A Natural Approach to Endometriosis

Endometriosis affects many women, and in many different ways. Whether its painful periods, heavy bleeding, pain during sex, digestive issues or challenges with fertility, it can have an incredible impact on your quality of life.

We don’t fully understand what causes endometriosis, and this is part of the challenge in treating it.

Some women will respond well to conventional medications, which are usually working to suppress hormones. Estrogen can mediate the growth and spread of endometrial tissue, but we know there must be more going on as unfortunately not all women will see improvement with these drugs.

Surgery is the other main conventional option, and if fertility is a goal, there are procedures that can be used before conception to help with that. But otherwise, a full hysterectomy or oophorectomy (removal of uterus and / or ovaries) is usually the last-resort option, which is an extreme intervention with long-lasting implications.

The issue with the current conventional treatments is that we’re really only suppressing symptoms, and not targeting all the factors that may be at play. A more comprehensive approach can be extremely helpful for better symptom management, improving fertility and overall quality of life.

Diet & Nutrition An anti-inflammatory diet is going to be beneficial. We know women with endometriosis have higher levels of inflammation in the body. Whether this inflammation is the cause or the result of the excess endometrial tissue, we know inflammation will contribute to pain.

Focus on the following:

- Consuming loads of veggies and fruitHaving healthy fats at each meal – this includes avocadoes, raw olive oil, fatty fish, nuts and seeds

- Eliminate refined sugar

- Eliminate processed foods and white breads/pastas/crackers.

- Caffeine, gluten and animal protein (especially red meats and processed meats) have been linked to experiencing more pain, so try cutting back on these as well.

Consider choosing organic food more often. Its been suggested exposure to certain environmental toxins, such as dioxins, may promote endometriosis through epigenetic changes.

Try including vegetables from the brassica family, like broccoli and broccoli sprouts, swiss chard, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, and other dark green leafy vegetables are a wonderful way to support your liver. A healthy liver is essential for detoxification and hormone metabolism – helping us to clear the toxins we are exposed to, as well as maintain a healthy balance of estrogen in the body.

Regular bowel movements are also key for proper detoxification and hormone balance, so ensure you’re drinking enough water each day and getting enough fibre, again through a variety of vegetables, as well as whole grains.

Other Supplements to Control Inflammation + Pain While its definitely okay to have to use pain-killers to get your through your period, it is nice to reduce your reliance on them, or at least cut back on the amount you have to use, to minimize side effects. There’s loads of natural choices for fighting inflammation to reduce pain: - Fish oil / omega 3 fatty acids - Curcumin – an extract of the herb turmeric - Ginger root - Peppermint oil capsules - Bromelain

One study looked at the combination of NAC (N-acetyl cysteine) and ALA (alpha lipoic acid), which are both potent antioxidants, along with bromelain in women with endometriosis, and reported a significant reduction in pain levels.

Balancing Hormones As I mentioned above, we know estrogen is responsible for stimulating the growth of endometrial tissue. Too much estrogen relative to progesterone is believed in part to contributing to endometriosis and its severity.

Along with the dietary changes above, there are a few other ways we can support a healthy, normal balance between estrogen and progesterone in your body.

- Certain herbs, such as Vitex (Chaste Tree) can support progesterone levels to help balance out any excess estrogen. - Improving your gut health to ensure a healthy microbiome is also important to balance estrogen. Some of these microbes are important for activation estrogen, so if you have a dysbiosis or imbalance in the gut, estrogen levels can be altered from what they should be. - Other supplements that may be useful to help clear excess estrogen include DIM (diindolylmethane) and I3C (indole-3-carbinol) which are found in cruciferous veggies, as well as calcium D-glucarate.

Vitamin D Our immune system may be involved in the development of endometriosis, and some suspect and auto-immune process could be part of the cause. Vitamin D is crucial for regulating immune function and inflammation.

Those with endometriosis tend to have lower vitamin D levels, and there’s been associations between lower levels and a higher risk of developing endometriosis.

Consider getting your vitamin D levels checked through bloodwork, and supplement accordingly to get them within a sufficient range. Vitamin D deficiency is pretty common!

Lifestyle Changes Regular exercise is helpful for reducing systemic inflammation and increasing lympathic flow – which will both help reduce pain. Adipose (fat) tissue is involved in producing extra estrogen, so maintaining a healthy BMI through exercise is important.

If you are a smoker, know that quitting will help reduce your pain considerably.

Manage stress! Practicing mindfulness, meditation or simply deep breathing on a regular basis can help shut down our body’s stress response, and reduce our sensation / perception of pain. As well, when we are chronically stressed and over-producing cortisol, this can interfere with our production of progesterone. Meaning, we’re further exacerbating the imbalance between estrogen and progesterone.

Bottom-line: Endometriosis is challenging condition to manage, but attacking it through a more comprehensive and holistic approach can be hugely beneficial. Know that there are lots of options available to help you feel more in control of your health and fertility!