Photo by Sora Shimazaki.

Synonymous with the term “womb,” the uterus is the hollow muscular organ possessed by female mammals in which an embryo, or newly fertilized egg, grows into a fetus and continues developing until birth.

The lining of the uterus is called the endometrium, and it is this lining that sheds each month during a woman’s menstrual cycle if the egg produced by the ovaries and deposited in the uterus is not fertilized.

What is Endometriosis?

Women who experience pelvic pain are found more than half the time to have endometriosis.

Endometriosis is a sometimes extremely painful condition experienced by up to 10% of fertile women and up to 50% of infertile women in which cells much like endometrial tissue grow outside of the uterus. Women who experience pelvic pain are found more than half the time to have endometriosis.

Often involving the ovaries and fallopian tubes, endometriosis can also affect the bladder and bowel. Endometrial tissue is hormone-sensitive and it is usually around the time of a woman’s monthly menstrual cycle that the most severe pelvic pain occurs.

Irritation of involved tissue can cause scarring and binding together of fibrous tissue, sometimes resulting in cysts on the ovaries.

Symptoms and risk factors

While some women experience no symptoms, most sufferers of the condition can experience any of a variety of severe and life-changing symptoms, including painful and heavy periods, fatigue or lethargy, spotting between periods, pain during sex, bowel changes, and even infertility.

It is not completely understood what causes the condition, but it is known that some factors may contribute to the likelihood of developing it. Short menstrual cycles of less than 28 days, long and heavy periods, never having given birth (in mature women), early onset or late cessation of menstruation, structural issues in the reproductive organs, family history, and high estrogen levels are often seen in women who develop endometriosis.

Diagnosing and treating

The idea of most therapies is to lower high estrogen levels as well as reduce pain.

To determine if you have the condition, your provider will do a pelvic exam and perhaps order an ultrasound or MRI, but a definitive diagnosis requires a minor laparoscopic surgery to extract some of the suspicious tissue to be examined under a microscope.

Once a diagnosis has been obtained treatment involves pain management and hormone therapy conventionally, and numerous alternative or complementary therapies are also available. The idea of most therapies is to lower high estrogen levels as well as reduce pain. Over-the-counter or prescription pain relief, in addition to birth control pills that control the fluctuation of estrogen and progesterone, may be helpful.

Besides prescription medication, many food-based or natural therapies exist.

Among the many natural approaches is a diet that includes plant-based compounds known as isoflavones which can help block the conversion of androgens to estrogen, preventing high levels of estrogen associated with endometriosis. Foods high in isoflavones include parsley, celery, pistachios, peanuts, chickpeas and soybeans.

Another estrogen countering compound called indoles is found in broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, and brussel sprouts.

Omega 3 and polyunsaturated fats can lower inflammation that exacerbates the pain caused by endometriosis. Fatty, cold-water fish are a good source of Omega 3’s. Polyunsaturated fats are found in nuts and seeds, soybeans, and plant-based oils.

The calming effects of chamomile have been found to lessen the pain and pain-related stress of endometriosis.

Probiotics and prebiotics can be helpful.

Because people with endometriosis often have an imbalance of the beneficial micro-organisms in the body, probiotics and prebiotics can be helpful. Probiotics are found in fermented foods like yogurt and kefir, pickles, kombucha, miso and tempeh. Prebiotics create an environment in which probiotics can flourish and are found in members of the onion family, asparagus, apples, oats, and bananas.

A bioactive compound in green tea has been shown in animal studies to block the growth and spread of endometrial tissue.

Turmeric contains a chemical called curcumin which has been shown to slow the growth of endometrial tissue by slowing the production of estradiol.

Doses of 30 mg per day of the supplement resveratrol have been shown to reduce pelvic pain between and during periods by as much as 82%.

CBD oils have anti-inflammatory properties.

Chinese herbs have produced results similar to the conventional drugs dazonol and gestrizone without those drugs’ unpleasant side-effects.

Acupuncture has been shown to reduce pain and lesion size, giving relief to endometriosis patients.

Pelvic pain is one of most common complaints women bring to medical appointments. Many sources of this widespread symptom may be due to any number of conditions, some more serious than others. If your pain is affecting your quality of life, be sure to insist on taking the diagnostic steps that may identify endometriosis as the cause of your pain. You will then be able to address the condition with a wide variety of treatment options, many of which are natural and bring numerous additional benefits to your overall health.

Ann Constantino, submitted on behalf of the SoHum Health’s Outreach department.