Birth Control

This conversation features Yasmin Nouri, Co-founder and CEO of Beeya Wellness. Yasmin shares her journey with hormonal birth control and how her symptoms came back with a vengeance after coming off of it. Yasmin discusses her love for Cycle Syncing® and how it has helped her on her hormonal journey. She also sheds light on the normalization of misinformation around our periods, and how completely revamping her lifestyle and setting a solid foundation of the basics - from food as medicine, to seed cycling, to adequate exercise, sleep and sun exposure - have completely transformed her life, health, and cycle.

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Watch here:

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Meet Yasmin Nouri:

Yasmin Nouri is the Co-founder and CEO of Beeya Wellness. She is also the host of the Behind Her Empire podcast.

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What you'll learn:

• Yasmin's journey with hormonal birth control
• How seed cycling can help balance our hormones
• Her love for Cycle Syncing® and how it helped her on her hormonal journey

This conversation features Kristyn Hodgdon, Co-founder of Recripted, and Host of the Dear (In)Fertility Podcast. Kristyn dives deep into her unexpected journey with fertility - through birth control, fertility specialists, multiple miscarriages, as well as IUI and IVF treatments. She also shares more about the holistic journey she is now on to optimize and maintain a healthy cycle and better support her fertility today.

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Watch here:

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Meet Kristyn Hodgdon:

Kristyn is the Co-founder of Recripted and the host of the Dear (In)Fertility Podcast.

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What you'll learn:

• Kristyn's infertility journey
• Her experience with IUI and IVF treatments
• The holistic journey she is now on to support her cycle

This conversation features Actress, Advocate and Host, Ricki Lake. Ricki shares about this current season of her life as a 54 year old with a regular cycle and not a single hot flash, and how she embraces the beauty of still having an active sex drive and cycle! She also candidly shares about her journey with hormonal birth control, and how it led to significant hair loss for over two decades - a symptom she was never educated about. She reveals how she overcame this and other symptoms, and found empowerment and personal freedom.

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Watch here:

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Meet Ricki Lake:

Ricki is an Actress, Advocate and TV Host.

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What you'll learn:

• Ricki discuses still having a regular cycle at 54
• Her journey with birth control
• The hair loss she experienced due to hormonal birth control

This conversation features Elizabeth Stein, founder and CEO of Purely Elizabeth. Elizabeth shares about the lack of education she had for years about her hormones until finally learning more about Alisa Vitti's methods. Elizabeth was on birth control from age 18 up through her early 40s, and only recently went off of it after learning the impact hormonal birth control has on the body. From being more intentional with Cycle Syncing® her food and exercise choices, Elizabeth shares how she now moves with more grace throughout each phase of her cycle.

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Watch here:

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Meet Elizabeth Stein:

Elizabeth Stein is the founder and CEO of Purely Elizabeth.

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What you'll learn:

• Elizabeth's birth control journey from age 18 to her 40's
• How she has implemented Cycle Syncing®
• Her lack of hormonal education over the years

Courtney shares about her journey with hormonal birth control in her 20s and how it caused anger, mood swings, cravings and a complete disconnection from self. She also struggled with non-stop cystic acne for years and explains the holistic journey she went on utilizing food, supplementation and a whole-systems approach that helped her finally achieve balance within her body, restoring her cycle and overall health.

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Meet Courtney Swan:

Courtney is an Integrative Nutritionist and a real food activist on a mission to change America's broken food system. She is also the host of the Real Foodology Podcast.

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What you'll learn:

• Courtney's hormonal journey with birth control, cystic acne, and PMS symptoms
• The holistic approach she took to start to heal her hormones
• The work she is currently doing to be a force in the fight against our broken food system.

In this conversation, Danica shares about her own hormonal journey, and becoming educated on the importance of cultivating greater balance in her life, particularly throughout her athletic career, coming off birth control, and navigating a profound process of healing after getting her breast implants removed. From tackling thyroid issues, gut dysbiosis and more, Danica dives deep into the practices - including Cycle Syncing® - that have worked for her.

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Watch here:

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Meet Danica Patrick:

Danica is a former U.S. Pro Race Car Driver, Entrepreneur, and Host of the Pretty Intense Podcast.

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What you'll learn:

• The effect that Cycle Syncing® has had on her hormones
• Danica's process of getting her breast implants removed and how she felt after
• Her journey with coming off of birth control

Alisa and Pia discuss her hormonal journey from her adolescence onward, including her mental health struggles, as well as her experience with birth control and prescription medication. She also speaks candidly about having PCOS and ovarian cysts that ruptured, and how practicing the Cycle Syncing® Method and using the MyFLO app has transformed her health and her cycle, and finally having happy, healthy periods. 

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Meet Pia Baroncini:

Pia is an entrepreneur, creative director, and host of the Everything is the Best podcast.

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What you'll learn:

• Pia's journey with hormones from a young age
• Discussions about PCOS and her journey with lifestyle and dietary changes
• How Pia incorporated the Cycle Syncing® Method into her life

Alisa and Krista talk about a new level of healthcare for women, learning how to treat our bodies with love and kindness, and discovering how the body responds to compassion and grace on our healing journey.

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‍Meet Krista Williams:

‍The co-founder and co-host of Almost 30, a top 50 podcast, global brand, and loving community created to raise the collective consciousness.

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What you will learn in the video:

• Learn to tap into your inner guidance and begin listening to what’s going on in your body. 
• Learn how to connect with your body in a compassionate way.
• Work smarter, not harder; the female body is designed to be efficient.
• Choose joy in your body. Love it, tend to it and embrace the feminine.

Alisa and Freida discuss her journey with endometriosis and the effects of synthetic birth control on the body and the brain. Freida has used Cycle Syncing® to address her endometriosis instead of the pill and to support her path to motherhood. They also discuss why some women end up going against their instincts and inner voice. The reality of getting hormone care is not always straightforward, and understanding it all is not easy.

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‍Meet Freida Pinto:

Freida Pinto is an actress, producer, and advocate for maternal health and female reproductive rights. Best known for her critically acclaimed performance in "Slumdog Millionaire" and "Malcom’s List".

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What you'll learn:

• How synthetic birth control can affect the brain.
• The mission of making understanding your hormones as easy as possible so you do not have to become endocrine system experts.
• Cycle Syncing® is not a diet or a regime, it is a lifestyle. It’s aligning with how your body is working.
• The form of your self care should follow the function of your biology.
• It’s possible to change your relationship with exercise when you have a better understanding of how your hormones work.
• Symptoms are a loving way of asking you to help.

Alisa and Alix dive deep into Alix’s journey as she transitioned off hormonal birth control, improved her fertility, and used Cycle Syncing® to help her win her first Gold Medal!

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Meet Alix Klineman:

Alix Klineman is an American beach volleyball player, and Tokyo 2021 Summer Olympics gold medalist. She has won 8 international titles, plays on the AVP Volleyball Team professionally for Team USA, competes domestically and internationally, and is not counting out a run for Paris 2024! She was put on the pill at a young age and she felt the effects of it. She finally got off the pill and saw dramatic improvements in her athletic performance. By practicing the Cycle Syncing® Method, and addressing the root cause of her hormone symptoms, this set her up for her first Olympic success as well as her first pregnancy! 

What you'll learn in the video:

• Hormones are not a liability, cyclical hormonal patterns are an advantage.
• You can take charge naturally of your body with food and supplements.
• Healing your hormones naturally is not a quick fix, it is an ongoing process. 
• You can learn how your endocrine system works, how your cycle works, and how to work in alignment with your cycle. 
• Symptoms are a conversation. You do not have to be at war with your body. Your symptoms are there to get your attention, so you can change your input. When you change your input your hormonal output changes. 
• Change is possible and it doesn’t take that long to feel the benefits.

If you suffer from adult acne, you might be willing to try anything to clear your skin. I know firsthand: I suffered from severe cystic acne for many years and I went to my doctor desperate for answers. I was offered one of the most common Western medicine “solutions” for adult acne: the pill. I was assured it would work like a miracle cure for my skin, so I gave it a shot. I was willing to try anything to say goodbye to acne forever. Well, two weeks on the pill and not only did it not help my skin, I was experiencing migraines, vision loss, and heart arrhythmia.

If you’re thinking, “Gosh, well, I’m glad there are other drugs and products I can try!” I have bad news: the other “miracle cures” in the Western medical arsenal fall into the same “do more harm than good” category. But don’t panic! There are simple steps you can take that are far cheaper, far safer, and far more effective than any drug or skincare product.

I want to save you the time and money that I lost—and the frustration I experienced—pursuing acne cures that don’t work. In today’s blog I’m going to walk you through six “miracle” acne cures that don’t actually work (and that almost always make your overall health worse)—and outline what you can do instead.

False Acne “Cure” #1: Hormonal birth control

Hormonal birth control is one of the popular physician-prescribed remedies for acne. Here’s how it works: the pill balances testosterone (and other androgens) in the body with estrogen and progesterone (which are contained in the pill in synthetic form). High levels of androgens can trigger oil production in the skin, so when estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone are in better balance, the skin tends to clear up.

But! This handy-dandy “balancing” act brought on by the Pill is all smoke and mirrors. The synthetic hormones in the Pill pave over the deeper imbalances—rather than address them at the root—and when a woman goes off the pill, all of those imbalances come roaring back. The acne comes back with it, often worse than before. At the same time, the pill causes other problems around the body. It disrupts your microbiome (a healthy gut is essential for bringing your hormones back into balance) and depletes you of important, hormone-protective micronutrients.

