Top nutrition tips for rebooting your hormones

Diabetes, hypothyroidism, PCOS and other hormonal imbalances can be dealt with. All you need is a disciplined diet, regular exercise, stress management and high motivation levels. Follow these tips as recommended by a nutritionist.

Diabetes, hypothyroidism and PCOS are some of the most common hormonal imbalances. From controlling your weight to your mood and even your digestion, hormones are responsible for every critical function in your body. Basic lifestyle and dietary changes can prevent up to 70 per cent of hormonal imbalances. Here are some basic ground rules of 3 major hormonal imbalances, diabetes, thyroid and PCOD and the dietary changes one can bring about to keep these in check.

Diabetes

a. Meals should be strictly small and frequent. The gaps between meals should not be more than 2-2.5 hours.

b. Consume high biological value proteins. These are useful for reducing glucose absorption and for a higher thermogenic (metabolic stimulation) effect.

c. Good quality fats and fibre will help to reduce the risk of heart-related complications.

d. Good water intake regularly distributed throughout the day is a must to maintain blood circulation, reduce damage to blood vessels and also prevent dehydration related catabolism.

Hypothyroidism

a. Hypothyroidism slows down our Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) making fat loss slower. Nutritionist Karishma Chawla says, "It basically means that when it comes to exercise or cutting down calories, we need to work doubly hard to get the same results as someone with a normal BMR."

b. Strictly avoid all high goitrogens (substances that cause disruption in production of thyroid) in the raw form: cabbage, Brussel sprouts, kale, turnips, bok choy, mustard greens.

c. Include cooked or steamed form of goitrogenic vegetables in moderation as cooking destroys the goitrogenic effect of vegetables.

PCOS

a. Carbs must be strictly low Gi with adequate fibre (fruits, vegetables, beans, lentils, less processed grains, nuts etc.).

b. Limit fats for cooking to about 2-3 tsp per day.

c. Proteins must be of high quality and well distributed throughout the day.

d. Stress management is paramount since high-stress levels can worsen the PCOS symptoms.

e. Omega 3 supplementation can help deal with hormone imbalance.

f. Supplements like B6 help to reduce symptoms of PCOS like depression, mood swings, acne, water retention and anxiety.

g. Antioxidants like vitamin C and E are vital to fighting toxic effects of free radicals and stress that may worsen PCOS. "Hormonal imbalance leads to a significant drop in BMR. Hence regular intense workout comprising weight training and cardio is a must to increase the muscle and BMR for fat loss and for easier weight maintenance," Karishma says.

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