why you can’t lose weight

Aug. 14

The missing link: HORMONES & your gut bacteria

In our culture, menopause is dreaded - the hot flashes, the weight gain, the insomnia.

You feel like you’re losing your mind and losing control of your body.

You just want to feel yourself again.

Many women going through menopause also experience new or worsened constipation or other gut health issues.

You know it’s because your sex hormones (estrogen, progesterone and testosterone) are out of whack, but you don’t know what to do about it.

Your doctor may have offered you hormone replacement therapy (HRT), but you’re concerned about the risks.

You do have options.

There are simple diet, lifestyle and supplements that can support your body in having an easier transition into and through menopause.

And it starts with the gut.

Yes, your gut impacts everything from your hormones to your weight and your sleep.

It can even trigger hot flashes!

The thing is, gut healing is complex because the gut is connected to all other aspects of your body and mind, but when you throw major hormone shifts into the mix, it gets even trickier.

There is a complex interplay between your gut health and hormones.

This is one of the reasons that women experienced increased gut issues premenstrually when hormone levels drop off just before menstruation.

The changes are even more pronounced in menopause when hormones drop off even further, and stay low, especially in those that are chronically burnt out.

the burnout-gut-hormone connection

Hormones are made and balanced by your liver from cholesterol
The main source of hormones in a menstruating woman is the ovaries
In menopause, the main source of sex hormones is the adrenal glands: the glands that sit on top of your kidneys and produce stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline
That means burnout (aka adrenal fatigue) can contribute to a more rocky perimenopause and menopause
Imbalanced gut bacteria can cause hormone imbalances such as estrogen dominance (high estrogen relative to progesterone) which can cause PMS symptoms
Imbalanced gut bacteria also contributes to blood sugar issues, weight gain, inflammation, insomnia and mood changes, all of which tend to worsen in menopause

That means, optimizing your gut and adrenal health can help you feel your best in menopause!

But it’s not as simple as popping a probiotic, and here’s why.

Your gut health is affected by and connceted to:

Stress
Sleep
Diet
Sex hormones
Immune system

So it takes a holistic, whole person and lifestyle approach to heal your gut and manage hormone related symptoms in midlife - diet and supplements simply aren’t enough.

STEP 1: ADDRESS BURNOUT AKA ADRENAL FATIGUE

One of the biggest missing links for women is the adrenal fatigue aka burnout.

Most women entering perimenopause and menopause are burnt out. Burnout is when long term chronic stress, combined with constantly being on the go and very little time for rest and joy, taxes the adrenals and your whole body.

For most women, too many years (or decades) of prioritizing others' needs and neglecting their own, or putting in long hours in their career has taken a toll on their body and mind.

They’re tired, they’re inflamed, they lack motivation and just feel blah.

When you feel stressed, your adrenal glands release stress hormones including cortisol and adrenaline. We need these hormones to give us energy, support immunity and dampen inflammation, but when they’re chronically high they can cause a number of issues including weight gain in the midsection.

All hormones in the body impact each other. These stress hormones interact with your sex hormones, thyroid and other hormones to impact metabolism and even your mood. So long term, high stress hormones can cause significant hormone imbalances which impact weight as well.

Long term, the constant stress on the adrenals can deplete their function to the point where they can no longer produce these important hormones and you end up fatigued, lack motivation, have mood changes, weight gain and get sick frequently.

Not realizing that burnout and hormone shifts are contributing to weight gain, midlife women start to diet and add intense exercise in, because it worked for them in the past.

For some women, their weight and gut and hormone symptoms may not budge, for others they may even be gaining more weight, as strict diets and intense exercise tax the adrenals more, putting your body into more of a survival mode where it hangs on to weight.

Without knowing this, you may get frustrated that it’s not working, and go even more extreme with your diet and exercise routine.

Ironically, this continues to stress your body and slow your metabolism even further.

Thankfully, as you slow down, listen to your body, heal your gut and bring balance to your body and mind, you will find it easier to lose those few extra pounds, without having to diet.