False Acne “Cure” #2: Antibiotics

Antibiotics are important life-saving drugs; we wouldn’t want to live in a world without them. But even a short course of antibiotics can wreak havoc on gut health, just like the pill. And considering that the average course of antibiotics for acne is three to four months, the impact on your gut can be much greater. So just like hormonal birth control, antibiotics might clear up your skin while you’re on them, but they’re ultimately making one of the root causes of acne worse. (If you need antibiotics for a necessary, non-skin related reason, always follow up a course of antibiotics with a course of probiotics.)

False Acne “Cure” #3: Spironolactone (Aldactone)

Spironolactone is a synthetic hormone that is prescribed to treat hormonal acne. It works by blocking androgens (male hormones) that can contribute to acne along the chin and jawline. If excess androgens play a role in your acne, spironolactone can bring about superficial results. But hormonal acne is always caused by more than one hormone imbalance in the body (as well as other factors)—and spironolactone, by blocking the action of one entire group of hormones, makes other hormonal imbalances (like estrogen dominance) worse.

Estrogen dominance is when estrogen is high relative to progesterone, and it is its own root cause of acne. So while you may experience results while taking sprionolactone, you are fueling a different fire beneath the surface, one that will make your acne come back when you stop taking it—and one that will ultimately make your skin worse. Plus, spironolactone is a synthetic, and just like I don’t recommend synthetic hormonal birth control, I don’t recommend spironolactone. It’s been associated with a long list of side effects—including irregular menstrual bleeding, breast tenderness, gastrointestinal upset, dizziness, headaches, dry mouth, lower back pain, breast lumps, and weight gain (to name just a few).

If you’ve read articles or seen research espousing the relative safety of spironolactone, consider this 2017 study that looked at ten randomized controlled trials on spironolactone safety and found that “all [the] trials were assessed as being at a ‘high risk’ of bias, and the quality of evidence was rated as low or very low for all outcomes.”

False Acne “Cure” #4: Isotretinoin (originally Accutane)

This drug is prescribed as a last-ditch effort to ease hormonal acne (though most conventional practitioners haven’t had patients try diet and lifestyle modifications before suggesting this drug). Isotretinoin is almost always the “plan z” option because its side effects are so severe. In fact, the drug is so toxic that it is only available as part of a registered distribution program called iPLEDGE, which mandates that all isotretinoin prescribers are registered as approved prescribers, all pharmacies that dispense it are registered as approved pharmacies, and all wholesalers that sell it to pharmacies are approved wholesalers!

Why this intense level of regulation? Isotretinoin causes severe birth defects, and even the smallest exposure can trigger changes in a fetus. For this reason, women who use the drug must simultaneously be on hormonal birth control to prevent pregnancy. (This fact alone should keep you away from isotretinoin.)

But the horrors of this drug don’t stop there. The drug has caused some patients to become depressed and suicidal; other studies link the drug to violent and aggressive behavior; and the original patented drug, Accutane, was pulled from the market when many users found that it caused them to develop Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBS). This drug may clear your skin while you take it, but the devastating side effects aren’t worth the risk.

False Acne “Cure” #5: External skin care products

While what you put on your skin is hugely important for skin health (and overall health), no product on its own will fix hormonal acne. That’s because, as the name implies, the root of the problem is what’s happening on the inside of the body. External products can never fully address internal problems and hormone imbalances.

What’s more, the toxins found in most conventional skincare products are endocrine disruptors, which make hormone problems worse. So it’s critically important that you shop for clean skin care and beauty products. Otherwise, your skin care routine becomes a lose-lose-lose situation: you’re not addressing the internal cause of your acne, you're loading your skin with toxins, and—in most cases—you are spending a lot of money on products that promise results but don’t deliver.

So what’s the real solution for acne?

The secret to clear skin is all internal, and it involves three key steps:

1. Biohack your hormones. Instead of using drugs to suppress symptoms, address the root causes by learning how to biohack your hormones with food and exercise. You’ll want to prioritize hormone balancing foods, understand and manage your blood sugar (poorly controlled blood sugar fuels all hormone imbalances), learn what foods to avoid if you suffer from hormonal acne, and sync your diet and exercise routine to the four distinct phases of your 28-day hormone cycle. If you’re not currently tracking your cycle, get started STAT! Download the MyFLO app to begin Cycle Syncing® your diet and lifestyle so they work for you, not against you.
2. Optimize your micronutrients. Micronutrient deficiency is one of the root causes of hormonal acne (along with a disrupted gut microbiome). Your vitamin and mineral optimization plan is two-fold. One, avoid things that deplete the body of important skin-health micronutrients—like coffee, certain medications (like the pill), over-exercise, and sleep deprivation. Two, replenish the micronutrients you’re missing. The five formulations provided in our Balance Supplements include essential micronutrients that promote skin health.
3. Avoid toxic exposures & opt for organic foods. I mentioned above that many conventional skin care products contain endocrine-disrupting chemicals. But these health-damaging toxins live in a host of everyday products, from household cleaning supplies and lawn chemicals to the pesticides and herbicides on non-organic food. Opt for organic food when possible and read labels very carefully. Even some “green” cleaners can contain dangerous ingredients. When you skirt dangerous toxins, you not only protect your delicate endocrine system, your body gets to spend less time detoxing—and more time balancing hormones and healing skin. It’s a win-win!

If you’re considering quitting the pill, congrats! You’re taking a huge step toward reclaiming your health, happiness, and hormones. And you’re not alone. Surveys suggest that 70% of millennials have ditched (or are thinking about ditching) hormonal birth control.

Seriously—the list of birth control’s harmful effects never ceases to amaze us, and yet it’s the most common Band-Aid solution doctors rely on to spot-treat deep-seated endocrine issues. Many doctors recommend the pill to “solve” symptoms, but the pill doesn’t solve anything. Symptoms disappear because the pill covers them up. Meanwhile, the root causes of your symptoms continue to simmer beneath the surface—and the longer they go unaddressed, the harder they are to treat. Not only that, the pill can damage the microbiome, increase inflammation, suppress ovulation, and lead to micronutrient deficiencies.

So yes—quitting the pill is one of the most significant things you can do in the process of hormonal healing. But saying goodbye to the pill without knowing how to protect yourself from rebound symptoms can cause them to return with a vengeance—especially if you give up the drugs cold turkey. That’s because your body suddenly has to manage and balance its own hormones for the first time in months or years, and it goes through a re-education process as your natural hormone cycle comes back online. Luckily, there are smart strategies for coming off the pill. We've developed a foolproof plan for quitting synthetic hormones once and for all, and sidestepping the unpleasant symptoms that can come with it.

The Surefire Plan to Transitioning Off the Pill Without Symptoms

• Discuss it with your doctor. Before you take the plunge, let your doctor know that you’ll be coming off the pill. A good doctor will help you find alternative, natural methods of contraception & support you through the change.
• Start the FLO protocol ASAP. A lot of women don’t realize that they need to lay the groundwork for hormonal health before they quit synthetic hormones. Cycle-Syncing® your diet and exercise while you’re still taking the pill can make this transition much gentler on your endocrine system and ease post-pill side effects like acne, insomnia, mood swings and irregular cycles. Moving into a FLO lifestyle will enable your body to begin the process of detoxification & recalibration, readying it for a pill-free lifestyle.
• Identify and address nutrient deficiencies. Synthetic hormones deplete your body of vitamins and minerals, especially B vitamins, vitamins C and E, and the minerals magnesium, selenium, and zinc. If you’re considering coming off the pill, consider taking a high-quality supplements now to make the transition easier. The FLO Living Balance Supplement Kit contains all of these key nutrients.
• Start tracking your period. If your periods return quickly and they become regular, great! If not, then it’s likely that there is an underlying health problem that we recommend you address naturally with food changes. Many women do find it takes months for their period to show up and even then it is sporadic. Tracking your cycle  before you stop the pill, and using our eating plan during the transition, will help you avoid this. If your period still isn’t back in six months, investigate potential underlying causes with your doctor. You’ll want to rule out insulin resistance, PCOS, thyroid troubles, vitamin D deficiency (as well as the deficiencies mentioned above), and severe food sensitivities like celiac disease (though we recommend avoiding gluten no matter what).
• Re-establish a healthy gut. The pill ravages your internal microbial ecosystem. The longer you’ve been taking it, the worse the impact on your body. When you’re on the pill, eating good, clean, healthy food is the best way to start the healing process, but in order to fast track your healing, you’ll need a powerful probiotic to replenish the balance of good gut bacteria. The probiotic in the FLO Living Balance Supplement Kit is a highly-concentrated dose that helps balance flora, support mood, improve digestive function and nutrient absorption, and reduce the chances of getting yeast infections and bacterial vaginosis.
• Make more of your own hormones. Vitamin B6 is essential for making progesterone. Include whole foods that are rich in B6 in your diet, like bananas, spinach, sweet potato, garlic, chicken, grass-fed beef, and salmon. Supplements are also key here. The Energize formula in our Balance Supplements Kit is a powerful B vitamin combination that supplies most of the B vitamins in their coenzymated forms. Incorporating lots of good quality fats and amino acids in your diet is essential, too - they’re what hormones are made from and what your body needs to start making more of its own and fast. If you can and do eat animal protein, have fish and organic poultry as well as pasture-raised eggs (including their yolks), olive oil, and avocados. It’s particularly important to get enough high-quality omega-3 fats. Omega-3s are less abundant than other types of fats in our modern food supply, so supplementing is often necessary. The Harmonize formulation in our Balance Supplement Kit contains fish oil that’s ultra potent and delivered in the form found in nature, to support hormone production and healthy ovulation.
• Do an estrogen detox. A lot of women are hit with a condition called estrogen dominance after quitting the pill—the most common cause of all hormonal dysfunction. Leafy greens are the absolute best way to combat this problem. Tuck into kale, chard, spinach, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and more (at every meal if you can!). To speed up estrogen detox, supplement with the Detox formula in the Balance Supplement Kit. It offers liver support for overall detox function and supports healthy detox of excess estrogen, which is essential to regaining your hormonal health.

