In the past I have commented on a curious relationship I had observed between the onset of allergies and changes in a woman’s menstrual cycle. This relationship is no mere coincidence. Once again, estrogen dominance plays a role. Maggie, whose story opened this book, developed allergies after giving birth to her first child. Gail’s allergies emerged in her mid-thirties, around the time that she began experiencing painful periods and other symptoms of estrogen dominance.

One explanation for the link between estrogen dominance and allergies is that estrogen promotes the release of histamine:

“When our adrenal glands are working properly they release cortisol to limit the inflammation process to what is necessary for immediate tissue repair by blocking the effects of histamine which is released by damaged cells to bring more blood flow to the area. In this case histamine alerts the body to release cortisol as a healing response. Undigested and fermented food causes the body to raise histamine levels, which produce allergic reactions. We know that histamine is associated with the symptoms of an allergic reaction such as a runny nose, itchy eyes, and sneezing.” (From Histamine)

Another explanation, which I’ll be discussing in greater detail in the next chapter, has to do with the relationship between progesterone cortisol:

“PMS is associated with estrogen dominance. Progesterone has been wrongly accused of causing PMS because it is at its highest just before menstruation. The truth is, however, that women with PMS tend to have low levels of progesterone at the time of their cycle, when progesterone is supposed to be dominant over estrogen.” (From makadifmenopause)

Cortisol, which is made in the adrenal glands from progesterone, is the body’s natural anti-inflammatory hormone. In fact, synthetic drugs, commonly called “cortisone,” are sometimes prescribed for bronchial asthma, a severe allergic condition, because they mimic the anti-inflammatory action of the body’s own cortisol.

Because cortisol is made by the body from progesterone, a decline in progesterone levels will result in a decline in cortisol levels as well. It is not surprising, then, that new mothers, women in their middle years experiencing anovulatory cycles, and menopausal women whose ovaries are no longer producing progesterone may also have insufficient cortisol and begin experiencing allergies to substances that were previously innocuous to them.

For a FREE e-Book by Dr. Hotze on Hormone Replacement Therapy and Estrogen Dominance, CLICK HERE.

Do you suffer from allergies? CLICK HERE to test yourself.

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