Back to gut healing -

When it comes to gut healing, you can’t get motivated to make healthy food choices when you can’t get motivated at all.

Burnout, lack of sleep and mental health is one of the main reasons women find it hard to make consistent, healthy choices.

When we work on balancing your gut bacteria, it helps to balance your hormones as well.

This is because, imbalanced gut bacteria leads to high levels of an enzyme called beta glcoronidase, which promotes resorption of estrogen, rather than allowing your body to excrete excess estrogen in an effort to balance hormones. This is more critical for women still in their menstruating years.

Your gut health also impacts your ability to absorb nutrients from your food that are then used to build sex hormones! Your body uses cholesterol plus nutrients such as B vitamins to build sex hormones.

But to heal your gut we have to start with the foundational basics.

So the first step has to be filling your bucket.

Resting, making time for the things that bring you joy.

Nourishing your nervous system with daily practices such as deep breathing and meditation.

Spending more time in nature.

Slowing down, setting boundaries and learning to say “no!”

And most of all, listening to your body.

Gut healing simply won’t happen when your body is in survival mode - this is a survival state, not a healing state.

So this is always step number 1 (and also the step that people are most resistant to, and the #1 reason people get stuck and frustrated that their gut isn’t healing as fast as they’d hoped)

This step also includes adding daily practices that nourish your adrenal glands and nervous system and help get you out of survival mode/burnout.

This can include deep breathing, meditation or gentle yoga, or even walking in nature, especially barefoot.

Regular treatments can help as well, including:

Chiropractic
Massage therapy
Acupuncture
Osteopathy

It’s important to be patient with your body - healing doesn’t happen overnight. It can take months or even years, depending on the state of your body and how committed you are to the healing process, and consistency with your new healthy habits.

Step 2 - take a critical look at your lifestyle

How can you slow down and do less?

How can you do more of the things you enjoy?

How can you make time to rest and recharge?

Learn to say no (without feeling guilty) - your needs matter, too!

Shorten your to do list - only do what absolutely has to be done today

Ask for help - you don’t have to do it all yourself.

Are you getting enough sleep?

Sleep is critical for metabolism, and lack of sleep causes, low energy, low mood and cravings for more indulgent foods, making it harder to make consistent healthy choices.

Hormone shifts can cause sleep issues, so some women find supplements such as melatonin, lemon balm tea, l-theanine, GABA or other adrenal support supplements helpful.

STEP 3: GET YOUR THYROID TESTED

Something else that’s related to burnout? Your thyroid health.

Your thyroid is the master of your metabolism, and stress, burnout, sex hormone imbalances and even your gut bacteria can contribute to thyroid issues.

Hypothyroidism is when your thyroid gland isn’t functioning optimally. It’s becoming incredibly common in women, especially Hashimoto’s thyroiditis - an autoimmune hypothyroid condition.

With Hashimoto’s everything slows down.

Common symptoms include:

chronic constipation
low mood and depression
sluggish metabolism & weight gain
chronic fatigue
brain fog
losing hair, dry skin and brittle nails

Common triggers for Hashimoto’s include:

chronic stress & adrenal fatigue
poor diet & gut inflammation: dysbiosis (your gut bacteria)
hormone shifts, especially pregnancy and menopause

If you have a sluggish metabolism and you feel like you’re doing everything right and still can’t lose any weight, I highly recommend asking your doctor for a full thyroid panel. If they won’t order all of these tests, see a functional nutritionist (like myself) or someone who will.

T3, T4, reverse T3
TSH
anti-TG, anti-TPO (antibodies)

The only way to determine if you have Hashimoto’s is to test your thyroid antibodies, which many doctor’s won’t do.The good news: all of the steps outlined in this blog will not only help your gut and metabolism, but your thyroid, too!

Ready to eat the foods you love without stressing about weight gain?

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Step 4 - Ditch the diet and listen to your body

As women we grow up in a toxic culture obsessed with thinness as the ultimate goal.

