How Essential Oils Influence Hormonal Balance

Hormonal balance is important in order to ensure that basic functions and systems of the body are working properly. Hormones are the most basic component that helps your body perform its best - whether physically, mentally, psychologically, and emotionally. With the proper flow of hormones, you can feel, look, and think positive.

There are several ways for you to preserve proper hormonal balance, which is basically a combination of different factors. These includes diet, lifestyle patterns, exercise, getting enough vitamins and nutrients, and minimal exposure to environmental factors that would trigger imbalances in your hormonal system. But there are some form of imbalances that are caused by natural factors and therefore cannot be prevented. This includes the major hormonal fluctuations that women encounter when they enter menopausal stage or when they are about to begin a new menstrual cycle.

The manifestation of symptoms indicating that you have hormonal imbalance will begin to exhibit itself once you reach the age of 20 up to 40. The specific symptoms will differ from one woman to another, but they tend to become more intense as a woman ages. Here are some of the general symptoms you should be warned about:

• fibrocystic breasts
• allergy symptoms
• decreasing libido
• osteoporosis
• hair loss
• PMS
• uterine fibroids
• urinary tract infections
• endometriosis
• weight gain or water retention
• wrinkly skin
• headache or dizzying sensation
• depression and anxiety

A woman with hormonal imbalances will experience significant impact to her condition that affects her psychological and emotional health. If left untreated, it will reduce the quality of her life. Therefore, it is important to be able to provide treatment that will serve to moderate and regulate the symptoms of the condition. There are modern therapies used to alter the activities of hormones but if you want to use a natural method, then it is best to settle for the use of aromatherapy and essential oils.

Essential Oil and Hormones

The impact of using essential oils in aromatherapy is not just isolated on the physical level but also affect your internal health system. Hormonal imbalances happen when your endocrine system undergo alteration in its normal production of hormones. Therefore, the use of essential oils and its properties help to intervene with this activity by stimulating specific brain cells to naturally affect your endocrine system's activity. Through the process of stimulation with the use of essential oils, it will affect the level of hormone production and its consequent effect on your body.

Best Oils For Hormonal Balance

Although there are several essential oils available for treating hormonal imbalances, the female hormone is a special case. There are three types of essential oils that are best known for its ability to regulate female hormones. They are listed and discussed in brief below:

*Geranium - For best results, go for the Bourbon type of Geranium since they are recognized as highly effective for hormonal imbalances, especially in women. Clinical studies were conducted and still being conducted in an effort to better understand that main chemical component of Geranium oil that produce these results. But current studies have indicated geraniol to be that one component responsible for treating imbalances on your autonomic nervous system, which is mainly responsible for the production of hormones.

*Petitgrain - Petitgrain oil emits a warm but refreshing citrusy aroma, which is why it is famous in perfumery. But only few are aware of this essential oil's ability to enhance mood and improve psychic state. It is a great oil to use for stabilizing your emotions due to the phyto estrogen present in Petitgrain essential oil that contribute to the balancing effect on your hormones, whether male or female.

*Clary Sage – If you are suffering from nervous tension, clary sage essential oil is one of the most recommended types of oil to use. But it also has a natural affinity with female reproductive organ, so clary sage is an ideal oil to use during premenstrual problems. It is most effective when blended with Geranium essential oil since it regulates female hormonal imbalances that cause menstrual symptoms, nausea, headache, irregular menstruation, and depressive behavior.

Aromatherapy and the use of essential oils offer a natural way to eliminate any entailing conditions caused by hormonal imbalances. Here are just some of the suggested essential oils that you can use for specific conditions:

*Menopause: The calming and soothing effect of lavender oil's delicate scent is ideal for relieving any symptoms of menopause.

*Hot flashes: This is a very common condition associated with hormonal imbalances in women. Hence, you need either lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, or peppermint essential oil to wake up your senses and restore balance.

*Irritability: When a woman suffers major hormonal fluctuations, their mood and emotional state is going to be affected immensely. You need to go for essential oils with balancing and grounding properties like lavender, patchouli, and cardamom.

*Depression or anxiety: To reverse this behavior, you must use an essential oil with a soothing essence like lavender or ylang ylang.

Now that you are aware of the essential oils recommended for use when you have problems with hormonal balance, the next step is for you to identify how you can use it in order to utilize its beneficial properties. There are different methods of application available and your choice depends largely on what type of oil you use and what condition you want to treat.

A substantial knowledge on your individual cycle is the key to maximizing the benefits of the essential oil in use. If you have irregular menstrual cycle, you can expect it to return to normal within 3 months of using essential oils to regular your hormones. Using the essential oils suggested for balancing female hormones, you can either use those for massage or add a few drops into your bathwater to be completely absorbed by your skin and enter into your bloodstream. As an effect, it will cause your estrogen level to rise and cure any abnormalities in your body caused by irregular hormonal activity. You can also use an essential oil female toner as a hot compress that will effectively reduce pain that goes with menstrual and intestinal cramps.

Recipe for Female Toner

Creating your own female toner with the use of different essential oil combinations is known for balancing, regulating, and acting as a natural tonic for the female hormones. After all, women are most vulnerable for hormonal imbalances and the use of pure essential oils to make natural toner will provide support for any changes caused by the hormonal activities within the body.

For this synergistic blend of essential oils, you will need the following essential oils as basic ingredients: clary sage, rosewood, blue tansy, rose, geranium, petitgrain, lavender, and frankincense. Each of these ingredients are individually capable of regulating and toning the female hormones; but when mixed together, it creates a natural medicine that would effectively enable women to cope with the impact of these hormonal changes.