Women are not prepared for menopause (and they're doctors aren't helping) and Esther Blum is here to change that! Despite the fact that menopause happens to every woman, many find they are not prepared for it. Esther says that they often don't have the tools, testing, or any sense of how to advocate for themselves and their body. If your doctor has written off your symptoms as "normal" without any solutions, you'll definitely want to listen to this episode! She shares why there is a lack of treatment for women's health, common vs normal symptoms of peri-menopause & menopause, how to know if Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy (BHRT) is for you, and her top nutrition tips for hormonal balance. Esther Blum is the bestselling author of Cavewomen Don’t Get Fat; Eat, Drink and Be Gorgeous; Secrets of Gorgeous, and The Eat, Drink, and Be Gorgeous Project. She was voted Best Nutritionist by Manhattan Magazine. She has appeared on Dr. Oz, TODAY, A Healthy You with Carol Alt, The ISAAC Show, ABC-TV, FOX- 5’s Good Day NY, Fox News Live, and more. She is also an in-demand authority frequently quoted in E!Online, In Touch, Time Magazine, The New York Post, The Los Angeles Times, In Style, Bazaar, Self, Fitness, Marie Claire, and Cosmo. Esther received a Bachelor of Science in Clinical Nutrition from Simmons College in Boston and is a graduate of New York University, where she received her Master of Science in Clinical Nutrition. Esther is credentialed as a registered dietitian, a certified dietitian-nutritionist, and a Certified Nutrition Specialist (CNS), the certification from the Board for Certification of Nutrition Specialists (BCNS). She is also a member of the American Dietetic Association, Dietitians in Functional Medicine, Nutritionists in Complementary Care, and the Connecticut Dietetic Association. Esther currently runs a virtual practice where she helps women balance hormones, lose stubborn body fat, and treat the root cause of health struggles. And she lives in CT with her family where she can be found cooking up a storm, going for long hikes, and blasting 80’s music by the fire pit.SHOW NOTES:0:53 Welcome to the show!3:59 Esther Blum’s Bio5:26 Welcome Esther!6:36 Why is there a lack of treatment for women’s health?7:59 Peri-menopausal & Menopausal symptoms11:02 Common vs “normal” symptoms12:47 The optimal time to start treatment16:16 *Nootopia Collagenius19:30 When to start bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT)23:27 “You can’t out-hormone your lifestyle choices”28:30 The hormone-sleep connection31:32 Is BHRT safe for cancer patients?34:15 *SilverBiotics37:25 How do you find a practitioner?42:14 How long should we take hormones?46:04 Birth control as a “band-aid” & the side effects48:53 Nutrition & fasting for hormones50:55 Optimizing protein intake52:06 Protein/Carbohydrate ratio53:26 Timing carbohydrate intake54:49 Stress, cortisol & chronic cardio58:12 Our personal preferences for exercise59:58 The use of food & nutritional supplements1:03:52 Her final piece of advice1:05:26 Thanks for tuning in! RESOURCES:Website: estherblum.comFB: Living GorgeousIG: Gorgeous EstherEstherBlum.com/Menopause – Happy Hormone Cocktail & Live event in 2023Nootopia.com/biohackerbabesgenius - Discount code: biohackerbabes10Book: Estrogen MattersSilverBiotics – Discount code: BIOHACKERBABESInstitute for Functional MedicineDUTCH TestSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/biohacker-babes-podcast/donations