My health struggles have opened my eyes to the world, and everything that's wrong about it (long post, topics covered: birth control, cosmetics, plastic, sugar, wheat, dairy, social media and stress)
(If this post isn't allowed, please let me know the reasons for that and where I can direct my post)
Right, so this is going to be a long offmychest so buckle up because with the way I'm feeling and the rant that has been building up inside me for many months right now, you're going to need it.
I'm only 21 years old, and already I've experienced a really difficult 'illness' (not life threatening which I'm grateful for, but has significantly reduced my quality of life) that no doctor even really knows enough about to help. Because of the ignorance of doctors on the subject of any digestive condition or gastroenterologists insistence on an endoscopy (which, unless life threatening, is risky and doesn't achieve all that much), it's taken me 8 months of hell to even discover what I had. What I had is called SIBO - Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth. Here's a link to what it is: https://www.amymyersmd.com/2018/04/10-signs-small-intestinal-bacterial-overgrowth-sibo/
It basically means you have too many bad bacteria in your gut, which causes a whole host of problems. Bloating was my primary issue and I got so bloated I looked 6 months pregnant. IT HURT LIKE HELL, I have never experienced something so painful and debilitating in my life, and I even had my appendix out . It's caused by stress but I somehow managed to keep it under control, but you know what set it off to this excruciatingly painful point? The combined birth control pill. It created a hormonal imbalance where I had estrogen dominance, and this was what made me very very ill.
#1 Hormonal birth control
A lot of people are going to have a go at me now (because that's been my experience so far), but I'm still going to put it out there because someone needs to say it. The birth control pill (or hormonal contraception which I sadly now realise) IS MORE DANGEROUS THAN YOU THINK. Seriously, convenience is the silent killer. There's a reason why the WHO deems the contraceptive pill as a number one carcinogen along with tobacco and asbestos. I'm now going to copy/paste information about how dangerous it is here:
1. May Contribute to Nutrient Deficiencies
Most people don’t know that in order for the body to metabolize the pill, the liver requires extra amounts of the B-complex vitamins, vitamin C, magnesium and zinc. This means that if a woman has been on the pill for years at a time (as many American women are, starting in their 20s or even late teens), she is creating a situation where nutrient deficiency is more likely. Deficiencies, such as iron deficiency or magnesium deficiency, are some of the primary contributors to most disease (others being factors like diet, genetics, stress and toxicity). If you take the pill, consuming a nutrient-dense, healing diet is key for maintaining gut health and preventing deficiency side effects, like fatigue, indigestion, muscle pains and sleep troubles.
2. May Cause or Worsen Candida
While yeast (candida albicans) generally makes its home in the digestive tract, common lifestyle choices like use of birth control pills, taking antibiotics, a diet high in refined grains and sugar, and high stress levels often lead to a candida overgrowth that infiltrates other parts of the body and leads to candida symptoms.
According to the Healthy Women Organization’s website, yeast overgrowth has been closely linked to estrogen dominance in a woman’s body, which is highly influenced by taking the pill. Women who use hormonal birth control (not just the pill but also a patch or ring) may have more yeast infections than those who don’t. (6)
Toxins from yeast overgrowth can lead to a host of other problems, presenting themselves in a variety of manners far beyond the common vaginal infection. For example, symptoms like migraines, infertility, fibromyalgia, endometriosis, psoriasis, PMS, depression and digestive disorders have all been linked to candida yeast overgrowth. The evidence clearly shows that when you address the yeast overgrowth, the symptoms improve or subside. If you do choose to use birth control pills, try an oral contraceptive that’s a progestin-only pill, since these are linked with occurrence of fewer yeast infections. (7)
3. Often Causes Moodiness (Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression)
Does taking birth control pills cause depression or simply worsen moodiness and existing symptoms? There’s evidence that with estrogen and progesterone levels in the body out of their natural equilibrium due to taking the pill, the brain’s response system is consequently altered, leading many to experience psychological side effects. A proportion of women express concern about low sex drive, lack of appetite, helplessness, disinterest and an overall sad disposition while on birth control pills — yet often their doctors tell them, “It’s all in your head.”
