Excess Estrogen is something that a lot of women struggle with and a primary driver of this picture is poor liver and gallbladder function. We can clear excess estrogen naturally by supporting liver and gallbladder function.
Even where one is making conscious choices to avoid known endocrine disruptors in their daily life and external exposure isn’t high – if the liver and gallbladder aren’t working optimally there will be an estrogen traffic jam.
The liver is responsible for metabolizing and detoxifying estrogens through Phase I and Phase II detoxification pathways. If the liver is sluggish, nutrient-depleted, or overburdened (due to toxins, fatty liver, alcohol, medications, or systemic inflammation), estrogen clearance slows down, leading to higher circulating levels.
Some of the key co-factors needed for healthy estrogen metabolism include:
B vitamins B2, B6, B12, folate – all found in our Beef Liver Powders or BioTrace Max B Liquid supplement.
Magnesium any form you choose – Magnesium Breakthrough, NutriBio or BioTrace.
Choline Sunflower lecithin, egg yolks – both in smoothies YUM enhance bile fluidity and lipid transport.
Sulfur donors (from cruciferous vegetables, garlic, eggs, MSM)
Once the liver conjugates (modifies to make them more water soluble) estrogen, bile is the main route of elimination through the intestines. If bile flow is poor — due to sluggish gallbladder function, low bile acids, or thick, stagnant bile — those conjugated estrogens can become trapped and recirculate via the enterohepatic loop. This creates a “recirculating estrogen” scenario where the same estrogens repeatedly cycle through the body instead of being eliminated.
Signs of poor bile flow that often coexist with estrogen dominance include:
Constipation or pale stools
Nausea after fatty meals
Right upper quadrant heaviness
Keratosis pilaris
PMS, breast tenderness, fibroids, or heavy periods
Excess estrogen back load in the gallbladder contributes to the development of Gallstones AND those without a Gallbladder will often go on to develop Estrogen Overload. Love on your Gallbladder if you have one and if you don’t it is so important to have protective supplements in place to prevent liver burden and optimize bile flow.
Why is it that Gallbladder removal is so common post pregnancy? It’s that pesky estrogen again. Pregnancy increases estrogen dramatically and it thickens our bile tremendously, slowing gallbladder output which brings estrogen clearance to a grinding halt. Gallstones are the result of estrogen that cannot be cleared. Menopausal women using estrogen HRT run into the very same problem if they aren’t taking care of their gallbladder. So clearing excess estrogen is critical to avoid running into this issue.
Those with abundant Vitamin E (tocopherol) levels had a 70% reduced risk of developing gallstones because it reduced the harmful effects of estrogen excess. Bitter herbs such as St Dandy Tea, our Liver Tonic is full of them and our Gallbladder blend can be so helpful here.
Sidenote: Excess estrogen and poor gallbladder function is one of the primary drivers of Hypermesis Gravidarum. The body cannot clear the build up of toxicity and extreme sickness is the result. There is so much you can do to prevent this by optimising liver and gallbladder function during preconception and whilst pregnant to clear estrogen naturally.
Supportive Strategies for removing excess estrogen can include:
Bitter herbs such as dandelion root, gentian, burdock, globe artichoke to stimulate bile flow such as found in our Global Healing Liver Tonic and Yandina Apotheca St Dandy Tea.
Ox Bile ensures there’s adequate bile volume and flow to carry those conjugated estrogens all the way out through the stool. Nxgen Gallbladder and Ox Bile is our favourite
Sulfur-rich foods enhance Phase II detox, MSM, GlyNAC and Epsom Salt baths can all help tremendously.
Probiotics + fiber reduce enterohepatic recirculation. Binders can also be incredibly helpful here such as Quicksilver UltraBinder.
Hydration, movement, and regular bowel function to maintain elimination routes for all that estrogen.
Now let’s chat a little about Vitamin E –
Vitamin E is an estrogen antagonist, oxygen promoter, protects from coagulation disorders and PUFA toxicity whilst also being a brilliant anti-inflammatory agent. Deserves more of a spotlight that’s for sure.
Researchers back in the 1930’s knew that progesterone protected against the toxic effects of estrogen and they described vitamin E as the “progesterone-sparing agent,” since so many of its anti-estrogenic effects resembled those of progesterone.
Animal research in the 1930s was also showing that estrogen had many toxic effects, including causing infertility or intrauterine death, connective tissue abnormalities, gallstones and excessive blood clotting. This earned Vitamin E its other moniker ‘The Anti Sterility Vitamin’. Researchers found that it was very effective in preventing clotting diseases of pregnancy.
Estrogen in excess causes changes in the uterus that prevent implantation of the embryo and impair the availability of oxygen to the embryo if implantation occurred – Vitamin E increases it.
Studies demonstrated that supplemental vitamin E postponed the onset of infertility in middle age via correcting oxygen deficiency produced either by supplemental estrogen or by age. Progesterone has similar effects on the delivery of oxygen to the uterus.
Safeguarding progesterone is an absolute priority in perimenopause (also fertility) and Vitamin E effectively shields our progesterone from decline and degradation by cortisol, PUFA oil consumption and xenoestrogen exposure.
Many of the events involved in inflammation are increased by excess estrogen, and decreased by vitamin E. Estrogen causes capillaries to become leaky (hello Varicose Veins); vitamin E does the opposite. Estrogen increases platelet aggregation/ blood clotting whilst vitamin E does the opposite. Again these are very common symptoms that occur for women during pregnancy and you can see clearly (I hope) the role it can play for women to support a healthy pregnancy and beyond.
We love and stock Purely E which is a wholefood, full spectrum Vitamin E derived from a blend of Sunflower seed, Pumpkin seed oil, Red palm oil and Wild rosemary oil for additional antioxidant protection.
I hope there is some gold here for someone out there struggling with this!
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