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Looking for Vitamins for Hormonal Acne?

Let's face it, hormonal acne is frustrating. You’ve suffered through the skin issues of adolescence only to discover that adulthood comes with its own host of blemishes! Or perhaps you had great skin in your youth and only NOW is it plaguing you. So unfair, right? Trust me, our founder Alisa Vitti has been there.

Before Alisa created the FLO Living protocol, it took her an hour and a half just to leave the house. Her face and back were covered in cystic hormonal acne that she covered with heavy makeup just to feel confident enough to carry on with her life.

So, if that painful scenario sounds even remotely familiar, then you’ll really want to pay attention. Your skin shouldn’t rule your life and diminish your self-esteem. By learning to heal your endocrine system (the system responsible for hormone production) naturally, you can regain control of your beautiful face and body and learn to love your skin again. And Flo Living is living proof of that!

Why Hormonal Acne Happens

Hormonal acne can accompany natural shifts in the menstrual cycle—for example, when you’re moving from your ovulation phase into your pre-menstrual phase. It can also be triggered by high levels of androgens (male hormones) and stress.

‍Research suggests that the oil-producing glands in the skin can act as their own independent endocrine organs, responding to messages from hormones like testosterone and the stress hormone cortisol. Women need androgens for optimal health (they just need less of them than men), some stress in life is inevitable, and hormonal fluctuations during the month are not just normal but important. You want them to happen! But here’s what’s NOT a sure thing: acne.

Acne isn’t an inevitable side effect of normal hormonal fluctuations and life stressors. It’s a sign of endocrine dysfunction and a big SOS: your hormones are in trouble! And this can happen any time in adulthood: during your 20s and 30s, during pregnancy, after baby, and even during perimenopause.

The good news is that sending help to your hormones, including using supplements to help heal and balance them, is easy.

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Why the Conventional Acne Treatments You’re Using Aren’t Working

When Alisa Vitti had acne, she tried everything that her doctor would give her, desperate to improve the way her skin looked and the way she felt about herself. Maybe you can relate: going through a list of potions and pills, hoping each would work for you.

Alisa personally tried a long course of antibiotics to stop the acne, which permanently stained her teeth slightly yellow (to this day!) and destroyed her gut microbiome so badly that she spent my entire freshman year of college with viruses, yeast infections, and flu-like symptoms.

She tried Retinol-A cream and Salicylic Acid and Benzoyl Peroxide thinking she could heal my skin from the outside and just fix the surface of the issue. Needless to say, none of those things worked.

There’s a reason these commonly prescribed medications don’t work — and most even come with dangerous side effects:

• ‍The birth control pill: The pill disrupts your microbiome, endocrine system, and micronutrient levels – all systems essential for keeping your skin clear. You may have clear skin while you’re taking it, but not without added side effects that can worsen issues like PCOS, plus increase your risk of some reproductive cancers. Once you decide to stop using hormonal birth control, a common symptom of the withdrawal period is acne, often worse than you’ve had before because of the internal disruption that has occurred as a result of the medication.
• ‍Antibiotics: Antibiotics do incredible damage to the microbiome because they don’t distinguish between good bacteria and bad bacteria—they just kill all of them—and robust gut health is important for clear skin. As with hormonal birth control, when you come off the antibiotics, the acne may not only return, it can be much worse than it was before because of the microbiome damage.
• ‍Spironolactone/Aldactone: Just as we don’t recommend synthetic hormonal birth control or meat and dairy that contain synthetic hormones, we don’t recommend the steroid medication spironolactone. This steroid is nothing like the hormones your body produces on its own. It disrupts your body’s production of testosterone by confusing your body with a synthetically similar steroid. Plus, spironolactone use can trigger one of the most common hormone imbalance issues (and a cause of acne)—estrogen dominance—as well as depression, blood clots, and increased risk of some cancers. Spironolactone is not safe to take long-term and is not going to prevent acne beyond the point that you are using it.
• ‍Isotretinoin (originally Accutane): If you’re prescribed Isotretinoin, then you are also prescribed hormonal birth control, because Isotretinoin causes birth defects. That in itself should be enough to dissuade you from using this medication. There are other side effects—including an initial worsening of acne—and severe depression. The original patented drug, Accutane, was removed from the market after many users developed inflammatory bowel disease and use of the drug was associated with increased risk of suicide. Usually this medication is offered as a last resort, but rarely have diet and lifestyle changes been part of prior acne-treatment protocols.

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The problem with all of the treatments for acne that you’ve probably been offered, or tried already, is that they don’t address the root cause of an adult woman’s acne issues: hormone imbalance. In fact, antibiotics and the birth control pills only worsen the hormonal imbalance that triggers acne. And no shade to dermatologists, but most of them are not really focused on a systemic approach or gut health. A cascade of (seemingly unrelated) health problems fuels the development of hormonal acne: a damaged and depleted gut microbiome leads to estrogen dominance, testosterone sensitivity, and a deficiency in key micronutrients necessary for skin health. Or you could say: hormonal acne starts in the gut.  

But we promise, there’s great news here! The microbiome is super responsive to treatment—and prevention and healing are both attainable by shifting the way you eat and embracing specific natural supplements. With the right use of natural supplements, you can see your acne disappear in just a couple of months.

Once Alisa Vitti figured out how to eat and live to support her hormones, her skin cleared up (and a lot of other great stuff happened, too). Her skin’s been clear ever since and she has helped many other women achieve the same lasting success.

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The 6 Natural Supplements You Need to Stop Hormonal Acne

Food is always the most powerful weapon in your arsenal to combat hormonal dysfunction, but natural supplements are essential for speeding up the process of healing and recovery. Using the best natural herbs and supplements every day can get you to where you want to be much faster than using food alone.

Ready to recover your glowing complexion and regain your confidence? Here are our top 6 natural supplements for preventing and healing hormonal acne:

1. Magnesium. Magnesium is an important nutrient for fighting inflammation (acne is inflammatory). Calcium is part of the body’s tissue matrix—comprising bones, cells, and skin—and is important for skin cell renewal. Taking magnesium with calcium combined in supplement form can reduce inflammation and acne.
2. Omega-3s. Getting enough omega-3 fatty acids from fish, algae or flax oil can improve skin significantly. With these oils, many women see improvements in their skin (as well as stronger hair and nails) in just a few days.
3. Zinc. Zinc deficiency is a common issue for many women. When we’re deficient in zinc, our pores become easily irritated by bacteria and show redness. Research has shown that zinc supplementation can be very effective in easing acne, even when compared to commonly prescribed antibiotics.
4. Probiotics. We need probiotics for a healthy gut. Common symptoms of a damaged and depleted microbiome are acne and other skin issues like rosacea. Probiotics are particularly important with hormonal acne, as your microbiome assists your body in processing and eliminating excess estrogen. If you’ve been on the pill or antibiotics for any length of time, probiotics could be key to getting your skin back on track.
5. B Vitamins. Your skin needs B-vitamins to regenerate and renew, as they provide the energy all of your cells need for fuel. Taking a good B-complex every day that includes a high level of B6 will target hormonal or premenstrual acne. B6 prevents skin inflammation and overproduction of sebum (the oil your skin produces that can create acne issues).

      6. Milk thistle - Liver detoxification is crucial for getting to the root cause of healing acne. Milk thistle aids in supporting the liver to detoxify and eliminate excess estrogen from the body.

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Stress causes late periods by the way it disrupts your hormonal patterns. Your hormones need to meet certain levels and follow certain patterns in order to trigger both ovulation and your period. If stress gets in the way this can disrupt the cycle. Stress causes a rise in stress hormones — specifically cortisol — which affect the production and interaction of other hormones. Your hormonal cycle is a chain reaction. If one stage of your cycle does not occur as it should, the following stages will not receive the correct triggers. When your ovary releases an egg, the ruptured egg sack produces progesterone. The increase of progesterone in your body encourages the buildup and eventual release of the lining of your uterus, aka your period. When cortisol is elevated, this gets majorly interrupted. Here are the 5 specific ways stress can affect your period:

1. Disrupts Insulin - Stress raises cortisol levels and disrupts your blood sugar which, in turn, disrupts your ovulation and period.
2. Lowers Progesterone - The stress hormone cortisol blocks progesterone production and lowers progesterone levels. Your body actually uses your progesterone to make more cortisol to react and respond to the stress. This not only messes with your cycle, but it can make it difficult for you to conceive.
3. Delays Ovulation - If you experience stress around the time you typically ovulate, the increased levels of cortisol can delay or even prevent ovulation. This one makes sense evolutionarily – a pregnancy on top of a stressful period in a person’s life is not ideal. Your body in a way is trying to keep your energy available to address the stress before conception takes place.
4. Changes timing of your Period - Stress post-ovulation can cause a hormonal imbalance too. If you do ovulate and stress comes later in your cycle, it can potentially cause spotting, an early period, or a period that looks or feels different than your norm (in consistency, color, length, or symptoms like cramping).
5. Period can go missing - Even if you do eventually bleed, a late period may not be considered a period at all – it’s more of a breakthrough bleed. You didn’t ovulate, so it’s not a physiological period – however, your uterus still needs to shed the lining it has built up.