A study conducted in Denmark involving more than 1 million women found a notable increase in depression rates among women taking birth control versus women who were not. Progestin-only pills, the transdermal patch and the vaginal ring were all especially tied to higher ratio of depression diagnoses and antidepressant prescriptions. (8) To be fair, however, other studies, such as one published in 2012 in the Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics, have not found the same correlation, so there seems to be individual differences in terms of the pill’s psychological effects. (9) Some evidence now suggests that most of the side effects of hormonal contraception may actually be a result of a psychological stress response to the practice of contraception (wanting to prevent pregnancy despite having sex). (10)
4. May Increase Cancer Risk
The National Cancer Institute tells us that the risk of developing breast cancer is around one in eight for the general public. (11) But studies done by doctors, such as Chris Kahlenborn, M.D., from Altoona Hospital in Altoona, Penn., indicate that “women who took oral birth control before having their first child have a 44-percent increased risk of developing breast cancer.” If this is true, that would bring your risk of developing breast cancer to one in five, a staggeringly high risk.
According to the Breast Cancer Organization’s website: (12)
“There are concerns that because birth control pills use hormones to block pregnancy they may overstimulate breast cells, which can increase the risk of breast cancer. The concern is greater if you’re at high risk for breast cancer because of: a strong family history of the disease, past breast biopsies showing abnormal cells, or you or someone in your family has an abnormal breast cancer gene.”
There is lots of ongoing debate about the breast cancer-depression link. For example, one study published in Cancer Research found a higher risk for breast cancer among women taking high-dose estrogen birth control pills. A review of 54 studies in 1996 found that women have a slightly higher risk of breast cancer while they’re taking birth control pills that contain both estrogen and progestin and during the 10 years after they stop taking the pills. And results from the 2010 Nurses’ Health Study found that use slightly increased risk, especially among women taking triphasic pills, which alter doses of hormones over three stages of the monthly cycle.
Why doesn’t your doctor tell you about this? “There’s tremendous vested interested — drug companies with a lot of money, government agencies who give a lot of money for contraception. It doesn’t make people look good when a study like this comes out,” Dr. Kahlenborn said.
5. Increased Risk for Blood Clots (Pulmonary Problems, Embolism and Thrombosis)
The link between estrogen use and developing blood clots in the veins (called venous thromboembolism) was identified more than 20 years ago. Extensive literature has now been published describing how the risk for embolism increases as estrogen dosages increase. (13) When a clot forms in a deep vein, usually in the leg, it’s called a deep vein thrombosis, and if that clot breaks loose and travels to the lungs, it’s called a pulmonary embolism, which is a serious condition (10 percent to 15 percent of cases cause sudden death). (14) Estrogen seems to increase clotting factors in the blood, making clots more likely.
It’s been found that combination hormonal birth control pills that contain the progestin called desogestrel increase the risk of blood clots more than birth control pills that contain other types of progestin. Birth control pills containing drospirenone are some of the most popular types available and include such brand names as Yaz, Yasmin, Beyaz, Ocella and Zarah. (15)
Shortness of breath, chest pain (particularly with deep breathing), coughing up blood, persistent leg pain, or redness, swelling, or warmth in your lower legs are all signs of clots. The risk is highest among women with family histories of clots, those who smoke and those who are obese/sedentary — so if any of these apply to you, carefully discuss options with your doctor.
(You can read more about this here: https://draxe.com/birth-control-pills/)
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I have been diligent at removing SIBO and it's related problems from my life, and I did amazingly well. I stuck to a strict diet, I ate herbal supplements, I made sure my body was as healthy as physically possible. And then I did something stupid. I went on the contraceptive implant because I thought it was THE PILL that was the problem. I researched for hours and hours about this topic, and I now feel stupid for going back considering how long it's taken me to get better. The contraceptive implant was the worst decision of my life so far. I've never experienced anything like it - my bloating came back rampantly, my mood swings were awful, honestly I'm not even surprised people have been suicidal and/or very tragically decided they could no longer take it. Unfortunately my removal was botched up and I now have 3 scars to show the hell I experienced on it.
Girls will disagree with me. I know that. But if it means saving someone's mental health, or physical health, then I feel I'm doing the world a favour and I will take all the criticism and people's stories such as "don't have a go at birth control, it works for me". I do want people to know that I'm not telling anyone to stop using it. Of course it is a personal decision, I just think we need to inform ourselves about the decisions we make with our bodies, as doctors seem to give us these pills like they would handing out candy, and if sacrificing our health in order to not get pregnant is worth it, because I learnt the long, hard way that it isn't. My main reason for this post is: we, as a society, need to talk more openly about hormonal contraception and how it is damaging women's physical and mental health. And how disgusting and damaging it is that doctors gaslight us by telling us our side effects are not caused by the pill! It disgusts me more than anyone can believe. Maybe women are committing suicide because they feel like no one listens to them/believes them about how awful they feel! It breaks my heart.
