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Introduction
Endometriosis
Endometriosis is a very common gynaecological condition
which can affect up to 15 percent of all women. Half
of all women with endometriosis will be infertile.
After fibroids, endometriosis is the most common gynaecological
problem. The National Endometriosis Society estimates
that between 1.5 and 2 million women in Britain have
endometriosis. In the US that number is closer to
5 million.
Endometriosis is more common in childless women over the age of 30. It is now believed that endometriosis is sensitive to oestrogen; therefore, women who have had more cycles, without a break for pregnancy, will have had more exposure to the female hormones. Today, with more and more women putting off having children until their later years, the incidence of endometriosis-linked infertility is increasing.
What is endometriosis?
Endometriosis is a condition in which the lining of
the womb (the endometrium) implants and grows outside
the womb itself. These endometrial implants can grow
in the pelvis, fallopian tubes, ovaries, bowel and
bladder. More uncommonly, they can also crop up in
the lung, heart, eye, armpit or knee.
Wherever it grows, the womb lining responds to the natural hormone cycle and bleeds every time a period occurs. When women bleed normally throughout menstruation, blood leaves the body through the vagina. However, in the case of endometriosis, the blood has no outlet and becomes trapped in the tissue, causing pain, inflammation, cysts and scar tissue. You may find blood in your stools or urine during your period, or experience pain in diverse areas of your body. Some of my patients experience nosebleeds during their periods because they have endometrial patches in the nasal passages.
What are the symptoms?
The symptoms vary between women. In some women, endometriosis
can cause extremely painful periods and painful sex,
but some women experience no symptoms whatsoever.
Symptoms can occur at any time of the month - during a bowel movement, or when urinating, for example. The most severe pain can start between five and seven days before a period and last for two to three days during the period itself. Painful sex (called dyspareunia) is a feature of the condition in up to 59 percent of all women with endometriosis, and acts as a keynote symptom - something that alerts doctors to a possible diagnosis.
Symptoms often improve dramatically after pregnancy, and it is believed that having a break from the monthly cycle actually 'quietens down' the disease in some sufferers.
Women have talked about how the endometriosis takes over their lives. Holidays are planned to avoid periods and social arrangements are cancelled at the last minute when the pain becomes intense. Many women are forced to take days off work each month in order to cope with the condition and some women have had to give up work because their employers cannot cope with their frequent absences.
Common symptoms
- painful periods (dysmenorrhoea)
- heavy or irregular periods
- painful sex (dyspareunia)
- back pain
- nausea
- fatigue
- gastrointestinal problems including diarrhoea, bloating and painful defecation
- infertility
- general pain in the pelvic area
What are your choices?
Endometriosis can be triggered by a combination of
factors including hormone imbalances, stress and nutritional
deficiencies, so a multi-factorial approach is the
quickest way to eliminating the symptoms of endometriosis.
I have recommended particular supplements not only
to strengthen your immune system, but for their unique
ability to address certain health conditions, including
hormone imbalance. The idea is to address all possible
known causes of endometriosis, while at the same time
ensuring that you reach optimum health, where your
body can start to fight its own battles.
Supplements
The supplements recommended below have been studied
in clinical trials and have been found to be effective
in connection with endometriosis. For best results
you should take them over a period of three months,
at the end of which you should be reassessed in order
to monitor improvements and changes and then adjust
the supplement programme according to your new condition.
Multivitamin and Mineral
A good quality multivitamin and mineral would form
the foundation of your supplement programme to make
sure that you are getting a 'little bit of everything'.
You then add in those nutrients in slightly higher
amounts which are known to be helpful for endometriosis.
The B vitamins
The B vitamins are particularly important for endometriosis
sufferers for a number of reasons. First and foremost,
they are needed by the liver to convert excess oestrogen
into weaker and less dangerous forms. One of the B
vitamins, B6, has been shown to significantly reduce
the intensity and duration of period pains, which
will help many sufferers.
The B vitamins are also crucial for the conversion of linoleic acid to GLA (gamma linolenic acid), which is necessary to produce beneficial prostaglandins (hormone-like substances that have a relaxing effect on the womb muscles and anti-inflammatory properties). This might sound confusing, but it's a crucial concept. Linoleic acid is an essential fatty acid (EFA), and it is found in foods such as corn oil, fresh nuts and seeds, and safflower oil. It's also known as an 'omega 6' oil, which is a term with which you might be more familiar. The B vitamins are required to convert this essential oil into a form that can be used by the body to produce a 'good' type of prostaglandins. Without this conversion, our bodies would produce more of the 'bad' prostaglandins, which can increase the period pains and set up from inflammation from the endometrial patches.
Vitamin E
This is an important vitamin in endometriosis because
it has been shown to relieve menstrual cramps in 70
percent of women within two menstrual cycles.
Vitamin C and bioflavonoids
Vitamin C is one of the most important vitamins for
immune function, and it is crucial that your immune
system is operating at optimum level so that your
body can recognise and destroy endometrial patches
as they occur. Bioflavonoids are helpful with pain
occurring around the time of your period because they
help to relax smooth muscle and to prevent inflammation.
Magnesium
Magnesium acts as a muscle relaxant and has been shown
to have a beneficial effect on painful periods and
lower back pain so it is worth taking as a supplement.
Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs)
Your body produces beneficial prostaglandins from
essential fatty acids, which help to reduce period
pains. They also have an anti-inflammatory response,
which is particularly beneficial to endometriosis
sufferers.
