What to Take for Inflammation & Hormone Balance

Inflammation within the body is linked to numerous chronic illnesses like heart disease and diabetes. Hormones are responsible for regulating nearly all important functions in the human body. When there is an imbalance, mood swings, fatigue and nausea are symptoms that can occur. If you suffer from inflammation and a hormone imbalance, how do you find the right treatment?

Inflammation

• Inflammation has been linked to early signs of aging, hypertension and diabetes, to name just a few of the chronic issues and diseases. When a person reduces inflammation within the body, they can experience several benefits like younger- looking skin, less joint pain and discomfort, a lessening of allergies and decreased risk of heart disease. To achieve a reduction in inflammation, you should exercise regularly, quit smoking, obtain and maintain a healthy weight, reduce stress and eat a healthy and balanced diet. Medications such as Vioxx and Celebrex can be taken to reduce inflammation within the body, but they can cause side effects.

  Many foods can contribute to increased inflammation within the body, but many foods help reduce that inflammation as well. The "Inflammation Rating System" by Monica Reinagel, breaks down, into list form, specific foods, their recommended portion sizes and inflammation status. This ranking method takes much of the guess work out of making healthy choices to help reduce inflammation in the body.

Hormone Balance

• To achieve proper hormone balance with the body, there are typically three courses of action. The first and least invasive choice calls for lifestyle changes such as reducing stress, getting regular exercise and improving your diet. The second course includes herbal remedies. Two types of herbal remedies can promote hormone balance: phytoestrogenic, which adds estrogen to the body with herbs like black cohosh; and, non-estrogenic, which assists the body in producing estrogen on its own with herbs like macafem. The third course is hormone replacement therapy (HRT), which uses medical levels of hormones to replace and balance the hormone levels in the body. HRT is the most expensive of the options and can cause the most severe side effects.

Lifestyle Balance Equals Hormone Balance

• Treatment for both of these concerns starts at the fundamental level of diet and lifestyle changes and maintenance. With increased exercise, reduced stress, obtaining and maintaining a healthy weight as well as a proper nutritious diet can help in managing both inflammation and hormone balance.