Hormone imbalance is often an upstream root cause in many of our patients’ challenges. We know this. Our challenge is that so much practitioner education overly simplifies hormone dynamics. Sure, distilling information down to core pearls is a worthy goal (one I am very passionate about). But many times, information is simplified to the point of losing the truth and promoting misleading myths or (worse) counterproductive remedies.
This week, I invite you to check out one of the most interesting and pearl-packed videos I’ve ever seen on the interconnected dynamics of hormones. Plus, there’s no fluff; this is crisp, succinct detail I believe all practitioners need to know.
Dr. Carrie Jones ND, medical director of Precision Analytical (the company who makes the DUTCH test) is being interviewed about the most powerful pearls she’s learned after viewing thousands of tests and supporting patients. I encourage you to check it out below. Just to whet your appetite, did you know?
I hope this serves you and your patients and clients! Your follow-up questions or sharing below are welcome. In particular, I would love to know: what single concept in the video most inspired or surprised you?
With love and gratitude to you for sharing your gifts with the world,
P.S. If you are passionate about transforming healthcare through the power of functional medicine, we encourage you to learn more about our training program here.
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Thank you for the great video. Very informative. Dr. Jones is great. Very helpful! Thank you. 🙂
She mentions that chastberry is not for menopausal women? Don’t menopausal women need progesterone support as well???
If a woman does not struggle with poor estrogen clearance or xenoestrogen overload or excessive bodyfat, she may (as nature intends) have balanced estrogen and progesterone in menopause with the body relying on the adrenal glands for post-menopausal progesterone. Menopausal women can certainly use vitex if it resonates with them, but it may not help at all. My point is that there is limited research into (and mixed results re: benefit of) the use of vitex for relief in menopause. The pathway of efficacy is one that affects prolactin which when reduced would promote more ovarian production of progesterone; obviously this pathway is no longer used after menopause. I was surprised to find evidence of some improvement in menopausal symptoms in some women, but again, it was quite mixed and not nearly as unilaterally beneficial as in pre/perimenopausal women who are still producing ovarian progesterone.
Dr Jones recommended Chase Tree Berry as the #1 Female support herb – while still menstruating. She mentioned it wasn’t the go to herb for post menopausal women. What would be the #1 herb support for post menopausal women.
If I were just choosing just one go-to herbal support for post-menopausal women, it would be maca root, given its role of boosting estrogenic and androgenic effects in an adaptogenic way. As a second choice, you could argue that stress relief/balance/management is particularly key for postmenopausal women as they rely on only their adrenal glands to produce progesterone; thus something like ginseng (for fatigue) or l-theanine (for anxiety) would be a particularly important tool. (As an aside, there is actually some evidence that vitex may help post-menopausal women as well but not nearly as effectively as pre-menopause.)
This was a fascinating video. So many pearls! Thank you for sharing. I am inspired to do the DUCTH testing for myself and recommend to a few of my clients. Does SAFM offer a class on how to read the DUTCH test results or do we have to refer out to ND?
Precision Analytical (the company that offers DUTCH testing) actually offers an *impressive* set of videos on their website to support interpretive learning for practitioners. Beyond this, we feature a two-hour webinar that was held with SAFM students and Dr Carrie Jones (their chief medical officer) to support practitioners using DUTCH testing as part of our two relevant clinical courses (Adrenal/Thyroid Myths and Truths and Demystifying Hormones) I certainly recommend getting very savvy about the science of the hormones themselves *first* – from a functional medicine perspective – before using this type of testing your practice at all.
Does Chaste Tree help balance out progesterone/estrogen? Dr Jones mentions it being good for women that are style menstruating.
Chastetree increases progesterone effects – which can definitely help someone with estrogen dominance. This may be of interest: https://schoolafm.com/ws_clinical_know/the-true-root-causes-of-dis-ease-in-the-body-part-2-estrogen-dominance/
I found it really informative to think about the circadian rhythm cycle underpinning all hormones and how this makes a difference in whether the Cortisol is produced in the natural rhythm from the adrenals or if cortisol could be consistently elevated with fat generated cortisol.
Indeed – a powerful concept to educate our patients and clients about as well! An example of the potentially inflammatory effects of excess body fat that directly interferes with the brain’s attempt to balance/manage our hormones otherwise.
Wow that interview was fantastic. On the heals of the live webinar with Dr Jones tonight it really helped me to start to make some sense of hormones and how powerful the DUTCH test really is. I have had both saliva and urine testing done before and this gives so much more info. I’ve struggled with hormones all my life and am seeing it again as I approach menopause. It is crazy how many friends are being put on anti-depressants. Seeing this also with my teenage kids friends too and it literally breaks my heart. I know so much of it is hormonally driven. This test makes me so hopeful that I can start to make sense of this very complex subject one day so I can help others. Also was stunned at the effects of Acutane. That is scary! I know several people that went on Acutane for really bad acne.
Good for you! I am glad you are inspired – and appreciate your passion very much. I agree that the DUTCH test is a powerful set of data.
wow, this was a powerful video with so much in it I listened to it several times. Of the many ?’s I had mine is about aromatization. Dr. Jones talked about how it effected men. This is a big factor for women being treated for estrogen mediated breast cancer). It is standard to prescribe aromatase inhibitors for post-menopausal women to prevent recurrence. Is it the aromatization pathway the same in women?
I am glad you enjoyed it so much! Aromatization is what happens when testosterone is converted to estradiol (and also when androstenedione is converted to estrone – the other potent estrogen); it’s a conversion that involves the enzyme aromatase (hence the name). The process is the same for men and women; what differs is the role of high insulin in affecting the pathway (in women, promoting more testosterone; in men, promoting more estradiol). I cannot speak to the conventional standard of care; of course, some women choose this ongoing drug protection while others do not. I have supported clients from both camps. Obviously there are many, many factors playing into that decision for a unique woman depending on her particular case, family history, treatment choices, lifestyle changes, priorities, belief system, etc..
This was an informative video. I learned several pearls. Thanks for sharing.
I am not a tea drinker. Dr. Jones mentioned she drinks a caffeinated green tea. Can anyone recommend brand names of healthier teas that you like or recommend to clients? Thanks
For green teas (and they have both white and herbal options too), my personal favorite brands are Numi and Mighty Leaf, both readily available in the US.
The DUTCH test was a huge help for me! In fact, I took my results to my Nautropathic Doctor and he was so impressed with the information it revealed that he now is a DUTCH test practitioner.
Wonderful – good for you!