How to Outsmart Stress And Finally Fix Your Hormones

Your body is brilliant and your late period isn’t just a nuisance you can ignore; it’s your body’s way of telling you that it’s under constant or chronic levels of stress and unable to operate optimally. In order to perform all the countless functions it needs to do to keep you alive, it shuts down ovulation in an effort to conserve resources and energy. If you’re not trying to conceive, maybe you think this lack of ovulation is no big deal. But think again: when your body doesn’t ovulate, it sets the stage for more hormonal symptoms and period problems – everything from PMS, to acne, to cramps. A late period is more than just an inconvenience — it’s a precursor to a long list of other serious health issues.I’m an advocate for listening to your body and a late period is your body saying something loud and clear, but what exactly is your body trying to tell you? A stressed out cycle is a message. It’s a call-to-action from your body. Once you period is late, there’s not much you can do to make your period come when you want during that cycle. But you can avoid future late periods by taking action today. How? Simple. Your body isn’t just brilliant; it’s resilient. By nourishing it with the proper micronutrients and lifestyle support, you can absolutely heal your hormones, eliminate your symptoms, and get your period back on track. When you eat in a hormonally-supportive way, you soothe and support your adrenal glands, which turns the dial down on cortisol production and breaks the stress cycle. Not to mention that eating nutrient-dense foods at the right times of your cycle will boost your metabolism, digestion, and help you lose weight with blood sugar balance, regulate your cycles, detoxify your system, and increase your energy.If you’re ready for the type of in-depth guidance necessary to kick stress to the curb and reclaim your hormonal health, it’s time to sign up for MonthlyFLO, a three-month program that will show you how to tap into your body’s unique rhythm, feed yourself at all four phases for optimal hormonal balance, and get more done with less effort. Get started now and stop letting all those daily stressors mess with your beautiful body. Love and ovaries,Alisa

Monthly FLO: The Cycle Syncing System™

Put your period symptoms into remission. Discover how to live in your FLO and get it all done with embodied time management.

MonthlyFLO is the first-ever woman-centric health system that syncs with your unique rhythm. It gives you the foundation for solving any hormonal issues you may have over your lifetime.Using the principles of functional nutrition, MonthlyFLO is a specially-sequenced food therapy program that recalibrates your endocrine function. Over three months, you will be guided step-by-step to make simple, cumulative food and lifestyle changes that balance your hormones naturally.Click here to learn more about the life-changing Monthly FLO Program

The sad truth is that just about every woman you know — from your childhood best friend to your favorite coworker — is dealing with some sort of hormonal imbalance. Whether that imbalance manifests as PMS, uncontrollable acne, weight gain, or a full-blown endocrine disorder like PCOS or endometriosis depends on a host of factors. But the basic root of all these conditions is the same: hormones gone haywire. So how is it possible that the vast majority of women are suffering like this? And why isn’t anyone doing anything about it? It all goes back to our education. Think back to your middle school health ed class. How much did your teacher or your textbook talk in-depth about the phases of the menstrual cycle, female hormonal patterns, and the lifestyle factors that can optimize or impede these things? My guess is that the most you ever got on this topic was a cursory mention of periods and what they have to do with making babies; it’s unlikely that you ever got a true education in how your body works, and that’s unfortunately the case for most women. If you think things have changed in this social-media-savvy age, think again. Sure, there are thankfully scores of outspoken feminists trying change the cultural landscape and improving society’s concept of female health. But doctors are still doling out birth control as a “treatment” for all kinds of period problems and ignoring the underlying root causes of endocrine issues ranging from cramps to cysts. There are far too many women and girls suffering needlessly and in silence because they don’t know how to heal themselves. Let’s stop the silence now. We can demystify menstrual issues for all women if we start spreading awareness and education to our close circle. Whether you’re dropping knowledge on your mom, sister, daughter, niece, or best friend, you have the power to start making a change. Here are the five must-discuss topics to start with:

1) The color of your period matters — a lot

Think of checking your flow every month like being able to access free lab work for your hormone levels. Knowing the color tells you exactly what hormones are in and out of balance. The most important thing we’re not told as women is that we can absolutely change our periods for the better. And you’ll know right away if your eating is on track with your hormones because your period color will change as you get back in balance. Your period, your fifth vital sign, provides genius biofeedback for you! Use this quick guide to decode your period and discover the ways you can get your hormonal health back on track.

2) PMS isn’t normal — period

PMS is the result of a hormone imbalance and it’s absolutely not something you should expect to be part of your period. In fact it’s a warning sign that something is majorly off in your endocrine system. It’s not something you should have to endure, put up with, or get through on a monthly basis. You can, should, and deserve to live a PMS-free life! All that crabbiness, agitation, anxiety, irritability, and moodiness that you’ve come to expect can actually be put in the past, once and for all. Talk honestly with your girlfriends about PMS and learn how you can help yourselves conquer the endocrine dysfunction at the root of it.

3) Birth control pills aren’t fixing your problems — in fact, they’re probably making things worse

Not only do birth control pills simply mask the causes of hormonal conditions and lull you into a false sense of normalcy; they come with a host of side effects that are very likely wreaking havoc on your entire body from your microbiome to your ovaries. This Band-Aid strategy isn’t a solution for any kind of hormonal imbalance and if your best gal pals are all on the pill, it’s time to talk about why transitioning off is a good idea.

4) You can get a handle on cramps naturally

Ready for this truth bomb?: Your body is not designed for period cramps. In fact it is perfectly, beautifully designed for you to not have period cramps. It just needs a little support from you to return to that wonderful state. Women who have period cramps have higher levels of prostaglandins, which constrict blood vessels and make the uterus contract, than women who experience little to no period pain. Luckily, there are plenty of natural ways to manage and prevent the pain — be sure your girlfriends know about them!

5) No matter what kind of hormonal condition you have, it’s totally within your power to fix it

The most important thing you can discuss and share with your female friends is this: hormonal healing is absolutely, totally within your power and control. Whether you’re struggling with minor symptoms or you’ve been diagnosed with a full-fledged hormonal disorder and feel hopeless, know that there are natural, simple solutions to bring your body back into balance and harmony. Not sure where to start? Take the free Period Type Quiz and figure out what your period is trying to tell you. Then download my new MyFLO app to start tracking your symptoms and learning the right actions to take at each phase of your cycle. The Balance by FLO supplements can help your endocrine system have the right building blocks to balance your hormones. And when you’re ready to combat your symptoms once and for all, it’s time to check out MonthlyFLO.Love and ovaries,Alisa

Monthly FLO: The Cycle Syncing System™

Put your period symptoms into remission. Discover how to live in your FLO and get it all done with embodied time management.

MonthlyFLO is the first-ever woman-centric health system that syncs with your unique rhythm. It gives you the foundation for solving any hormonal issues you may have over your lifetime.Using the principles of functional nutrition, MonthlyFLO is a specially-sequenced food therapy program that recalibrates your endocrine function. Over three months, you will be guided step-by-step to make simple, cumulative food and lifestyle changes that balance your hormones naturally.Click here to learn more about the life-changing Monthly FLO Program

Move more, lose more...right? It’s a supposed fact of physiology that’s ingrained in us early on: the longer and harder you work out, the more pounds you’ll drop, the fitter you’ll be, and the more energized you’ll feel. But have you ever launched enthusiastically into a high-intensity regimen only to find yourself feeling drained, depleted, and somehow up a pants size?These effects aren’t in your head and they’re definitely not your fault. I see so many women needlessly suffer and sweat only to see the pounds keep piling on. So what gives? If you’re sick of busting your butt at the gym to no avail, then it’s time you learned why your no-pain-no-gain strategy is hurting your fitness efforts, not helping them. Your hormones play a huge role in how you’ll respond to workouts. Until you understand how to work with your physiology, not against it, you’ll continue to get fed up and frustrated.

Why Your High-Intensity Workout Plan May Be Causing You to Gain Weight

First, let’s break down why extreme exercise can make you — surprise! — gain weight because you’re female. That’s right — while you’ve likely been led to believe your entire life that dropping pounds was a matter of pushing harder for longer in the gym (and suffering the whole time), there’s biological evidence for why this approach is working against you.When you jump into a hardcore exercise routine in January, it’s important to remember where you’re coming from: a stressful and sugar-laden holiday season that’s compromised your adrenal glands. When you work out, you burn through the glucose in your bloodstream (which is great). But that process only takes about 30 minutes ; after that first half hour, you’re simply tapping into your adrenal reserve and forcing those glands to pump out cortisol like crazy in order to convert your fat cells into blood sugar.While that may sound like an appealing prospect, it’s the wrong way to go about fat burning. When you have estrogen overload due to unresolved period and fertility issues (as just about every client I see does), the excess estrogen programs your body to actually convert any circulating sugar back into fat. So instead of becoming a fat burning machine, you become stuck in a vicious cycle of desperately trying to burn stored fat with cortisol only to have your sky-high estrogen send it right back to all the wrong places.

Add In Adrenal Fatigue and Watch the Pounds Pile On

Worse yet, all of this is under the assumption that your adrenals are in tip top shape; if they’re out of whack, the results could be even more disastrous. And guess what’s notorious for knocking the adrenals out of whack: out-of-control stress, boatloads of sugar, and way too much booze — three familiar staples of the overstimulating holiday season. Add to all of this the fact that in the second half of your cycle (your luteal phase), estrogen is out of balance with progesterone, making you more fatigued and putting further strain on your adrenals.And what happens when your adrenals are wiped out? You produce less cortisol, making it painful to crawl out of bed each morning and next-to-impossible to finish a workout without feeling fatigued (and miserable) to the max. So now you’re exhausted, unmotivated, and holding onto fat for dear life, despite all your best efforts to shed it — and each time you work out thinking you’re doing your body a favor, you’re just reinforcing the same bad cycle.