But being thin doesn’t mean you’re healthy, and everyone’s natural body shape is different.

To truly heal you have to ditch the diets - the stress they put on your body and mind keeps you stuck in survival mode and can actually make you gain weight!

Instead, learn to listen to your body and hunger cues.

Remember, food is fuel - it’s time to stop counting calories.

Keep in mind, if you’re working out, you will need more food on the days you work out as food is fuel!

Focus less on what you “can’t” or “shouldn’t” have or on restrictive “gut healing diets” and more on which foods are nourishing and healing for the body.

If you’re finding that you have to avoid a lot of foods considered to be healthy because they give you gut symptoms such as pain, gas, bloating or bowel movement problems, there is a deeper problem. You probably have dysbiosis (a gut bacteria imbalance) that needs to be addressed with a personalized, 4 step protocol.

Click here to book your session with me to start your gut healing journey.

STEP 5: EAT TO BALANCE YOUR BLOOD SUGAR

Eating for energy (to balance blood sugar):

Balancing blood sugar is critical for boosting metabolism.

You can support balanced blood sugar by eating regularly, with a combination of protein + fat+ fibre

As women enter menopause, they are more likely to have imbalanced blood sugar including high fasting insulin.

Insulin is anabolic; it promotes weight gain when chronically high. Many women in this phase of life develop insulin resistance and pre-diabetes which can cause weight gain as well, so eating to balance blood sugar is critical.

These blood sugar imbalances are due to stress hormone levels, a drop in sex hormones and a drop in learn muscle mass. This is even more common in women that are chronically burnt out, skip meals, or have diets low in fibre and high in processed foods.

It’s important to get your blood sugar tested including fasting blood glucose, fasting insulin and HbA1c. If any of these are elevated, it could be the reason for your sluggish metabolism.
Your gut bacteria also play a major role in regulating blood sugar levels.

STEP 6: FEED YOUR HEALTHY GUT BACTERIA

Eating to feed your healthy gut bacteria:

Remember, your gut bacteria significantly impact both your metabolism and your hormones, and even your sleep and mood, too!

Eat more home cooked meals with whole foods
Add more fibre and antioxidant rich foods: add in more legumes, whole grains, fruits and veggies, berries
Add fermented foods: yogourt, and true ferments (ie no vinegar added) including kimchi, sauerkraut and pickles.
Limit excess sugar and processed foods: these foods feed inflammatory gut bacteria and other microbes that can contribute to constipation and harvest up to 30% more calories from your food!
Limit excess alcohol: alcohol is damaging to your gut and contributes to leaky gut which promotes inflammation and slows metabolism.
Limit over the counter medications especially painkillers (NSAIDS) such Advil/ibuprofen, which also contribute to leaky gut and can even cause gastric ulcers and intestinal bleeding.
Try to avoid antibiotics and antacids: they promote dysbiosis: bacterial imbalances or overgrowth, especially SIBO (small intestine bacterial overgrowth). Antibiotics also damage the gut lining and cause leaky gut. Leaky gut causes inflammation that slows metabolism.

Step 7 - Work with a practitioner to balance your gut bacteria (microbiome)

While adding more fibre and fermented foods and eating homecooked meals is important, it’s often not quite enough to balance your gut bacteria.

Optimizing your gut microbiome for metabolism isn’t straightforward and it needs to be personalized.

I use a comprehensive, personalized, 4 step gut healing protocol to restore balance to your microbiome and support metabolism.

This is a protocol that is often used in functional medicine and is based on the latest gut microbiome science.

The 4 steps include:

Remove

In the first phase we kill off inflammatory gut bacteria & microbes with antimicrobial herbs and biofilm busting supplements. This includes supplements such as oil of oregano, berberine, garlic, cloves and others.

One of the roles of your gut bacteria is to harvest calories from your food - some bacteria can harvest up to 20 to 30% more calories than others! The goal is to use antimicrobials to kill off more of these “obesogenic” and inflammatory bacteria and replace them with healthier bacteria.

