Women and hormones, it's a complicated relationship. When your hormones are out of balance it can cause heavy, irregular, or painful periods, hot flashes and night sweats, vaginal dryness, breast tenderness, indigestion, constipation, diarrhea, and other problems.
PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome) is a hormonal disorder effecting 5 million women in the U.S. today. It is the most common hormonal endocrine disorder in women and the most common cause of infertility.
Dr. Nicole Priest, is a Board Certified Family Practice and Integrative Medicine Physician. Dr. Priest has a passion for Lifestyle Medicine and empowering people to make choices to improve their health. Dr. Priest shares her own journey with celiac disease and the benefits of making changes in her diet. She sees many women struggling with PCOS who have symptoms of irregular periods, depression, sleep apnea, weight gain, facial hair growth, acne on skin, and insulin resistance. She says, "it's about hormones, diet, and abdominal weight." Dr. Priest is concerned that people who have PCOS can develop type 2 diabetes.
Dr. Priest helps people explore what they eat by keeping a food log, she counsels them to eat more fruits and vegetables to increase fiber, and to eliminate processed foods and sugar that create inflammation in the body. What do you get out of your food? How do you think of food?
Dr. Priest says that "80% of diseases are highly influenced by lifestyle (what we eat, movement, sleep, and stress)." She shares how rewarding it is to see people gain energy, release weight, and feel more joy and fulfillment as they make small changes to their lifestyle.