Exercise Impacts You Differently During Your Cycle

If you’ve subscribed to the “no pain, no gain” workout mentality so many of us are sold on (especially around the New Year), then you’re falling into a predictable trap that’s likely backfiring. The predominant “push-’til-it-hurts” mentality around exercise is entirely rooted in male physiology and a 24-hour circadian rhythm that loses sight of natural, predictable female fluctuations throughout the month. By your very nature, your biochemistry is composed of an ever-changing symphony of hormonal ups and downs; your body simply isn’t the same day in and day out, so why would you constantly put it through the same, hardcore workout routine when it’s begging for something different?The science is on your side here: research has shown that increased estrogen affects your body’s sensitivity to insulin, and subsequently impacts fat storage and burning. While your hormones may be able to handle more intense exercise in the first half of your cycle, going extra hard in the later luteal phase will only drain your nutritional resources, encourage fat storage, and waste muscle mass. To add insult to injury and perpetuate the vicious train-drain-and-gain cycle, increasing your cardiovascular efforts requires more calories (during the PMS time when you have more carb cravings or bingeing), which in turn, sabotages your weight loss efforts and leaves you frustrated and running back to the gym to up your cardio yet again. It’s a never-ending losing battle, but there is a way out.

Body Cues that Signal Fat Storage

I want you to use a two-part approach here to help yourself transition away from the conditioning you’ve received via the male-oriented fitness theories that you have to be consistent, go hard, push past your discomfort. Some of that of course is applicable, but it depends where you are in your cycle and where you are in your lifecycle. The first part of this approach is to simply ask yourself how you’re feeling after a particular workout. Do you feel energized and awesome or drained and depleted? Maybe you’ve never taken the time to take stock of your feelings with this level of detail — after all, we’re typically so busy seeking out quick fixes that we forget to take a moment to dig deep and actually ask ourselves how our choices are affecting our mind, body, and spirit. We’re conditioned to ignore the signals our body tells us and push past pain in the name of “success.” If you are feeling fatigued and it takes you hours to recover your mood and energy, it’s an excellent indicator from your body that it has used up it’s adrenal and glucose reserves and now your body is going into survival and fat storage mode. Examining your body’s response to exercise will give you invaluable insight into what your body really needs to thrive and allow you to workout smarter not harder. The second piece is to link how you’re feeling after a workout to where you are in your cycle. This is why understanding how our body works within the context of the female ecosystem is so empowering and liberating; knowing how your biochemistry directly impacts your results will allow you to make smarter, healthier decisions. So if you’re trying to lose weight or improve your fitness but you haven’t gotten where you want to be, you may be frustrated. But by educating yourself on your body’s unique cyclical nature, you can achieve lasting results — no pain required.

Workout Less, Lose More — Seriously

If all this info leaves you feeling ready to throw in the towel completely, I have great news: you can pull the plug on all those painful, fatigue-inducing workouts you dread and actually watch the pounds melt off — by working out for no more than 30 minutes in the second half of your cycle. Too good to be true? It’s not when you consider this: exercising for more than 30 minutes at a time puts undue stress on your adrenal glands by causing cortisol to rise at first, mixing with your estrogen keeping fat on. If you’re picking up a new year, new workout discipline, mixed with untreated PMS and period problems, you will easily find yourself tired and not losing the weight you had hoped.Trust me, having been 200 pounds myself, and having tried for years to lose weight before I cracked my WomanCode, I know how frustrating this can be. And of course this is typically when we give up on our new year’s resolutions.If you’re totally sick of trying, failing, and trying again, then it’s time to ditch what you’ve been doing and try something totally new. Rather than running your adrenals into the ground with hour-long-plus high-intensity training sessions, try 20-minute bouts of cardio or weight training, and longer sessions of more gentle movement like hatha yoga or walking. Not sure when to do which type of activity? No sweat — we’ve got a handy guide for that. Tracking your body throughout the month is also really helpful, which is just one more reason the MyFLO app should be your new best friend. Keeping tabs on your symptoms will help you get to know how your body functions at different points in your cycle which can help you choose the right kind of exercise for your hormonal phase. Now that you’ve got the knowledge, you’ve got what it takes to start feeling your fiercest and getting fit once and for all! Alisa

Monthly FLO: The Cycle Syncing System™

Put your period symptoms into remission. Discover how to live in your FLO and get it all done with embodied time management.

MonthlyFLO is the first-ever woman-centric health system that syncs with your unique rhythm. It gives you the foundation for solving any hormonal issues you may have over your lifetime.Using the principles of functional nutrition, MonthlyFLO is a specially-sequenced food therapy program that recalibrates your endocrine function. Over three months, you will be guided step-by-step to make simple, cumulative food and lifestyle changes that balance your hormones naturally.Click here to learn more about the life-changing Monthly FLO Program

2017 has certainly been a big one here at FLO Living! We released a one-of-a-kind app, made it possible for you to test your hormones from home with your saliva, launched an innovative line of supplements, reached unprecedented milestones, and helped scores of women finally, permanently achieve total hormonal harmony. I’m so proud of the life-changing work we’ve done this year, and so thrilled to see how many of you are enthusiastically enjoying our content!Whether you’ve been a loyal FLO Living fan all year or longer or you’re brand new to the site (welcome!), I hope you take advantage of this list of our top articles in 2017 so you can easily access the material that matters most to our clients. Think of this as your year-end review and go-to resource to refer back to again and again.If FLO Living has made a difference in your life this year or ever, please spread the love and share this post with anyone you feel might benefit from our blog and programs! And don’t forget to leave a comment on this post to tell me what kinds of hormonal health topics you’d like me to cover in 2018!

Our top 10 must-read FLO Living essential articles of 2017

1. The best magnesium-rich foods for you cycle: If you have PMS, PCOS, fibroids, ovarian cysts, hormonal acne, irregular cycles, or any other endocrine imbalance-related issue, magnesium is one of your most important tools for full hormonal recovery. These are the top foods to add to your diet right now.
2. 5 facts you need to know about PCOS: If you have PMS, PCOS, fibroids, ovarian cysts, hormonal acne, irregular cycles, or any other endocrine imbalance-related issue, magnesium is one of your most important tools for full hormonal recovery. These are the top foods to add to your diet right now.
3. Can you bio-hack your period?: Biohacking is simply the modification of micronutrients, diet and lifestyle to optimize the functions of the body’s biological processes. So can you biohack your way to a better period? Read this to find out!
4. 5-period myths busted: Your first health ed class, biology books, glossy magazines, religion, family hang-ups: with all those factors, it’s nearly impossible to come out of young adulthood with a good opinion about your body and the female reproductive system. Here are five period myths you may not even realize are totally wrong.
5. Why you need to do a hormone detox: I’m no fan of a quick fix, but I do believe in detoxing the right way. Learn the difference between a fad diet and a true hormonal reset.
6. Natural remedies for HPV & cervical health: Getting an abnormal pap result can be scary, but in most cases, you can actually reverse your HPV diagnosis, treat it, and get rid of it — naturally. Here’s how.
7. How to be successful at work - the secret is your cycle!: Women are cyclical in nature, and how we feel, as well as our strengths, desires, talents, and behavior shifts with our changing hormone patterns. Here’s how to make your hormones work in your favor.
8. What can the color of your period blood tell you about your health and fertility: Menstruation is an overlooked, underutilized vital sign and just like blood pressure, can tell you a whole lot about the state of your health. Here’s what your flow says about your well-being.
9. The 7 hormonal phases of your life: Many women expect their periods to be the same month after month, year after year, but in fact, there are seven hormonal phases you’ll experience over the course of your lifetime — here’s what to expect.
10. Are you a health nut with wacky periods?:Paleo? Raw? Vegan? Gluten-free? And still having period problems? Check this out to learn why and what to do about it.

Please leave me a note below and tell me what hormonal health topics you’d like me to cover in 2018 – what would you like to know more about and what are you curious to know of living in your FLO?Always remember, that once you have the right information about how your body really works, you can start making health choices that finally start to work for you! You can do this – the science of your body is on your side!to your FLO,Alisa

Introducing the BALANCE by FLO Living Hormone Supplement Kit

You’ve been asking me for hormone-friendly supplement recommendations, and I finally have created a solution that I am so thrilled to be able to offer to you on your hormonal balancing journey:

Balance by FLO Living Supplements are a complete package that work together to keep your hormone levels healthy. They include a 2 month (2 cycle) supply of the following formulations so you’re never caught short in any phase of your cycle.When you take these 5 supplements daily, you’ll be giving your body excellent micronutrients to support healthier hormone levels. Which means that you’ll start to see your worst period symptoms get better… and even disappear after a while.

Click here to learn more about the brand-new BALANCE Supplement Kit.

Your body sends you signals every single day - some of them you listen to, and some of them you might not be hearing. For example, you know you’re allergic to something if you start sneezing or itching, you know when your bladder is full, and you know when you’re hungry or thirsty - all because your body let’s you know through some obvious, and less obvious, signs.

But when it comes to the signs of hormonal imbalance often we may notice the problem, but assume it’s either a) normal or b) something we just have to put up with. Women tend to be socialized to believe that having hormonal symptoms is part of being female and having a female body, and that nothing can or should be done about it. It really saddens me to know how many women suffer year-in-year-out, not realizing their hormonal imbalance issues are not normal and are very treatable.

