is top of the list. If you want a more specific one try this one. It shows price £5.99, delivered free in UK.
Hope that helps
Caroline
Thanks for the revised link, which worked perfectly, although one of the other mods said the first one had been OK for him, so maybe it was down to my computer. :confused:
I wasn't really asking for myself, but do check on links as I read posts. No mod's 'hat' for this, just a little unofficial help from time to time for those members who may perhaps be less familiar with the intricacies of the internet than we are 😉 🙂
Kind regards,
Holistic