I have a degree at university to go and get, and I will not let these hormones affect me on a daily basis anymore just for the comfort of knowing I'm not going to get pregnant. And let's face it, nothing is guaranteed in this life. I even read stories about people on the pill AND condoms who get pregnant. I know getting pregnant is scary, I'm someone with the worst OCD ever about getting pregnant, but I now realise that I don't want to spend the next couple of years of my life miserable and suicidal. And damage my health AND probably get cancer down the line!!!
Here is a link to non-hormonal contraception that I'm very much considering getting: https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/body/health/a14424923/non-hormonal-contraception-options/
I'm personally going for the diaphragm, condoms and natural family planning because I'm terrified of pregnancy, and all these barrier methods should get me to at least 98% effectiveness. Which is almost the same as an IUD.
#2 Chemicals in household products/toiletries
If you've read up until this point, then you're doing remarkably well and it makes me very happy that you want to read what else I have to say. So, coming from this background where I had to dramatically restrict my diet and think very carefully what I was eating every time I ate a meal, I looked into other things I could do. And then I found out something shocking. Shampoo and household cleaning products are a source of air pollution. Yes, you read that right, scientists have found that shampoo is a source of the same dangerous form of air pollution made by cars. This is a direct quote from an article from the Guardian:
"The compounds are an important contributor to air pollution because when they waft into the atmosphere, they react with other chemicals to produce harmful ozone or fine particulate matter known as PM2.5. Ground level ozone can trigger breathing problems by making the airways constrict, while fine airborne particles drive heart and lung disease"
(Read more here: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/feb/15/cleaning-products-urban-pollution-scientists)
So whilst shampoo may be making our hair as glistening as portrayed by the media, and household products are supposedly making our houses germ-free, they are also killing us. For example, parabens are in most shampoos as they prevent bacteria from growing in them before they are applied to our hair. However, here is another shocking direct quote:
"According to the American Chemical Society, 85 percent of American personal care products contain parabens, and an experiment in 2005 found parabens in the urine of 99.1% of people tested. Parabens can mimic the hormone estrogen and have been linked to an increased growth of breast cancer cells. Multiple experiments have shown that women have a higher concentration of parabens in their bodies compared to men, which is probably a result of using more cosmetic and healthcare products. This is worth thinking about when choosing what to put on your skin and in your hair."
(Read more here: https://www.nutrafol.com/blog/15-shampoo-ingredients-to-avoid/)
This is truly shocking. As I have estrogen dominance, I wanted to search for organic shampoos that wouldn't pollute me or the environment. Here in the UK, Holland and Barrett has been my lifesaver and I only shop there for shampoo (even if they do only use single-use plastic grrrr). There are shampoo bars which I will look into for the future. I would rather pay more for beauty products that do not harm me than cheaper ones that affect my health.
My question to society is: why are we doing this to ourselves. I have been so shocked at the discoveries I've made, it almost makes me think that big pharma companies want us to get sick so they can profiteer of us getting cancer. Sorry, but I do. I feel for those who have been affected by Johnson's talc powder, and genuinely disgusts me that they can put these products on the market when they damage our health. Whilst I understand deeply how it is an enormous task to consider what products to buy to avoid these things, I want to help inform people of the choices they're making. I want to help women think about their beauty products so that years down the line they can do their best to avoid getting breast cancer, which my uncle's sister puts her breast cancer down to. Who knows, but isn't it a coincidence how breast cancer is becoming more and more common?
#3 Plastic
Okay, so we all know about this one. It's been circulating widely in the news with Starbucks and McDonald's banning single-use plastic straws and other things to that extent. But are we doing enough? And are we informed of the health risks?
But do we really think about the health risks? Probably not. But because of my condition I research into these things. I probably sound like a health freak but I'm astounded at what I've found. BPA is a chemical that is contained in most single-use plastics and what it does to our body, is funnily enough, linked to the other things I've already discussed in this post. Here is another quote:
"This is a concern because a host of studies have shown that BPA can mimic the actions of oestrogen, binding to the same receptor in the body. Oestrogen is normally involved in breast development, regulating periods and maintaining pregnancies. Animals exposed to BPA develop abnormal reproductive systems, but it is unclear if people are exposed to high enough doses to be affected."
It seems hard to believe that these chemicals can do something so astounding as to alter our hormonal balance. But if this isn't enough evidence to believe this is the case, BPA affects men's fertility.
