Impact of Xenoestrogens on Your Health
By Adelemarie Palermo (Renaissance Magazine)
So, we've pretty much all heard of estrogen. It's a hormone associated with women, as it is responsible for female functions such as lactation, ovulation, and other aspects of fertility and overall health.
In our modern lifestyles, it is easy to have too much because of products that contain xenoestrogens, or chemicals that mimic estrogen in the body. These compounds could potentially wreak havoc on your health unlike the estrogen that your body naturally produces, which the liver is designed to break down and metabolize.
So, let's get into what estrogen actually is. Estrogen is a hormone secreted in all people, but is more prevalent in women’s bodies, and therefore has wider implications for female health. Aside from giving you hips like Venus, it is responsible for bone density and cell turnover, stimulation of brain blood flow and neuron repair, and reproductive functions.
These estrogen-mimicking compounds artificially increase estrogen levels in the body. In women, this can lead to excess weight gain, mood disorders, menstrual irregularity and abnormal pain. In men, this can lead to depressed mood, low energy, and fertility risks. Excessive exposure to xenoestrogens can also increase risk of breast cancer, as well as other reproductive cancers.
In a study, parabens in a pregnant mother’s urine increased risks of low birth weight and premature birth. Interestingly, prenatal exposure to parabens is also linked to overweight risk in children, Parabens were also linked with decreased sperm count and testosterone in men.
The artificial manipulation of estrogen doesn’t stop at the reproductive level, though. These hormonal effects ripple throughout other body systems, such a the metabolism, specifically in the case of insulin resistance, or ability to metabolize carbs, which is what is suspected to play a major role in estrogen induced weight gain.
Xenoestrogens confuse your cells, and not just by telling them there’s more estrogen than there really is. These compounds do not metabolize and break down the same way as natural estrogen, meaning that they stay in your tissues for longer than they should, and interrupt the symphony of hormonal fluxes that your body creates.
How to avoid xenoestrogens
Use a simpler beauty routine, specifically one free of parabens, phthalates, and other xenoestrogens. Use high quality, natural perfumes and fragrances, and leave the fragrances out of your cleaning products, skincare, and laundry care. Opt for glass over plastic, and never put hot food or beverages in plastic. Email a receipt when possible, as the ink fixative on paper receipts contain high levels of BPA which can be absorbed through your skin when touched.
Mostly though, don’t let this information fill you with fear, rather use it as a tool of empowerment to be aware, and have better agency over what you expose your body to.