Recent research has also discovered the important role of a bacterium called Akkermansia muciniphila. It’s known to produce and regulate mucous in the gut, but it’s also recently been found that it significantly impacts blood sugar and metabolism as well.

In this phase we remove processed, inflammatory foods and excess sugars and focus on home cooked meals made with whole foods.

I also support the body in gently detoxifying.

Our modern world is full of chemicals that take a toll on our body’s natural ability to heal. Inflammatory gut microbes also release toxins such as d-lactate and LPS when killed, which, if not efficiently flushed out of the body can cause a great deal of inflammation or “die off”. By supporting the elimination organs (gut, liver, kidneys, lungs and skin), with gentle diet changes and select supplements, we can ensure the body is able to efficiently eliminate toxins to support the healing process.

(note: this does not involve a strict fast or cleanse of any kind)

If you have food sensitivities or are reacting to high histamine foods or foods high in FODMAPS, we may temporarily reduce or remove these foods while we heal the gut, then reintroduce them in Phase 4 (Restore).

Replace

Most people with chronic gut issues are low in stomach acid, digestive enzymes, pancreatic enzymes and bile. This means they’re not optimally absorbing nutrients from their food, which can lead to several nutrient deficiencies including B vitamins, iron, calcium and magnesium.

I often use digestive enzymes including stomach acid (hydrochloric acid), ox bile and pancreatic enzymes to optimize digestion, reduce bloating and help prevent bacterial overgrowth such as SIBO. I also love to use digestive bitters to promote the production of stomach acid and bile, and to thin bile that has become thick and sludgy.

Repair

With chronic gut bacteria imbalances comes leaky gut. Long term gut inflammation from poor diets, stress medications and inflammatory gut bacteria cause permeability in the gut, which, if not addressed can lead to other health concerns such as food allergies, chronic inflammation and even autoimmune diseases.

I use several gut repair supplements such as l-glutamine, demulcent herbs (slippery elm, DGL), 2-fucosyl-lactose and probiotics to help repair the gut lining.

In this phase I also use supplements, diet and lifestyle to actively reduce inflammation in the gut, as healing can’t happen when inflammation is high. Sometimes this involves working on balancing a dysregulated immune system. This is especially important in those that have autoimmune diseases or have a lot of allergies or chronic pain or fatigue.

There are two main branches of the immune system; TH1 helps you fight off infections and TH2 induces an inflammatory response to kill off pathogens and resolve inflammation.

Most people I work with need support for TH1 as they get frequent infections, and we need to down-regulate TH2 or the TH17 (autoimmune) response that, when dysregulated, is repsonsible for chronic inflammation.

These imbalances can happen for a number of reasons including imbalanced gut bacteria (even parasitic infections) that the body is trying to erradicate. If it were successful in killing the pathogen, no problem, but when it’s not able to erradicate the infection, it results in chronic inflammation.

This is why we have to resolve microbiome dysbiosis in order to not just optimize gut health but also reduce systemic body inflammation including metabolism issues.

This phase also involves removing over the counter medications that have contributed to digestive issues such as antacids, painkillers and antihistamines. These can temporarily be replapced with natural solutions, but as we actively work on healing the root causes, there will be less need for these type of medications or supplements.

Restore

Restoring balance to the microbiome involves using specific fibres, dietary adjustments and probiotics.

We also have to restore balance to your lifestyle as well - because going back to your old habits of skipping meals, working long hours and not taking time for yourself will cause your gut issues to come back and your metabolism to tank again. This is where mindset work comes in. I also encourage clients to make small, sustainable changes to improve mood, sleep and energy.

These are some of the harder changes to make, and one of the biggest reasons that people come back to me 6 or 12 months later, when their symptoms have come back.

But when clients are committed to doing whatever it takes to heal, they’re less likely to have recurrent gut or metabolism issues, and more likely to keep any weight they have lost, off for good.