One of the biggest indicators of hormone imbalance for women is an irregular period. This will often occur during natural large hormonal shifts like puberty, peri-menopause, or post-partum. But now it seems all too common outside of these times with our busier, more stressful lives, and our increased exposure to chemicals.

Often I am asked, "what can I do with my diet that will help with this?"

Well you are in luck. Today I have an old naturopathic remedy that has been used for decades to balance hormones using the power of your diet and the moon cycle.

This is an easy, non-invasive approach to balance hormones especially with younger girls and teenagers.

I have also included which supplements work as well in case you need something stronger or maybe even for convenience.

Let's start with some basics:

-Day 1 of your period is the first day of bleeding

-Day 28-30 is ideally the last day of your cycle before you start bleeding again

-Day 14 -16 ideally is when you ovulate

-Use the moon cycle to determine Day 1 if you don't have a regular cycle; Day 1 = the new moon; Day 14-16 = the full moon

Now, let's add in the food and/or supplements:

1. Estrogen phase (new moon until full moon)- Day 1-14; eat 1 tbsp ground flaxseeds + 1 tbsp ground pumpkin seeds, OR take a fish oil supplement containing 1500-2000 mg of EPA/DHA
2. Progesterone phase (full moon until new moon) - Day 14-28; eat 1 tbsp ground sunflower seeds + 1 tbsp ground sesame seeds, OR take an evening primrose oil supplement containing 500 mg GLA.

If your period is regular you can still use this protocol to balance other hormonal symptoms like breast tenderness, cramping, or heaving bleeding. You would just count according to your own cycle if you don't naturally follow the moon cycle.

Now I would love to hear from you! What is one thing you do to help balance your hormones? Leave a comment below and I'll be back next week with another edition of Doctor as Teacher Tuesday!