Hormones are interconnected and work like an orchestral symphony; when they are in tune it sounds delicious, but if one part becomes to of balance then this often creates a cascade effect. Your blood sugar, insulin sensitivity, sex hormones and mood are intimately connected.
Chronic stress, sugary snacks and exposure to environmental toxins are just some of the factors that can affect your hormones and their balance, leading to irregular menstrual cycles, mood changes and more.
Once you see how insulin can impact other hormones, you can connect the dots about how excessive sugar can screw up your sex life.
1. Sugar lowers hormonal production
Insulin resistance is brought on by excessive amounts of sugar and the subsequent spikes in insulin, and the body just can’t reach its balance point. So rather than producing the sex hormones from the cholesterol pathway, this is diverted into producing cortisol, so your hormone levels dip. High insulin levels heighten chronically elevated levels of cortisol, your stress hormone. Your sex drive drops off a cliff, and you may also experience, an increase in body fat, reduced muscle mass, and brain fogginess.
2. Excess stress leads to leptin resistance
Leptin is the hormone that tells your brain to stop eating and quells your appetite. When you eat a lot of sugar and processed foods or experience chronic disruption to your circadian rhythm, the leptin signal doesn’t communicate as well to the brain. Your brain doesn’t “hear” the leptin telling the brain that your fat cells are full and eventually this leads to leptin resistance. This disruption also may lead to unwanted weight gain especially around the midsection, insulin resistance and a dip in hormones and you definitely don’t feel 'in the mood’.
3. Stress and sugar cause fatigue
Sugar increases your blood sugar, causing insulin to be released to lower it. The insulin often over-compensates, meaning your blood sugar lowers more than necessary and can cause to you wanting more food and feeling tired. Think of how you feel after a few slices of cake. Excess sugar reduces Orexin, a neurotransmitter that regulates your eating behaviour amongst other things, and makes you tired, whereas proteins actually increase this along with feeling alert. Blood sugar ups and downs often trigger mood swings, low mood and anxiousness, so sex is the last thing on your mind.
Rebalancing your sex hormones is NOT as simple as what you put on your fork, though it can be a decent place to start.
Think about food as codes, data or information that causes your body systems, cells and genes to respond in specific ways. So what you put in really does make a difference.
This is NOT blanket advice, though eating real foods, low processed, high quality animal protein, organic fruits and vegetables, butter and coconut oil would be my best recommendations (not up for a debate on different diet styles or allergies).
If you would like to know more then check out the Hormones, Health & Happiness workshop
