In this video, JJ Virgin explains how hormonal imbalances affect many women over 40 and how dietary changes can help restore balance. She outlines five specific food groups that support hormone health: (1) cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and cabbage, which contain indole‑3‑carbinol and glucosinolates that modulate estrogen metabolism and support liver detox; she cites a 2007 Pharmacological Research epidemiological study linking these vegetables to reduced cancer risk. (2) Flaxseeds, rich in lignans (phytoestrogens) that help balance estrogen and progesterone and detoxify excess estrogen; a 2000 Nutrition and Cancer trial showed reduced estradiol and estrone sulfate in post‑menopausal women. Practical advice includes grinding seeds fresh to avoid oxidation. (3) Wild salmon and other oily fish, providing omega‑3 fatty acids that reduce inflammation, improve cellular health, and maintain hormone‑receptor sensitivity; a 2004 Obstetrical & Gynecological Survey review highlighted benefits for dysmenorrhea, pregnancy, preeclampsia, postpartum depression, and osteoporosis. JJ recommends 2 g of fish oil daily, eating fish 3×/week, and using an OmegaQuant Omega‑3 Index test to verify status. (4) Avocados, offering monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, fiber, magnesium, potassium, and glutathione, which support hormone synthesis, blood‑sugar regulation, and metabolic health; a 2013 Nutrition Journal observational study linked avocado intake to better diet quality, weight management, and lower metabolic‑syndrome risk. She shares recipe ideas like dark‑chocolate avocado mousse. (5) Walnuts, a plant source of ALA omega‑3 (2.5 g per ounce) and linoleic acid, plus fiber and magnesium, which help bind excess estrogen for excretion; she warns about calorie density and suggests adding chopped walnuts to salads. The video ends with a teaser for a follow‑up video on hormonal shifts after 40 and their impact on weight loss.
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Nearly 50% of all women experience hormonal imbalance, and that can lead to poor mood, weight issues, disrupt your sex life, your sleep, your stress, and much more. And it turns out that poor choices with your diet and lifestyle hit you way harder than they used to once you're in your 40s. Not really news, right? But the great news is that you can make some positive changes in your diet that can help restore your hormone balance, reduce your symptoms, and get you back to feeling better than ever. I'm going to go through 5 of the things that you can do right now, add to your diet, that's going to help with hormonal balance. And the first one is broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables. These are not your ordinary veggies. I'm talking about broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and cabbage because they are loaded with a compound called indole-3-carbinol. This nutrient plays a crucial role in helping your body manage estrogen levels effectively, steering them towards the beneficial pathways and away from the potentially harmful ones. Also supports liver liver health, which is crucial for detoxifying hormones. There was a study in 2007, it was an epidemiological analysis published in Pharmacological Research, that explored the link between cruciferous veggie intake and cancer risk. And again, they're looking at cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cabbage because they're rich in compounds called glucosinolates. When you eat these veggies, glucosinolates break down into substances including indoles and isothiocyanates. Now, these substances can lead to a lower risk of lung and colorectal cancer, and they may also help reduce the risk of hormone-sensitive cancers like breast cancers. So here's how they work. Indoles and isothiocyanates can influence the metabolism or activity of sex hormones, and this plays a role in developing hormone-sensitive cancers. For example, sulforaphane and I3C, which are, have anti-cancer properties, they can alter hormone levels and the way the body produces estrogen and processes estrogen, potentially reducing the risk of estrogen-driven cancers like some types of breast cancer. So I make a point of getting these in every single day, and here's how I do it. I travel a lot, so I make sure that I always have cauliflower and broccoli rice in the freezer. So if I come home from trip, I know I have something. So I love to make a cauliflower pilaf. I also love Brussels sprouts. I love to shave them into salads. I love to roast them. Latest one is a little bit of olive oil and throwing them into the air fryer. And then of course, cabbage is an easy one to keep in the fridge and then add it into your salads. Next up are flaxseeds, and these tiny seeds, they're hormonally balancing superheroes because they're rich in phytoestrogens, particularly lignans, and these help in balancing estrogen and progesterone levels in your body. Ground flaxseed can also help detoxify the bad estrogens that you do not want hanging around. There was a study published in 2000 in the Nutrition and Cancer Journal that explored how eating flaxseeds affects hormonal levels in postmenopausal menopausal women. And the research involved 28 women. They were either giving 0, 5, or 10 grams of ground flaxseed to their regular diets over 3 7-week periods. So every day over 3 7-week periods. What the findings revealed was that consuming flaxseed significantly decreased levels of 17-beta estradiol and estrone sulfate. These are specific forms of estrogen. And then also it increased levels of prolactin. So what do you do here? You want to grind your flaxseeds, but what I want you to do is don't buy pre-ground flaxseeds because flaxseeds are rich in omega-3s and they can