The minerals zinc and vitamin B6 are also important for the correct metabolism of fatty acids and their conversion to beneficial prostaglandins (PGE1 and PGE3). Certain prostaglandins e.g. PGE2 can be negative in high amounts. In particular, PGE2 is a highly inflammatory substance that can cause swelling and pain and also thicken the blood, which can then cause congestion and stagnation in the pelvic area.
In 1998, an interesting study reported in a highly regarded medical journal, Fertility and Sterility, considered the effects of making dietary changes. Women with endometriosis were asked to eliminate caffeine, to control their blood sugar by eating little and often and eliminating foods containing sugar, and supplementing with essential fatty acids. Doctors found that by making these simple changes, women taking part in the study experienced a significant decrease in the symptoms of endometriosis.
Herbs (see caution below)
Herbs can have a tremendous impact on helping with the period pains while you are working on your diet. The approach is two-fold, using diet and herbs to work on normalising hormone balance and then taking different herbs to help you to cope with the worst symptoms. At the beginning you may require painkillers and herbs to deal with the pain; however, gradually your dependence upon the painkillers will be reduced to the point where they are unnecessary. Eventually it will also be possible to stop taking herbs.
Hormone balance
Agnus castus (Vitex/Chastetree berry) is one of the
most important herbs for female hormone problems,
and it works to stimulate and normalise the function
of the pituitary gland. This gland controls and balances
the hormones in our body. Agnus castus works by restoring
balance, whether your hormone levels are too high
or too low.
Milk thistle (Silybum marianum) is an excellent herb for the liver, which needs to work efficiently to balance the hormones. A number of studies have shown that its use can result in an increase of new liver cells to replace old damaged ones.
Echinacea (Echinacea purpurea) is the herb of choice
for the immune system and it helps to increase the
white blood cell count. It seems to be more effective
when taken on and off. I suggest ten days on and three
days off for maximum immune system benefits.
You should not take any of the above herbs if you are taking, The Pill, Fertillity drugs, HRT or any other hormonal treatment or other medication unless they are recommended by a registered, experienced practitioner.
The tests below have been specially selected to be the most helpful if you are concerned about endometriosis.
Mineral Analysis Test
with Supplement and Nutritional Assessment Programme
This test measures the deficiency and excess levels
of 7 different minerals and 5 heavy toxic metals that
may be present in your body.
Online Personalised
Supplement Assessment Programme
The analysis of this comprehensive questionnaire will
give you a three monthly supplement programme to help
balance any vitamin and mineral deficiencies you may
have.
After three months you would then have a re-test in order to monitor your progress and adjust your supplement programme according to your new condition.
If you need help in obtaining any of the supplements, herbs or tests mentioned above, click, Endometriosis options at The Natural Health PracticeThe Natural Health Practice. They can supply all of them for you online or if you prefer to talk to somebody first you can also order by mail order on the telephone. The products supplied by this company are always of the highest quality.
Plan of Action
Nutrition
Ensure you are getting the right nutrition:
Follow dietary recommendations outlined on the Foundation
of Health page.
And for more information on the special dietary recommendations
for endometriosis, see the rest of the chapter on Endometriosis e-book at The Natural Health Practice.
The supplement programme below should be taken for at least three months in order to achieve best results
- A good multivitamin and mineral supplement
- B complex vitamins (100 mg of each B vitamin per day; take into consideration how much is in your multivitamin supplement)
- Magnesium (300 mg per day)
- Vitamin E (300iu per day)
- Zinc citrate (15mg per day)
- Vitamin C with bioflavonoids (1000 mg twice per day)
- Linseed oil (flaxseed oil) (1000 mg per day)
At the end of three months you should reassess your condition and adjust your supplement programme accordingly.
These tests will help you to assess your present condition and indicate any specific deficiencies you may have that need to be balanced.
Mineral Analysis Test with Supplement and Nutritional Assessment Programme
Online Personalised
Supplement Assessment Programme
After three months you would then have a re-test in order to monitor your progress and adjust your supplement programme according to your new condition.
If you need help in obtaining any of the supplements, herbs or tests mentioned above, click, Endometriosis options at The Natural Health PracticeThe Natural Health Practice. They can supply all of them for you online or if you prefer to talk to somebody first you can also order by mail order on the telephone. The products supplied by this company are always of the highest quality.
The section above forms part of a larger complete e-book on Endometriosis. In the rest of the e-book you will learn what the medical approaches to endometriosis are and how to combine them with the natural approach. This is called Integrated Medicine and is the way that healthier of the future is moving towards. You will also learn what medical tests will give you an accurate diagnosis of your condition and if you really need to have them. The medical treatments for endometriosis are then examined which can include looking at either drugs or surgery. Each treatment is then discussed and the pros and cons of the options explained. The Integrated Approach to endometriosis is considered in some detail so that if appropriate you can know how to combine the best of both conventional and natural medicine.
At the end of the e-book is a practical step by step summary of what you can do to help yourself.
If you would like to read the rest of this e-book click, Endometriosis e-book at The Natural Health Practiceand you will be given details of how you can download the whole e-book.
Or if you would like even more in depth advice about Endometriosis you should read my New book "Getting Pregnant Faster".
| Introduction | What are your choices? | Plan of Action |
The contents of this site are for information only and are intended to assist readers in identifying symptoms and conditions they may be experiencing. This site is not intended to be a substitute for taking proper medical advice and should not be relied upon in this way. Always consult a qualified doctor or health practitioner, especially if you are pregnant, taking the pill or on any medication. Your situation will need to be looked at individually and you should not attempt to self treat. The author and publisher cannot accept responsibility for illness arising out of the failure to seek medical advice from a doctor.
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