Some small studies have found a possible link between BPA and fertility. In one study, men with detectable levels of BPA in their urine were three times as likely to have lower sperm concentration and sperm vitality, more than four times likely to have lower sperm counts, and twice as likely to have lower sperm motility (how well the sperm swim). This study mainly concentrated on men who work with BPA in factories, and so it's unclear how this would relate to men who did not work with BPA in a work setting.
I'm afraid I'm no scientist and would love to research why this is the case. My understanding is that it must be because estrogen is primarily a female sex hormone, even though it is in men too, and must somehow disturb sperm count somehow. Men's fertility has also been in question and it has been reported that men have much less sperm count now than 30 years ago. Interesting, right?
On a side-note from the health risks, I think we can all agree that more needs to be done fast with regards to plastic. Plastic cups should be banned at all coffee shops around the world, and other alternatives such as glass need to be utilised. There are a billion other ideas I have but I have other things I want to address. I hate how slow plastic is being banned, it's like is banning a few plastic straws really going to help the environment? Come on.
#4 Sugar
So this one is a bit different from the rest that I have addressed, and a bit more obvious. My SIBO diet required that I ate no sugar at all because this is what SIBO/candida feeds on. The funny thing is, at the time it seems like the hardest thing to ever quit, but once you go without it, it's fine. Unfortunately for me I'm now back on it (at least dark chocolate with better health benefits) because of the very stressful period of my life I'm having. This is going to be an obvious thing to talk about, but I feel like sugar is very normalized in our society. I log on to Instagram every day of my life to see bakers making cakes using a sh*t ton of sugar (excuse my French). And I find this quite worrying really, that young kids are being exposed to this and that it's okay to have cake and things (I'm not saying it isn't, but we need to very much limit it imo). I will say that I'm impressed with the progress that supermarkets have made by stocking healthier products such as Nakd bars next to the cashier, but more has to be done.
I think this one is pretty clear, so I'll leave a link to this article here: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/too-much-sugar#section7
A few things I will say about sugar is that if it feeds SIBO/candida, it feeds cancer cells. Many cancer survivors have even had to limit fruit due to the sugar found in these foods. Secondly, it causes more acne and may fast-forward the skin ageing process. I personally have experienced this. Since quitting sugar (and dairy), my skin has never been so clear in all my life. For the first time, I didn't have to apply any skin products. Unfortunately birth control changed that for me (ugh).
Also, for anyone interested, this video will show you what this woman looks like having quit sugar for the majority of her life. **Spoilers - SHE LOOKS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING**. I find it worrying that she looks that good at that age JUST because she quit sugar. I'll drop the link here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MURcWsbhWm4
Not to be a hypocrite since I've had sugar every day for the last week, but we need to seriously think about the role sugar plays in our lives. It is silently damaging our health whilst at the same time making us feel good. Obviously, this is better than alcohol or drugs. And when the bad times have come, sugar has been my best friend. But generally, you should really consider avoiding it.
"Can sugar cause cancer? It seems that evidence pointing this way was discovered in a study funded by the sugar industry nearly 50 years ago — but the work was never published". Why does this just not surprise me anymore, smh.
#6 Dairy
"But dairy is good for us because it strengthens our bones!" Wrong. And once again, sex hormones are the reason why the modern manufacturing of dairy milk is very bad for us:
"Because dairy cows are kept on sex hormones or pregnant for their entire lives in order to lactate for humans year-round, when you consume dairy, you're also taking in a significant amount of the sex hormones estrogen and progesterone. We know that an increased exposure to estrogen increases the risk of cancer, and dairy accounts for 60 percent to 80 percent of estrogens consumed by humans today."
(Read more here: https://www.bustle.com/articles/137195-7-reasons-milk-is-bad-for-you)
Here's a link from a study that also shows how you have an increased cancer risk
If you have a history of cancer in your family, you might want to seriously watch how much dairy you're eating. In 2006, Harvard researchers published the results of a meta study that looked at 100,000 women aged 26 to 46. Those who had the highest intake of meat and dairy products also had the highest risk of breast cancer (33 percent more than those who consumed the least). For men, over 20 studies have established a strong link between prostate cancer and milk consumption.
Dairy also makes your skin break out, so my theory about cutting out dairy was correct! I prefer coconut and almond milk. I highly recommend coconut milk with hot chocolate as a treat!
#7 Wheat
Wheat has been an absolute no-no in my diet as it also feeds SIBO/candida. So of course I wanted to look this up. After all, wheat is a staple food, right? Millions of people have a sandwich for lunch every day. Yet, there are also hidden health concerns to eating wheat.