There are signs of hormonal imbalance that many, many women experience - but this doesn’t make them normal or necessary. Sometimes it’s helpful to think to yourself - “If my husband or boyfriend was going through this, would they put up with it?”

3 signs your hormones levels are not right

1. The second half of your cycle is PMS-central

If you seem to have terrible PMS between ovulation and the start of your period, the whole time or just a part of it, then your body is yelling at you loud and clear. Feeling moody, sad, anxious, or just miserable is not normal (although many women are in the same situation) and it’s not necessary. If you dread this time of the month knowing you’re headed for a big fight with your partner, a falling out with friends, or just a lot of nights home alone feeling bad - take note. It doesn’t have to be this way. Your body is asking you to do something - and that something is to support it with the right foods and supplements so that your hormones come back into balance.

I live a PMS-free life and you can too! In fact, I have renamed Pre-Menstrual Syndrome as Prioritizing MySelf - as this is the time in my cycle when I like to do extra self-care and really take care of my body and my mental health.

‍Estrogen dominance is often the root cause of PMS problems - you can start lowering your estrogen levels today with foods and supplements. Using the MyFLO app you can get tailored advice in your pre-menstrual phase, prompting you to eat the foods that will support you hormones and to practice the self-care techniques that will sooth all your symptoms.

2. Your period starts and ends in brown spotting

If you see brown blood as the marker of the beginning of your period or if your period tapers off into brown spotting, or if you have both of these menstrual experiences, then you are experiencing a hormonal imbalance. The brown blood is actually leftover from the last time you menstruated. Many women don’t even think to look at their period - or feel grossed out by doing so - which is a shame because you can learn so much from observing the color and consistency of your menstrual blood.

Low progesterone levels prevent your period from starting and stopping as bright red flow, how it should be. You can start boosting your progesterone levels today with foods and supplements. You can also take my Period Type Quiz to discover more about what brown spotting means for your health.

3. You have to be on hormonal birth control to get a regular “cycle”

You may not be aware of this, but when you’re on most forms of hormonal birth control you do not have a period. The bleeding you experience is actually called a “withdrawal bleed” and is not, physiologically speaking, the same as menstruation. So, hormonal birth control doesn’t really “give you” shorter, lighter periods - it stops your periods completely and replaces them with withdrawal bleeds.

Hormonal birth control also does not regulate your cycle, because you don’t experience a cycle. However, this is what we’ve been taught and is often how we’re presented with the pill, patch, or ring as a way to solve our period problems. Hormonal birth control is also not a true medical treatment for PCOS, ovarian cysts, fibroids or any number of hormonal health issues - it can help manage symptoms for some, but it does not actually resolve the problem. Meaning, when you come off the birth control, the problem will return. Synthetic hormone-based medications have so many side effects, both short term (IBS, increased allergies, fatigue, anxiety) and long term (heightened cancer risk, blood clots and stroke, nutrient deficiency).

It’s best to transition off hormonal birth control safely and discover what is the root cause of your hormonal health issue and set about treating it with a natural protocol. You can start my MonthlyFLO program while still using hormonal birth control and it will ease and smooth your transition off, ensuring less symptoms and withdrawal effects.

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Always remember, that once you have the right information about how your body really works, you can start making health choices that finally start to work for you! You can do this – the science of your body is on your side!

To your FLO,

Alisa

Vitex can be a great help for women with a number of different conditions and in a number of different situations. However, we do not recommend Vitex to  those who have been diagnosed with PCOS, except in one specific circumstance, which we will explain below.

Vitex is a fantastic tool - it’s well-researched and evidenced as being helpful for women with problematic menstrual cycles - but, as with any herb or supplement, it does not have a chance of helping you if it’s the only thing you choose to change about your daily routine. Any kind of period or cycle-related problem needs to be addressed from a functional medicine perspective - food first, then supplements, then specifically targeted lifestyle hacks, which means living in your FLO. Supplements of any kind are best seen as a way to super-charge your other efforts with diet and lifestyle changes. They are never a solution in themselves.

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Why most women with PCOS shouldn’t use Vitex

Vitex increases progesterone levels by increasing LH (luteinizing hormone) levels, and it suppresses prolactin levels. The result is increased ovulatory cycles. This sounds like a perfect scenario for PCOS sufferers, but there’s a problem. Vitex can actually worsen PCOS for some because their LH levels are already high. If you know your LH level is high (if you don’t know, ask for a hormone panel blood test from your doctor), you should not use Vitex. Most women have the kind of PCOS that is insulin-resistant and comes with high LH, and should avoid Vitex.

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When you should take Vitex if you have PCOS

If you have PCOS with normal LH levels and high prolactin levels, you might consider using Vitex. You can have your prolactin levels tested by your doctor. This kind of PCOS has a different root cause, usually inflammation from allergens like dairy and gluten, or as the result of using the birth control pill. Vitex in this case can help to suppress prolactin levels and increase ovulatory cycles.

But Vitex is a slow-acting herb. You will need to commit to taking it for up to 3 months to see any change in your cycles or improvement of symptoms. Be sure to purchase Vitex from a reputable, long-standing supplement company like Gaia, so you know you are getting a potent formulation, without fillers.

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What to take instead of Vitex to manage your PCOS

There are several kinds of PCOS, but these two supplements will work for any woman with the condition. They will work best in conjunction with the FLO Living diet and lifestyle protocol.

• Cinnamon - we suggest taking the cinnamon supplement from New Chapter. Cinnamon is a proven natural treatment for insulin-resistant PCOS. You can also add cinnamon to your oatmeal, eggs or beans and make it part of your meals.

• Magnesium - Try a topical form of magnesium, like those created by Ancient Minerals, or you can opt for the powdered form from Natural Calm. Magnesium is an essential mineral that most of us are deficient in, but it’s a proven treatment for improving insulin resistance.

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This Thanksgiving will be the first that my daughter (now just over 2 years old) will eat a real Thanksgiving meal. I just know she’ll be curious and excited to try everything on the table. And I’m looking forward to introducing her to some of my favorite recipes and the tradition of giving thanks and gratitude. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because it allows me to indulge in amazing food that’s totally hormone-friendly and hormone-supportive. I can take a whole bunch of my favorite ingredients - like sweet potatoes and organic turkey - and make some really nutritious, nourishing dishes. I like to keep it simple cooking-wise, so I can spend more quality time with my family, as that, to me, is what this holiday is all about.In last year’s Thanksgiving post, I highlighted for you the importance of eating breakfast on Thanksgiving morning. Many of us are inclined to skip it. But, as much as you can, you should try to stick to your normal eating routine of three meals per day, instead of eating nothing or snacking on appetizers until a big, oversized, Thanksgiving dinner at 4pm. Eat a good breakfast, and serve your meal at the normal time - like 1pm. Then, later that day, you can have the dessert or a second plate of leftovers. This pattern is essential to maintain blood sugar balance, and, as a result, hormonal balance. You’ll enjoy the day more too as you’ll avoid that hangry feeling as well as the post-binge bloat.

My Thanksgiving meal plan

I make the entire Thanksgiving dinner the day before. The day of Thanksgiving I just put my turkey in the oven at 6.30am and then later on, warm up all the delicious sides in the oven. That way I can concentrate on enjoying my time with my family. Plus we get to eat at 1pm, rather than waiting until late afternoon. We’ll start our meal with a cup of homemade bone broth. Check out my recipe. It’s really the perfect Thanksgiving appetizer.Dinner will consist of: An organic turkey and, instead of mashed potatoes, a special sweet potatoe smashed roots recipe, and instead of green bean cassarole, my green beans dish with fennel. I’ll have a side of stuffing made from from buckwheat, apples, onions and herbs. My cranberry sauce recipe is so easy - just cranberries, juices, and honey. Plus a little helping of sauerkraut to help the microbiome along with this larger-than-normal intake of food. For dessert (which usually I save for the evening), we have apple cobbler made with coconut oil and cinnamon. My daughter will happily try out all of these dishes - she’s already a fan of green beans! What will you be eating this Thanksgiving? Share your recipes in the comments or on social media with #FLOholiday Always remember, that once you have the right information about how your body really works, you can start making health choices that finally start to work for you! You can do this - the science of your body is on your side!to your FLO,AlisaGood things come in threes:

I want to hear from you!

First, do you have PCOS? Second, have you tried Vitex? Third, everyone you know is hormonal – spread a little good ovary karma and share this article on social ;)

Is Your Period Healthy?

How do you know if your hormones are healthy? The answer is in your 5th vital sign - your period. The color of your flow, frequency of your period, and symptoms you have each month can tell you a lot about your health. There are 5 different V-SIGN TYPES, and knowing which one you have will help you get healthy now and prevent disease in the future. Click here to take The V-SIGN TYPE™ Quiz NOW

With many women waking up to the health issues inherent to synthetic hormone-based contraceptives like the birth control pill, ring, patch, implant etc, more of us are looking for hormone-free alternatives for preventing pregnancy. This is understandable and should, I believe, be a welcomed shift in thinking.

‍Synthetic hormones cause all kinds of short term and long term side effects. They prevent your body from producing its own natural hormones, suppress ovulation and stop your periods - as a hormone expert and champion of the wisdom of women’s bodies, I know this to be real problem. Many of the women who work with me here at FLO Living are dealing with the fallout from using hormonal contraceptives for years on end.

