Allergies and estrogen are related. Women have more pronounced symptoms than men, and our symptoms change through our cycle. So if you suddenly are having more allergy symptoms, you may have a hormonal imbalance.
Women tend to have stronger allergic reactions than men. And allergy symptoms often increase with pregnancy or can even appear for the first time. So what do these have in common?
Estrogen!
Higher levels of estrogen worsen allergy symptoms (runny nose, nasal congestion). Even within a woman’s menstrual cycle, her symptoms may change as estrogen levels fluctuate.
Timing of Allergy Symptoms
Many women notice a change in their allergy symptoms during times of changing hormones. If you’re reaching for the Zyrtec more, you may have a hormonal imbalance causing your allergy symptoms. This is especially true if you:
- Are pregnant or recently gave birth
- Are getting close to perimenopause (which can start around age 35)
- Are in menopause
Our hormones change rapidly during these life phases, and if your estrogen is high or you have estrogen dominance, you could end up with more allergy symptoms.
Allergy Symptoms Fluctuate with Estrogen Across the Menstrual Cycle
For cycling women, allergy symptoms can vary across the menstrual cycle. Our estrogen levels peak around ovulation (mid-cycle, about day 14), and allergy symptoms may worsen at this time.
In a study from 2004, a team of researchers determined physicians should perform allergy tests mid-cycle for the best results. This is because blood estrogen levels correlate to the size of the skin reaction a patient has.
Are you wondering if your cycle affects your allergy symptoms? We have a free email mini-course you can use to learn how to track your data across your cycle and know what it means. For example, you can track your allergies and see if it fluctuates with your estrogen. Sign up here.
Symptoms of High Estrogen
In addition to allergy symptoms, some other common symptoms of high estrogen levels are:
- PMS
- Weight gain, especially in the hips, butt, and thigh area
- Heavy periods
- Anxiety
- Brain fog
- GI issues before your period
- Acne
If you have some of these symptoms, trying some natural interventions to lower your estrogen levels may be beneficial.
Reducing Estrogen to Improve Allergy Symptoms
After ovulation, we should metabolize most estrogen, but it piles up if we have too many fake estrogens from external sources. This causes the estrogen to be higher than it should after ovulation.
How to avoid excess estrogen in your environment:
- Avoid phytoestrogens like soy, flaxseeds, sesame seeds, and wheat bran.
- Avoid hormones in conventionally raised meat. Organic is good; grass-fed grass-finished is best. Meat raised with hormones introduces more estrogen into our systems.
- Avoid plastics, especially food storage and water bottles, since the plastic can leech into the food/water and then be introduced into our system when eating/drinking.
- Use clean cosmetics and cleaning products. Xenoestrogens are in many conventional products and mimic estrogen in our bodies. The skin is our largest organ, and when we put these ‘fake’ estrogens on our body, they are introduced into our system and act like estrogen.
We can take steps to neutralize estrogen in our body to lower our levels after ovulation and reduce the estrogen to progesterone ratio.
- Eat lots of veggies around ovulation. The fiber helps our body get rid of extra estrogen. In addition, cycle syncing suggests we eat like a raw vegan during ovulation to help with estrogen detoxification.
- Consider the supplement glutathione during ovulation. I’m not a physician. Speak with your doctor before taking supplements. Glutathione is an antioxidant that supports detoxification. This supplement helps your liver eliminate excess estrogen.
- Support liver health.
- Reduce chemical exposure as described above
- Eat organic, whole foods as often as possible.
- Drink lots of water
- Workout until you sweat to help release toxins
For the Skimmers – A Quick Summary
Allergies seem entirely unrelated to hormones but can signify you have too much estrogen or an estrogen imbalance. This is especially true if you’ve recently been pregnant, are approaching menopause, or are newly menopausal.
Start tracking your cycle and symptoms to see if your allergy symptoms are related to your estrogen levels. Join our free email mini-course to learn how to start.
If you notice your symptoms are related to estrogen fluctuations, check whether you have other symptoms of high estrogen. If you do, some easy things to do to keep your estrogen levels balanced are avoiding excess estrogen in your environment and helping your body eliminate excess estrogen with food, supplements, and exercise.