I understand at this point most of you will be feeling incredibly depressed, as am I, so I'll leave a link here as to why it's so bad: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/6-ways-wheat-can-destroy-your-health#section3.
#8 Stress and social media
This last one is very different from my previous posts, but being a millennial, I had to include what I think about this. I actually feel very lucky I didn't grow up with social media, not really. My childhood was all about MSN and flip-phones to send texts to someone in class (miss those times...) I got Facebook at 13, but it was only when I was 18 that I got an Instagram account which I am very happy about. As I'm a girl, I wanted to talk about this because I really understand how it affects girls. We all have insecurities, and when you see a bunch of beautiful girls in a hot country on the beach showing off their bodies having the time of their lives.... It makes you want to puke. Jk, but it increases your fears and anxieties. Having the scars on my arms was very difficult for me, as a girl you feel this immense pressure to be "perfect". Go into boots or superdrug or any pharmacy, and you will see rows among rows among rows of make-up. Jeez, talk about pressure to "look beautiful"! Maybe you just wanted to get some shampoo, and when you see all of that, you think "Gosh, maybe I should be trying to make myself look nicer?" Which the answer is no! Asides from more health risks (it's becoming a theme in this post isn't it....) we shouldn't have to feel this pressure to if we don't want to wear make-up (population: me!).
According to a report on the Guardian:
"Rates of stress, anxiety and depression are rising sharply among teenage girls in what mental health specialists say is a “deeply worrying” trend that is far less pronounced among boys of the same age. They warn that the NHS lacks the resources to adequately tackle the problem. New NHS data obtained by the Guardian reveals that the number of times a girl aged 17 or under has been admitted to hospital in England because of self-harm has jumped from 10,500 to more than 17,500 a year over the past decade – a rise of 68%. The jump among boys was much lower: 26%. Rising levels of “body dissatisfaction” – insecurity and low self-esteem about their appearance – have been identified as driving the unprecedented levels of mental turmoil in young women."
My heart goes out to EVERY girl who has had mental health issues related to their appearance or their life. We shouldn't value ourselves on these things. And yet bloody instagram makes us feel like we're not worthy because we don't look like the popular girl or do popular girl things.
Social media is killing us too, even if it's not directly, it is indirectly. I've gone through terrible stages in my life to find my friends having a whale of a time. It makes you feel lonely, depressed and like there's something wrong with you. I've even deleted facebook off my phone to stop myself constantly checking it when I get a notification. We're addicted and it's like a drug causing us to be sick. Add this on top of hormonal birth control, and no wonder girls are a recipe for a disaster - OUR HORMONES ARE ALL OVER THE PLACE and we have no help on addressing that!
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In conclusion, I've been through some sh*t but I'm starting to see that it's been worth it to educate myself on what society is doing. It makes me so mad to read over what I've written because all I think about is these producers giving us products that are making us ill. If you didn't read everything entirely, estrogen (a sex hormone) or the imbalance of this hormone, is what is causing us to become ill and what personally made me very ill at such a young age. And yet, there is all this information available online, and producers aren't doing a single thing about it. Of course you can't change some products, but mostly you can. But hey, at least we're informed, right?* Who would think shampoo could be causing us to become ill?*!
I know this was a depressing post to read, and my intention is not to make us completely depressed out of our minds, but just to inform about how we're affecting our health and sadly there is no one out there doing anything to help us, especially doctors. My experience of doctors is that they have gaslighted and gaslighted and gaslighted me. I was so upset by one of them that I went home and absolutely sobbed my eyes out. I'm sad about the scars on my arm, but if it means that I'll live a long and healthy future, then they were worth it in the end. I'd like to be the sacrifice if it means I can help someone else out there.
This post isn't to dictate how you should live your life. I know people will disagree with me and what I've said about certain topics. I'm also no expert on any of these things, but it's to create awareness about things I never would have dreamed off if it wasn't for my deteriorating health. Yes, even the healthiest people get cancer, but what if we are accelerating this process? And honestly, if I had read these things sooner, who knows, maybe I would never have had SIBO in the first place. I'm disappointed that it's 2018 and these topics aren't being properly addressed. Whilst I acknowledge we have come an exceptionally long way, things like this are obstacles in the way that are affecting millions of people for no reason.
My health priority opened my eyes to the world and the society we're living in, and now that my eyes have been opened, I'm choosing to live my life very differently from now on.
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