However, we still need effective contraception and one of the hormone-free options available is the hormone-free copper IUD. In this post I want to look at the pros and cons of the hormone-free, copper IUD and support you in making the decision to switch from hormonal contraceptives to an option that allows your body to make its own hormones and experience its own cycles.

There are hormone-based IUDs available, and their effectiveness is no different to that of the one hormone-free kind. If you want an IUD, it’s better to avoid the synthetic hormones - especially as synthetic progestin (which is not the same as the progesterone your own body produces) can cause as many side effects as the pill. A recent study revealed that the hormonal IUD actually holds a higher risk of depression than the pill.

The benefits of the copper IUD

• It’s over 99% effective for preventing pregnancy.
• It lasts 12 years, so if you’re done have kids or don’t want kids you can have effective contraception for over a decade.
• No synthetic hormones.
• It doesn’t suppress ovulation and you experience real periods.
• It is compatible with cycle awareness and the Cycle Synced FLO Living lifestyle - you can track your hormonal phases and monitor your period.
• You can truly address, treat, and resolve period and cycle problems with diet and lifestyle changes.

The drawbacks of the copper IUD

• It is not side effect free - side effects including heavier periods, cramping, pain during insertion, discomfort during sex, spotting between periods, ectopic pregnancy, possible migration or expulsion of the IUD, perforation of the uterus, pelvic inflammatory disease, infection, scar tissue buildup complicating later conception.
• It does not prevent STDs or STIs - you would need condoms for this.
• It’s possible that the copper IUD, like the birth control pill and other hormone-based contraceptives, can cause zinc deficiency by off-balancing copper and zinc levels in your body. If you choose the copper IUD, I recommend supplementing with zinc and eating zinc-rich foods. Zinc deficiency can be a source of acne, low sex drive and poor immunity. You’ll know if you have zinc deficiency - frequent colds and coughs are a common symptom.
• For those that have pre-existing health issues like Wilson’s Disease, which prevents proper copper metabolism, the copper IUD would not be a good option. You could develop copper toxicity.

If you’ve looked over this list and decided, for you, that the drawbacks of the copper IUD outweigh its benefits, you do have other hormone-free options.

I personally use a combination of the fertility awareness method and condoms. I track my fertility signs to pinpoint when I am in my fertile window and use condoms to avoid pregnancy. I’m a huge fan of condoms for many reasons - including the ways in which they protect your fertility.

These days there are so many great, chemical-free, sustainable, body-friendly brands too.If you’ve decided to ditch the synthetic hormones, congratulations! You’ve taken an important step towards vital hormonal health and living in your FLO. Let me know in the comments how you feel about the copper IUD - your experiences, the good and the bad.

If you have PCOS you are probably more than aware of all of the possible diets there are out there that are promoted for weight loss, and in a previous post I have looked at each of these diets in detail to examine their pros and cons. Most diets that you hear about, from Paleo to Macrobiotic, are not actually researched and designed for women’s bodies. They do not take into account women’s biology, our menstrual cycles, our changing pattern of hormones - instead they are modeled on male biology and that’s why they are far more effective for men.

Why women need a different kind of diet

Precisely because many of these diet protocols are not made for women, they often fail women - although some may have initial weight loss, usually this is not sustained. A study from 2012 revealed that during the luteal phase of a woman’s menstrual cycle (that’s the week pre-menstruation) women purchase much more food than they do during their follicular phase (the week after your period). To many of you, this research will come as no surprise - we know we feel more hungry during our pre-menstrual days, and that we may eat more, and may therefore buy more food. This makes sense because we need more B vitamins to help us support the corpus luteum and progesterone production.  Perhaps you also have specific cravings during this time in your cycle. You might have noticed you don’t feel the need to eat that much during the first half of your cycle, but heading towards your period your hunger seems to increase and your need for food as fuel, to sustain your energy, to prevent you from feeling “hangry,” is increased.

The reason most diets for PCOS don’t work

Most of the diet protocols out there do not take this information into account. Most diets proposed for those with PCOS are low-glycemic and this kind of eating plan is hard to maintain. It feels easy to do during the first half of the cycle, but once you’re pre-menstrual it’s impossible to sustain and adhere to. During the luteal or pre-menstrual phase you need more nourishing, filling, satisfying foods to prevent cravings and the desire to reach for unhealthy carbs or sugar. This is why the FLO Living protocol of Cycle Syncing your eating habits has helped so many women to lose weight and keep it off - it takes into account that you will want and need to eat different foods during your pre-menstrual phase and need foods that provide enough of the nutrients your body requires. Building this information into a diet designed for women specifically allows you to avoid the usual drawbacks of other diets and the usual obstacles and difficulties that can arise - like feeling super hungry, binge-eating, distracting cravings, and feeling deprived. When you feel hungry and do not nourish your body in the second half of your cycle, you throw your hormones off-balance and create erratic blood sugar levels. Most diets don’t supply your body and brain enough of the micronutrients that they need to create balanced appetite control-neurotransmitters and balanced metabolism-boosting hormone levels. The FLO Living protocol supports appetite control and boosts your metabolism, because it increases essential micronutrients and balances your hormones.Cycle Syncing your diet means eating different foods in different phases of your menstrual cycle - your menstrual phase, follicular phase, ovulatory phase, and luteal or pre-menstrual phase - as well as cooking foods in different ways (roasting, baking, sauteing, raw) according to those hormone patterns.

How to start Cycle Syncing your diet

If you’re interested in Cycle-Syncing your diet here’s how to get started:

1. Know where you are in your cycle - if you have irregular cycles due to PCOS it can be hard to know exactly where you’re at in your cycle one week to the next. But, even if you currently haven’t had a period for months, you can still start Cycle Syncing by starting with the foods I recommend for the follicular phase and following the moon phases.
2. Start by focusing on a few of the foods I recommend for each cycle phase and build from there, adding in more and more foods as you get used to this way of eating and planning meals. You don’t need to do everything all at once, it may take a few months to get into the habit of Cycle Syncing your eating. All of the foods I recommend are outlined in my book “WomanCode” in an easy-to-understand chart. They are broken down into food types like vegetables, protein, and grains, with plenty of possible variety.
3. Get to grips with stocking your fridge weekly with the foods you need for each upcoming cycle phase. Cooking by the FLO Living protocol is not complicated. I personally keep it super simple and cook on just two days per week, parsing out the ingredients for different meals on the other days.
4. Once you have begun Cycle Syncing your diet, you can start Cycle Syncing other elements of your life to increase your success with weight loss - especially how you work out from one cycle phase to another. Women need to eat and exercise differently in pre-menstrual phase. Over-exercising during the premenstrual phase can actually prevent you from losing weight.

Always remember, that once you have the right information about how your body really works, you can start making health choices that finally start to work for you! You can do this - the science of your body is on your side!to your FLO,AlisaGood things come in threes:

I want to hear from you!

First, do you have PCOS? Second, do you have irregular cycles? Third, everyone you know is hormonal – spread a little good period karma and share this article on social ;)

Is Your Period Healthy?

How do you know if your hormones are healthy? The answer is in your 5th vital sign - your period. The color of your flow, frequency of your period, and symptoms you have each month can tell you a lot about your health. There are 5 different V-SIGN TYPES, and knowing which one you have will help you get healthy now and prevent disease in the future. Click here to take The V-SIGN TYPE™ Quiz NOW

Many women are prescribed the birth control pill for their depression, mood swings, anxiety or PMS symptoms. Now new research from the University of Copenhagen has revealed that the birth control pill and other hormonal contraceptives (including the hormonal IUD, patch, and ring) could actually be causing depression for some women.The new study tracked over 1 million Danish women between the ages of 15 to 34 over the course of 13 years. None of the women had a history of depression, but upon starting with the birth control pill, hormonal IUD, patch or ring, developed depression at significant rates. The researchers found that women taking the combined (estrogen and progestin) pill were 23% more likely to be diagnosed with depression and those using progestin-only pills were 34% more likely. Teen girls were at the greatest risk, with an 80% increase when taking the combined pill, and a two-fold risk with the progestin-only pill. The other synthetic hormone-based methods were shown to increase depression at a rate that was even higher than either kind of pill, for all women. This is the largest scale, highest quality research study of its kind. These women were diagnosed with depression and/or prescribed antidepressants. I have seen countless times, women getting off of synthetic birth control find that they no longer need antidepressants. Often, for women, depression is related to our hormonal balance - as this new study only confirms. Adding synthetic hormones that block our body’s own production of hormones and replace the hormone cycle - it’s not all that surprising that taking hormonal birth control can cause depression. Perhaps you’ve experienced it for yourself. Antidepressants have, in themselves, been linked to infertility issues, which makes this protocol doubly problematic.What can we take away from this new research? I recommend avoiding hormonal birth control and instead using other methods of contraception. My personal favorite is condoms, but there’s also the diaphragm, cervical cap, and fertility awareness. If reading this new research has made you realize you do suffer with depression as a side effect of the hormonal birth control you are using, then you need to transition off this medication in a way that will help you to avoid any withdrawal symptoms. If you have depression and you realize that hormonal birth control is not a good treatment option (or you have depression and you’re not on hormonal birth control), I have some suggestions for natural remedies. Many women suffer from depression as the result of a hormonal imbalance, micronutrient deficiency, or a gut health issue (or a combination of all three).

