Consultant endocrinologist, Dr Mary Ryan believes it’s time to pay a little more attention to our hormone health.
Dr Mary Ryan is a consultant endocrinologist, renowned in her field. But alongside her many outstanding medical accomplishments, she has had a long interest in women’s health and is largely attributed with leading the national conversation around educating women on menopause and hormone health. In 2016, she joined Lorraine Keane and Aisling Grimley of My Second Spring, helping to educate about menopause. She’s just published her first book, It’s Probably Your Hormones. Here, she shares some of her most important messages around the topic and explains why it’s important to both women and men.
When It Comes to Hormones What Are the Biggest Misconceptions?
“People don’t understand that hormones control everything, your muscles, your immune system. Hormones control what sex you are, your emotions, your desires, whether you’re awake or asleep. They are so important, and I really felt people misunderstood hormones, which is why I wrote the book, It’s Probably Your Hormones.”
At What Stage of Life Do You Believe Women Should Start Learning About Hormone Health?
“A woman needs to learn about hormone health really from when her periods begin because I have treated women who’ve told me they never felt well since the day they had their first period. It’s really important that women are educated about what is a normal period and what’s an abnormal period and what help is out there.”
How Important is Exercise in Maintaining Hormone Health?
“Exercise is as important as healthy eating. Your pituitary gland controls the hormones and if that is well, recharged and nourished then it’s going to do very well. The most important thing is that you don’t over exercise, moderation is key. So it’s important to eat healthily and to exercise healthily and not exercise in excess, making yourself constantly exhausted, as this will cause hormone imbalance if you do that.”
What Role Can Supplements Play in Hormone Health?
“Supplements are important because in today’s life when everyone is very busy, it is important that you get certain nutrients every day. Calcium should be adequate once you have milk, cheese and yoghurt in your diet, but taking a vitamin D supplement in Ireland is essential. There’s a lot of other nutrients that are important, particularly B vitamins to help the nervous system and omega 3 good fats. For those having periods, it’s very important that they also get enough iron, and biotin is very good for hair. Adequate nutrients, microbiotics and gut health also are extremely important. Magnesium is amazing for relaxing muscles, supporting energy and the nervous system too. Products like Cleanmarine are great as with our hectic lifestyles we are not always getting everything we need from our diet. Although I always recommend healthy eating it is not always achievable. Cleanmarine MenoMin has 10 ingredients all in two capsules a day, more convenient than taking multiple supplements."
When It Comes to Menopause, Many Symptoms Can Go Unnoticed in the Context of a Busy Life of Work and Caring for a Family, What Symptoms Should Women Be Looking Out for?
“Many symptoms do go unnoticed. Tiredness may not be menopausal, but may be something else so it’s really important that you go to your GP and get a full examination, and have a proper diagnosis.”
What Led You to Write Your Book It's Probably Your Hormones and What Has the Response Been to Date and Are You Planning a Follow Up?
“I wrote the book to educate society about hormonal health. Hormones control absolutely everything so I wanted people to understand that hormones are chemical messages in the body, sending signals to our muscles and organs. Through events and education on peri-menopause and menopause we have broken that taboo and educated society. I wanted to do the same for hormone health. I felt we needed to go further into all hormonal health. I am thrilled because it’s still on the Bestseller List, which is phenomenal and I think it’s because, as one woman said to me, it’s a bible of hormonal health and it’s there for men and women because it talks about men’s health and how important hormones are for men as well. It’s just so important for us to realise that we have the power of controlling our health in a great way by eating healthily, by understanding the nourishment we get from food and basically taking responsibility for our health. We can do that by educating ourselves and by nourishing ourselves and knowing how to look after ourselves well.”
If You Could Give Women One Takeaway From the Book, What Would It Be?
“Love yourself, you’ve only one life. Look after yourself in the best possible way and be educated about your hormone health because hormones control your muscles and your immune system. There’s also so much you can do yourself by recharging the batteries, by pacing, by loving yourself enough to eat healthily, to sleep right and to exercise appropriately. A lot of women, and some men, don’t do that because they don’t love themselves enough, they don’t see their self-worth and as I said we have only one life. Too often I see people come to me very sick in their late 40’s or 50’s with conditions that could have been prevented had I seen them sooner. It’s so important that we realise that we are not going backwards, we are going forward and we really need to realise that and act in a good, preventative way.”