oxidize. What you want to do— I like to get yellow flax and then I'll grind it in small batches, and you can just use a little coffee grinder and then store it, cover it tightly if you don't use it right away, and store it in the fridge. Better yet, just grind it and use it. If you've got a Vitamix, you can throw the actual seeds in the Vitamix, it will chop it up. I love to add this into a smoothie. This is an easy way to do it. And if you want more smoothie ideas, I have over 60 great protein-packed recipes for you in my Free Eat Protein First Smoothie Guide, and you can grab that one at jjvirgin.com. Loaded smoothie. Next up is salmon, because omega-3 fatty acids are your hormones' best friends. And as you know, wild salmon is overflowing with them. Why? Because these fats can help reduce inflammation and can help balance hormones by improving cellular health and maintaining hormonal communication pathways. They can also help maintain hormone receptor sensitivity. That means your body can hear these hormones better. There was a study in 2004, it was a review article on women and omega-3 fatty acids. It was published in Obstetrical and Gynecological Survey Journal, and it found that omega-3 fatty acid supplementation can help treat dysmenorrhea, promote pregnancy, and prevent various diseases in women, including preeclampsia, postpartum depression, and osteoporosis. So what do I do here? Number one, I take fish oil. So I take 2 grams of fish oil every day, but I also make sure that I have my freezer well stocked with wild fish— wild salmon, wild halibut, wild sea bass— because it's easy for me then to get it in a couple days a week. So I generally try to eat fish at least 3 times a week. If I'm eating a lot of fish, I'll back off my fish oil supplementation a little bit. And one of the ways that you can tell if you're getting the right amount of omega-3s— and I I recommend doing this test is something called an OmegaQuant Omega-3 Index test. You can order these online, less than $100, and it will tell you that Omega-3 index and if you are in the zone. The other fat that you're going to want to emphasize in your diet are avocados. These are rich in healthy fats and they support overall hormone balance because they provide the necessary fats required for hormone production, and they can also help control blood sugar levels, which helps keep these hormones in check. There is a 2013 observational study that was published in Nutrition Journal that found that incorporating avocados into a diet can contribute to better nutritional intake, support weight management, enhance diet quality, and reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome. And all of these things help with hormone balance and of course overall metabolic health. Plus, healthy avocados are rich in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. We need these fats for healthy hormone production and also for your cell membrane integrity. Plus, regular avocado consumption is linked with lower body weight, with better BMI, and with a smaller waist circumference. All these things, of course, also important— are important for maintaining hormonal balance. And avocado eaters have been shown to have a lower risk of developing metabolic syndrome. The other cool thing about avocados that you may not know is that they are really rich in dietary fibers. They've fiber, they've got vitamins and minerals like magnesium and potassium and glutathione. So all things that are really important for hormonal health and detoxification. Plus, avocados raise HDL-C, which promotes healthier cholesterol levels necessary for hormone synthesis. So avocados are— there's so many great things that you can do with them. My favorite thing to do with avocados is to make dark chocolate avocado mousse, where I use a little bit of coconut cream, some avocado avocado, some dark chocolate, and I sweeten it up with a little allulose. Like, who doesn't love that? The other things you can do is just keep them around to throw on your salads. And of course, we keep them frozen and we will throw them into our smoothies as well because they just give your smoothie this great texture and richness. And speaking of richness, the final one— walnuts. Now, I will tell you, of all the nuts, walnuts are my most, most favorite. They are known for their rich fatty acid profile. They're great with the— rich in omega-3s. They've got high concentration of Wafers, and the best— one of the best plant sources of omega-3s, specifically ALA. A 1-ounce serving of walnuts provides 2.5 grams of ALA. And also walnuts contain linoleic acid, which is an omega-6 fatty acid that's essential. And they also provide a great dose of fiber, which helps in managing excess estrogen by binding to it and then helping it exit the body. And of course, walnuts also have magnesium. Here's the thing though, it is easy to make too much of a good thing a bad thing because walnuts are like calorie bombs as well. Like a half a walnut is 13 calories, so a serving of walnuts is about 8 halves. So just make sure that you are counting it up. What I like to do with walnuts is I will cut them up and then I'll put them into my salad. So I don't do them in little halves, I'll do them into like halves or quarters of the halves and I break them into my salad. Love that so much. Now, all those hormone balancing foods, you got it covered, right? So next up, let's dive deeper into the hormonal shifts that can impact your weight after 40, because as you approach perimenopause and menopause, fluctuating estrogen and progesterone and other hormones can completely derail your fat loss efforts. In my next video, I'm going to reveal the truth about navigating these hormonal road bumps of your 40s so you can stay on track towards your goals.