Natural remedies for depression

• B vitamins - the birth control pill depletes B vitamins and this is one of the mechanism by which it likely causes depression. There are plenty of studies to show the positive affect B vitamins can have on mood. You’ll need to take a daily B vitamin complex and additional B12 and B6.
• Probiotics - the birth control pill disrupts the microbiome and destroys gut health. Most of the serotonin (the happy hormone) our bodies make is created in the gut. When your gut flora is off-balance, you cannot absorb the necessary nutrients you need (including those B vitamins). More research is mounting to explain the gut-brain health connection. This is cutting edge information that will soon become common knowledge. Eat fermented foods like kimchi or sauerkraut daily.
• Omega 3 fatty acids - you can get your omega 3s from Evening Primrose Oil or Cod Liver Oil. Again, many studies show that increasing intake of omega 3s helps with depression and anxiety. There is an established link between depression and inflammation, and omega 3s are anti-inflammatory in action. You can supplement and increase foods like flax seeds, chia seeds, walnuts, salmon and oily fish like mackerel and sardines.
• Magnesium - the majority of us are deficient in magnesium. We need magnesium to produce healthy hormone levels. Magnesium is cortisol-regulating, meaning it’s actually physically calming to our stress-wired systems. It’s well-evidenced that magnesium can alleviate depressive symptoms.
• Exercise/movement - when you’re feeling depressed, working out might seem near-impossible. That’s why I suggest bodywork as an alternative - a good massage of any kind can be just as helpful. Many studies point to movement helping to alleviate depression. This doesn’t have to mean a spin class, it can mean a massage, or yoga, or stretches, or a simple dance break during your work day. Your body will still release those mood-boosting endorphins.

Always remember, that once you have the right information about how your body really works, you can start making health choices that finally start to work for you! You can do this - the science of your body is on your side!to your FLO,AlisaGood things come in threes:

I want to hear from you!

First, do you have depression?Second, do you get PMS symptoms? Third, everyone you know is hormonal – spread a little good period karma and share this article on social ;)

Is Your Period Healthy?

How do you know if your hormones are healthy? The answer is in your 5th vital sign - your period. The color of your flow, frequency of your period, and symptoms you have each month can tell you a lot about your health. There are 5 different V-SIGN TYPES, and knowing which one you have will help you get healthy now and prevent disease in the future. Click here to take The V-SIGN TYPE™ Quiz NOW

Coffee is toxic for women with hormonal issues. We live in a culture that not only encourages coffee consumption, but celebrates it, with a whole industry built around emphasizing the necessity and purpose of coffee as something like a lifestyle choice for women (ever seen those “but first coffee” tees, mugs, and memes, for a start?), so this might come as a shock. The information we receive about the healthiness of coffee is confused by the fact that the majority of scientific research focuses entirely on men alone. Men can drink coffee, that’s true. But, women should avoid caffeine entirely. We are not biological compatible with caffeine and caffeine is a root cause of many common women’s health problems. However, coffee addiction is real. As someone who used to love coffee - the morning ritual, the taste, everything - I know it’s not as simple as turning off a switch to stop drinking coffee. There’s the psychological dependence, and then there’s the physical dependence that makes caffeine addiction a situation that requires a detox strategy.

Why coffee is bad for women

If you’re skeptical about my assertion that coffee is toxic for women, let me give you a quick rundown of the reasons here. I have written more extensively about this in a previous post.

• Coffee promotes the creation of cysts in the breasts and ovaries
• Coffee, like alcohol, stays in a woman’s system for longer
• 1 cup of coffee disrupts your hormones for 24 hours
• Coffee depletes your body of essential nutrients and minerals
• Coffee is acidic and this negatively impacts your gut health
• 3 cups a day increases infertility rates in men and women!

So, coffee, it’s just not worth it I’m afraid when you are already struggling to regain your optimal endocrine function. We women need to start a backlash against coffee to regain our hormonal health and vitality.

How to detox from coffee

Here’s how to detox from coffee without getting any withdrawal symptoms and without feeling you’re losing out on energy reserves. If you follow these steps you won’t find you feel bad coming off caffeine and you will feel much less inclined to go back to it.

1. Decide to detox at the right time in your hormone cycle - and that’s your ovulation phase when you have the most natural energy reserves and feel buoyant.
2. Nourish your adrenals with adaptogens that help combat stress like rhodiola, ashwagandha and maca root powder. I like maca root powder from The Maca Team. Jarrow’s Adrenal Optimizer is also a good option for a range of adaptogens in one supplement.
3. Use magnesium to replenish your mineral reserves, balance your mood, and combat any headaches you might experience. I recommend Epsom salt baths or topical magnesium.
4. As well as your usual B-complex, take added B5 and B12.
5. Rehydrate with coconut water that is rich in electrolytes.
6. DO gentle exercise like walks and yoga, but avoid heavy cardio in the week or two after stopping coffee.
7. Eat a really good, big breakfast every morning, which will give you fuel for the whole day.

The best alternatives to coffee

So now you’re off the coffee, what can you drink instead? At home in the morning to replace that great taste, and also when you’re out meeting friends, and all those other times when everyone else seems to have a coffee cup in hand.

• Kukicha or “twig” tea doesn’t taste like most herbal teas and in fact has a very similar taste to coffee that’s kind of nutty.
• Maca root powder in warm non-dairy milk with a little raw honey as a sweetener - it tastes coffee-like and helps with your detox
• A herbal tea with dandelion root
• Burdock root tea

Always remember, that once you have the right information about how your body really works, you can start making health choices that finally start to work for you! You can do this - the science of your body is on your side!to your FLO,AlisaGood things come in threes:

I want to hear from you!

First, do you have a coffee addiction? Second, do you have low energy? Third, everyone you know is hormonal – spread a little good ovary karma and share this article on social ;)

Is Your Period Healthy?

How do you know if your hormones are healthy? The answer is in your 5th vital sign - your period. The color of your flow, frequency of your period, and symptoms you have each month can tell you a lot about your health. There are 5 different V-SIGN TYPES, and knowing which one you have will help you get healthy now and prevent disease in the future. Click here to take The V-SIGN TYPE™ Quiz NOW

Hot flashes might be more commonly known as a symptom of menopause, but you can actually start experiencing hot flashes during perimenopause. Perimenopause begins at 35 for all women. There is quite a long build up and slow shift in your hormonal patterns before you enter menopause and your period stops entirely. Your body stops making as much of estrogen, progesterone and testosterone and it can be more sensitive to imbalance. How much you feel this shift in terms of symptoms will depend on your diet and lifestyle. Hot flashes are not inevitable or a necessary part of this stage of your life. When my clients are entering their perimenopause years I encourage them to eat and live in a way that supports healthy, optimal hormone production. This is why I’ve developed some special recipes specifically for hot flash relief. Even though perimenopause begins at 35, you can delay the aging process that would otherwise come part and parcel with declining hormone production. You can keep your energy, your sex drive, your youthful skin and figure for many more years, just by eating the right hormone-friendly foods. You can avoid common perimenopause symptoms like hot flashes, weight gain, acne, low energy, low libido, moodiness and missing periods by eating with hormonal consciousness. Once you know what’s happening inside your body, you can know what to do to make yourself feel and look good. Your hormones help to regulate your body temperature, so when you have a hormonal imbalance this can go haywire - causing hot flashes. Low estrogen can cause your hypothalamus (your internal thermostat) to stop working effectively. When estrogen is low, the body produces more FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) and LH (luteinizing hormone) - these increase blood circulation by dilating your blood vessels, and so produce the feeling of hot flashes. The best way to prevent hot flashes is to address this root cause - the hormonal imbalance - and support your body in producing higher levels of estrogen and progesterone.

Hot flash relief recipe

I have several special recipes I pass along to my clients who are experiencing hot flashes as a part of perimenopause. If you’re interested in discovering more meal ideas to prevent hot flashes and want further tips on avoiding other potential symptoms of this phase - like weight gain, acne, moodiness - check out my previous articles on the topic for lots more information. The tofu, soy and flax in the hot flash relief recipe I share below will increase your natural levels of plant-based estrogen to help increase your overall levels. The black sesame seeds contain high amounts of calcium (more than a serving of milk) and can also relieve symptoms of hot flashes and insomnia. Flax is a fiber-rich food source and will help your body process and eliminate unneeded hormones - balancing out the added phyto-estrogens from tofu and soy.

Hot Flash Healing Tofu Nibbles recipe

This recipe is perfect for an appetizer, a part of your lunch, a snack or even for a dinner party with your perimenopausal friends! To make these nibbles you’ll need: 1 block organic GMO-free tofu1 T soy sauce1 T unrefined sesame oil or coconut oil1 T coconut nectar or honey2 tsp black sesame seeds2 tsp flax seedsTake a block of Organic GMO Free Tofu. Cut in half inch cubes. Make the “glue” by mixing the soy sauce, sesame oil and blackstrap molasses. Coat the cubes in the sticky dressing. Grind in spice grinder the sesame and flax seeds. Toss the cubes through the seed mixture while still moist and coat thoroughly. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. They will come out nice and chewy and delicious. Snap a picture of your nibbles for our Twitter or Facebook and we’ll share the best. Tag with #hotflashrelief Always remember, that once you have the right information about how your body really works, you can start making health choices that finally start to work for you! You can do this - the science of your body is on your side!to your FLO,AlisaGood things come in threes:

I want to hear from you!

First, do you have hot flashes Second, do you think you might be in perimenopause? Third, everyone you know is hormonal – spread a little good ovary karma and share this article on social ;)

Is Your Period Healthy?

How do you know if your hormones are healthy? The answer is in your 5th vital sign - your period. The color of your flow, frequency of your period, and symptoms you have each month can tell you a lot about your health. There are 5 different V-SIGN TYPES, and knowing which one you have will help you get healthy now and prevent disease in the future. Click here to take The V-SIGN TYPE™ Quiz NOW