Lifestyle Changes & Supplements for Women's Hormone Balance

By Jill Levy

You can think of hormones as your body’s “chemical messengers,” since they are constantly sending information to and from your brain that help to control a variety of important processes. Whether or not your hormones are “in balance” can affect your overall outlook, energy, metabolism, libido, menstrual cycle and much more.

Hormonal balance seems to have increasing interest today given that our environments and diets are often causes of ongoing stress for our bodies to deal with. A healthy diet, lifestyle changes like managing stress, and adding supplements to your routine can all help.

What are the best supplements for women's hormone balance? Below we’ll cover the types of vitamins and other supplements that can be supportive of women’’s health, plus explain how to support hormonal balance overall.

The Quest for Hormonal Balance

It may seem like it’s rare to find a woman today that has zero complaints about all things hormone balance-related.

That’s because a combination of stressful schedules, long to-do lists, less-than-ideal diets and other factors make hormonal balance a popular topic.

Here are some of the main culprits that are believed to directly affect women’s hormonal balance:

• Ongoing stress, which can be caused by many factors such as work, being too busy, relationships/family issues, finances, etc.
• A poor diet, which can negatively impact gut health and lead to low nutrient intake
• Sleep deprivation
• Too little or too much exercise
• Weight fluctuations
• Exposure to environmental toxins
• Smoking cigarettes
• High alcohol consumption

Best Supplements for Women's Hormone Balance

While it might seem overwhelming to revamp your diet, schedule, sleep and exercise routine all at once in order to support overall hormonal balance, one thing you can start doing right away is paying attention to your nutrient intake, starting with a healthy diet and some supplementation Of course, you should always consult your healthcare professional prior to starting any new dietary or lifestyle regimen, including supplementation.

By adding certain supplements to your routine — including essential vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, probiotics and herbs — you can help support your energy levels, give yourself a boost in mental clarity and concentration, and make strides towards getting more restful sleep.

Certain supplements can also support female reproductive health in other ways.

What are the best vitamins to take for supporting hormonal balance? Some of the best supplements and vitamins for women's hormones include:

1. Functional mushrooms and adaptogens

Within Ancient Nutrition's Women’s Hormones Capsules, you’ll find a combination of organic mushroom and adaptogens to help support overall hormone balance. These include organic reishi mushroom, chaste tree berry, ashwagandha, black cohosh root and schizandra berry.

AN’s Women’s Hormones Capules provide targeted support for female reproductive health, healthy energy levels, a healthy response to stress, a positive mindset, mental clarity and restful sleep. This one-of-a-kind formula draws from more than 2,000 years in the TCM (Traditional Chinese Method), bringing a holistic approach to women’s wellness routine by supporting the body and mind as a complete, intertwined system.

Ancient Nutrition fermented herbs are also powered by live fermentation — a proprietary, patent-pending, dual-stage process that is used to break down food into more absorbable components.

2. Women’s Multivitamin

By providing essential nutrients such as iron, B12, vitamin D and magnesium, a good-quality multivitamin for women can help support a healthy immune system, support cognitive and neurological health, and support healthy bones and joint health.

3. Women’s Probiotics

These “good guy” microbes support gut health and digestive function. They can also help generally support key hormones that are made inside the gut.

Additionally, probiotics for women offer support for a healthy immune system, promote healthy bowel function and elimination, and may help to maintain a balance of healthy vagina flora.

Lifestyle Changes to Help Naturally Balance Hormone Levels

Now that you know which vitamins can help support female hormone balance, let’s talk about other habits that can steer women’s health in the right direction. How else can a woman balance her hormones naturally?

• Eat a nutrient-dense diet, one that includes probiotic foods, vegetables, fruits, fish, seeds, nuts, etc.
• Prioritize getting enough sleep, which is about 7 to 9 hours per day for most women.
• Get a handle on stress, such as by adding relaxing activities to your day like exercise, meditation, reading, journaling, and time spent outside.
• Figure out which type of exercise is most beneficial for you given your schedule and energy level; maybe it’s yoga, dance or something like HIIT workouts or jogging.
• Include healthy fats and performance fats in your diet which support hormone production, such as olive oil, coconut milk, coconut oil, ghee, and grass-fed butter.
• Reduce your caffeine and alcohol intake. Try to stick to 1–2 cups of coffee daily, and even less than one serving of alcohol per day.