24 Jan How Do Our Hormones Effect Our Gut?
Our gut is where all digestion, absorption, and elimination take place. All of these processes require a healthy gut. So why does the menopuse and our decreasing hormone levels have such an impact on our digestion and our gut?⠀Oestrogen helps to regulate the production of the stress hormone cortisol, and both cortisol and oestrogen help us digest our food.⠀
In addition we have good and bad bacteria living in our gut – our gut microbiome – and both oestrogen and progesterone fuel the production of essential friendly gut bacteria which is essential for optimum health. So as the levels of our sex hormones, oestrogen and progesterone start to dwindle, our digestion slows down and we start to lose our good gut bacteria.
All this combined, results in the common menopause symptoms of bloating and an increase in fat around the middle. ⠀
What and how we eat is so important for our gut health, click here to find out more