From the Desk of Carolyn Dean MD ND
Why Hormones Feel “Off” in Midlife
When women enter their 40s, many find themselves on a little-understood hormonal journey—and the frustration can feel sudden and overwhelming. Mood swings, anxiety, poor sleep, weight gain, fatigue, brain fog, low energy, and skin changes often arrive without warning.
It’s no surprise that a new generation of women is searching online for hormone balance after 40.
What rarely comes up in those searches is this: hormones aren’t failing. They’re struggling to function because they are missing the resources they need.
Hormones depend on minerals to work properly. When those minerals are depleted, symptoms appear. In many cases, what we call “hormonal imbalance” is actually mineral deficiency showing up through the hormonal system.
Be Careful of the Trends
In the absence of clear, practical guidance from conventional medicine, many women are now turning to TikTok and social media for answers. Popular “perimenopause hacks” include:
- Adaptogens like ashwagandha and maca
- Hormone-balancing teas
- Seed cycling (flax seeds one week and pumpkin seeds the next!)
- Progesterone creams
- Cortisol-reset diets
- Intermittent fasting
- Nervous-system breathing hacks
Most of these approaches aim to manage symptoms or add hormones without addressing what the necessary functional building blocks of hormones.
Hormones don’t operate independently. They rely on minerals—especially magnesium, iodine, and selenium—to bind to receptors, enter cells, and transmit clear signals. When mineral levels are low, even the most popular hormone strategies are unlikely to provide relief.
The Real Cause of Hormone Imbalance in Midlife
Over a lifetime, it’s estimated that up to 80% of women experience some form of hormonal imbalance, beginning as early as puberty. If you had painful or irregular periods earlier in life, those challenges often resurface during perimenopause.
Decades of stress, sugar, caffeine, medications, and environmental toxins steadily deplete mineral reserves. Without rebuilding these foundations, hormone trends—no matter how well-intentioned—can’t restore balance.
Hormones Are Not the Problem — Deficiencies Are
Minerals, especially magnesium, are essential for hormone production, regulation, and balance. Minerals support the thyroid, adrenals, and sex hormones such as estrogen and progesterone.
Stress accelerates mineral loss, creating a vicious cycle. Elevated cortisol increases magnesium demand, which further weakens the adrenal and thyroid systems and intensifies perimenopausal symptoms.
Many symptoms of perimenopause and menopause—hot flashes, mood swings, fatigue, insomnia, anxiety, irritability, and weight gain—mirror the symptoms of magnesium deficiency.
The good news? Many women report reduced reliance on hormone replacement therapy once mineral levels are restored. Magnesium supports thyroid and adrenal function, easing pressure on the ovaries and stabilizing hormone signaling.
In short, minerals help hormones:
- be made
- bind to receptors
- enter cells
- send clear signals
How Chronic Mineral Loss Disrupts Hormone Balance
In my book Total Body Reset for Women, I describe a state I call Total Body Meltdown—a point where “nothing works and everything hurts.”
This occurs when multiple systems are strained at once due to chronic mineral deficiency, stress, yeast overgrowth, poor diet, toxicity, and modern lifestyle pressures. Conventional medicine often treats these symptoms in isolation, but the body doesn’t function in parts.
Hormone systems operate like a three-legged stool:
- the thyroid
- the adrenals
- the sex hormones
When one leg weakens—often from mineral depletion—the entire system becomes unstable.
Thyroid First: The Hormonal Control Center
Chronic stress depletes magnesium and elevates cortisol, which suppresses thyroid function. With less thyroid hormones the metabolism slows, energy, mood, and temperature regulation are all out of balance. These are symptoms commonly blamed on perimenopause and hormones and not the underlying mineral deficiencies.
The thyroid requires more than magnesium. The nine key minerals include:
- Iodine, selenium, boron, chromium, molybdenum are all involved with the conversion of T4 to active T3
- Zinc is required for the synthesis of thyroid hormones.
- Copper plays an important role in the metabolism of the amino acid tyrosine, which is a precursor to T4 (thyroxine).
- Manganese is required to transport the hormone thyroxine into our cells.
- Magnesium: Calcium and magnesium must be balanced in the body to ensure proper thyroid function. If there is too much calcium, thyroid hormones can become depleted.
Supporting thyroid minerals often improves multiple hormone symptoms simultaneously.
Magnesium: The Calming Mineral for Midlife Hormones
Stress is a major contributor to Total Body Meltdown—and magnesium depletion sits at its core. Magnesium helps:
- calm the nervous system
- improve sleep quality
- ease mood swings
- support adrenal balance
When magnesium is low, the nervous system remains overstimulated, keeping the body locked in fight-or-flight. Replenishing magnesium helps the body shift back into regulation.
My ReMag liquid magnesium formula is highly absorbable and supports relaxation, emotional steadiness, and comfort during perimenopause.
Stress Hormones: Why Cortisol Disrupts Everything
Chronic stress prioritizes cortisol production at the expense of other hormones. Cortisol competes with progesterone at receptor sites, reducing progesterone’s effectiveness and setting the stage for estrogen dominance—even when estrogen levels aren’t technically high.
As cortisol rises, thyroid hormone levels often fall, further burdening the adrenals and ovaries. This feedback loop worsens perimenopausal symptoms.
Stress also rapidly depletes minerals, particularly magnesium, which is required for hundreds of enzymatic reactions involved in hormone regulation. Addressing mineral loss helps restore balance naturally and reduces reliance on synthetic interventions.
Breathe Through It
While rebuilding mineral stores, gentle breathing practices can be added to help calm the nervous system.
Try counting your breaths
Inhale for four counts, exhale for four counts.
Practice for a few minutes, several times a day.
Practiced consistently, this can help reduce cortisol and support nervous-system regulation.
The common refrain to “take a deep breath” really works!
Environmental Toxins: The Silent Hormone Disruptors
Hormone-mimicking chemicals, known as xenoestrogens, interfere with hormone signaling by occupying receptor sites. This can contribute to estrogen dominance and endocrine confusion, especially when mineral levels are low.
Common sources include:
- plastics (such as BPA)
- pesticides
- cosmetics and hair products
- petrochemicals
Adequate mineral intake helps keep mineral receptors saturated so that toxins don’t have a place to land.
A Smarter Approach to Hormone Balance in Midlife
Hormone balance isn’t about chasing trends or suppressing symptoms. It’s about restoring cellular health with foundational minerals.
When hormones feel unpredictable, the answer isn’t more hormones. It’s giving the body what hormones need to work properly.
Get Direction, Become a Member
Carolyn Dean, MD ND
The Doctor of the Future
Get the Full Cookbook
50+ Yeast ReSet recipes | 7-day menu | Shopping lists
