Hormones aren’t something you can simply add to the body and expect balance. The body makes its own, and it needs the raw materials to do it. This combination is a hormonal food: it provides the raw material for the body to make whatever hormones it calls for. And because hormones are a need for everyone, it can be used by men and women alike.
It’s especially helpful through the natural hormonal shifts of adolescence, pregnancy and menopause. It helps balance the hormones, eases the tension that so often rides along with reproductive change, and supports both the adrenal glands and the heart as they carry the body through that change.
What a Good Hormonal Food Formula Contains
This one uses eight herbs, in equal parts:
- Black Cohosh, 1 part. A classic women’s herb and nervine. It supports hormonal balance and eases the tension and nervousness of reproductive change, while feeding and strengthening the nervous system.
- Sarsaparilla, 1 part. A natural source of steroidal saponins that support healthy hormone balance in both men and women, traditionally used as a glandular tonic and for prostate support.
- Ginseng, 1 part. A well-known adaptogen supporting energy, memory and healthy sexual function in men and women, and helping the body handle the stress of hormonal transition.
- Licorice, 1 part. Supports the adrenal glands and eases the irritability and nervous exhaustion that so often come with hormonal change.
- Blessed Thistle, 1 part. Supplies vitamins, minerals and hormone-supportive compounds, long included in women’s formulas to balance hormones through cycle changes and puberty.
- Squaw Vine, 1 part. Tones and strengthens the uterine area, and was traditionally used in the final weeks of pregnancy to prepare the muscles for birth.
- Shatavari, 1 part. A cooling, deeply moistening adaptogen that brings relief for hot flashes, night sweats and dryness, balancing the blend’s warmer herbs.
- Vitex (Chaste Tree Berry), 1 part. Acts on the pituitary gland to encourage healthy progesterone production, easing mood swings and irregular cycles, especially in perimenopause.
“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb. By weight, that’s simply equal ounces of all eight.
Why Shatavari and Vitex
This formula once used False Unicorn Root, a pelvic tonic long valued in Western herbalism. False Unicorn has become hard to find as wild supplies are over-harvested, and it is now on the United Plant Savers At-Risk list. Rather than keep drawing on a scarce wild plant, I replaced it with Shatavari and Vitex. Together they cover what False Unicorn provided and more: Shatavari’s cooling, moistening help for hot flashes and dryness, and Vitex’s support for the pituitary’s part in a balanced cycle.
Putting It Together
Put the dry herbs in a glass jar and pour in 80-proof vodka. Once the herbs have settled, you want about 60% herb sediment on the bottom and 40% liquid on top. Shake the jar every day. The traditional timing follows the moon, from the new moon to the full moon, about two weeks. I prefer to let my extracts sit a full three months, which makes them good and strong. Then strain and bottle the liquid.
How Much and How Often
½ to 1 teaspoon, three times a day.
Three Formulas, Three Jobs
I keep three formulas for the female system, and each has its own job:
- The everyday formula: basic food for the female system, a balancing formula for every woman from puberty on. It’s the starting place for anyone needing support.
- The structural formula: for rebuilding and revitalizing a female system that has been worn down, as part of a program for endometriosis, cysts and similar troubles.
- The hormonal formula (this post): hormonal food that gives the body the raw material to make whatever hormones it calls for, for men and women alike.
This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.
