Why Your Gut Is Sabotaging Your Hormones (and Your Hormones Are Sabotaging Your Gut) with Kiran Krishnan
The Hormone Solution | Perimenopause, Menopause, HRT, Weight Loss & Women's Midlife Health
Release Date: 01/10/2026
The Hormone Solution | Perimenopause, Menopause, HRT, Weight Loss & Women's Midlife Health
Vaginal dryness, recurrent infections, low libido...why are we told this is “just hormones” and something we have to tolerate? In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Betsy Greenleaf, founder of the International Pause Institute, and we unpack what’s really happening down there during perimenopause and menopause. Could your symptoms be tied to your gut? Your brain? Your stress levels? We dive deep into the vaginal microbiome and why so many women struggle with yeast infections, UTIs, and painful sex—sometimes for years. Is estrogen the whole answer? Why do probiotics sometimes fail? And...
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Download the full episode on or on your favorite podcast platforms. In this quick hits I sit down with Dr. Gillett, to exam the complex world of women's hormones today. We'll be focusing on androgens like testosterone, DHEA, and dihydrotestosterone, and their profound impact on female health. Dr. Gillett provides insights on the role of binding globulins, hormone replacement therapy, and the interplay between insulin and androgens. We also discuss the challenges of menopausal weight gain, the benefits of GLP-1 medications for weight loss, and practical strategies anyone can use for...
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If you had told me at 40 that perimenopause would turn my world upside down, I would’ve laughed. As a nutritionist specializing in women’s hormones, I thought I had it handled. So why did I gain 15 pounds, lose my sleep, and feel like a stranger in my own body? In this episode, I’m sharing what I wish someone had told me before the storm hit. Why are so many intelligent, health-conscious women still confused about where they are in perimenopause? Why are we being offered antidepressants, birth control, or told we’re “too young” instead of getting real answers? I break down the...
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Welcome to Quick Hits — where we bring you the most impactful moments from past episodes in under 15 minutes. Today’s clip comes from one of our most replayed conversations. If you want the full episode, check the link in the description below. In this quick hits episode you will hear a clip from my interview with Dr. Kirk Parsley — former Navy SEAL physician and one of the leading voices in sleep optimization — to unpack what chronic sleep deprivation is really doing to your body. We dive into: Why Ambien and common sleep medications can damage long-term brain and hormonal health...
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Jay Campbell—five-time international bestselling author, founder of BioLongevity Labs, and one of the original voices in the peptide world—is here to unpack what’s really going on behind the GLP-1 explosion. Are these drugs miracle tools or misunderstood villains? And why are so many smart people still getting them wrong? We go way beyond the hype and fear, diving into microdosing, metabolic repair, thyroid changes, and why dosing may be the make-or-break factor. Could peptides actually rewire the brain, quiet food noise, and permanently improve metabolism? And what happens when midlife...
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In this episode, I sit down with Nikolina Lauc, CEO and Co-Founder of GlycanAge, and we dive into a questions that should stop every midlife woman in her tracks: is menopause actually accelerating your biological aging? What if the shift from perimenopause to menopause could age you up to nine years in just six months? And more importantly, what can you do about it? We unpack what biological age really means (and why it’s not the same as your chronological age), how inflammation quietly drives aging and disease, and why estrogen may be one of the most powerful longevity tools we have. Is...
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Welcome to the very first Hormone Hotline episode of The Hormone Solution! I’m getting straight into your real-life questions about estrogen—because why, in 2026, are we still being told we’re “estrogen dominant” with rock-bottom levels? If your doctor has warned you against HRT, this episode is for you. Have you been told you can’t start estrogen until you hit full menopause? Or that perimenopause is just too much of a “hormone rollercoaster” to treat? I break down what’s actually happening in your brain and ovaries during late perimenopause, and why adding estrogen might...
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What if your mood swings, anxiety, sleep issues, or loss of motivation aren’t just “getting older?” What role does oxytocin really play in midlife, and why has it been overlooked for so long? In this episode, I’m joined by the brilliant hormone scholar Dr. Lindsey Berkson, and we dive into a part of menopause that almost no one is talking about—what’s happening in your brain. We explore how hormones act as the body’s Wi‑Fi system, and what happens when that signal gets disrupted. Could environmental toxins be hijacking not just estrogen and progesterone, but oxytocin too? And...
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Do you know whether you’re Vata, Pitta, or Kapha...and could that explain your stubborn symptoms in midlife? In this episode, I’m joined by my brilliant friend Dr. Shivani Gupta, and we dive into Ayurveda, inflammation, and why your body might be asking for a completely different approach right now. Have you ever wondered why turmeric seems to work like magic for pain, migraines, or inflammation? Or why the same routines that used to work suddenly don’t anymore in perimenopause? We unpack how ancient Ayurvedic wisdom meets modern science—and why that combination matters so much for...
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This episode comes straight from my own lived experience of spiraling before doctor’s appointments and feeling dismissed when it comes to hormones. I dig into why so many hormone providers get it wrong and what’s actually happening behind those rushed, frustrating conversations. Why does advocating for ourselves feel so hard? I walk you through what most doctors are (and aren’t) trained to do when it comes to perimenopause and menopause. How much of this is about lack of education versus lack of time? And how do you stop blaming yourself when you’re told your labs are “normal,”...
info_outlineI’m sitting down with microbiome expert Kiran Krishnan to explore a question I see come up all the time: why do hormones sometimes stop responding the way they used to? But what if the real issue isn’t your hormones at all, rather what’s happening in your gut?
In this episode, we dig into the powerful gut-hormone connection. How can gut bacteria influence estrogen metabolism, inflammation, weight gain, and even mood? Why do so many women struggle more during perimenopause and menopause despite “doing all the right things”?
We also talk about why hormone therapy sometimes backfires, how gut dysfunction quietly drives symptoms, and what most people completely miss when trying to “fix” hormones. If you’ve ever felt like your body is working against you, this conversation may change how you see everything.
In this episode, we uncover:
- How your gut microbiome directly affects estrogen metabolism and hormone balance.
- Why inflammation and gut permeability sabotage hormone therapy results.
- What happens to the gut during perimenopause and menopause.
- How gut health influences weight gain, mood, and metabolic slowdown.
- Why fixing hormones often fails without addressing the gut first.
Check out this episode to hear how supporting your gut may be the missing link to finally feeling better!
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Are you in peri or post menopause and looking to optimize your hormones and health? At Hormone Solutions, we offer telemedicine services and can prescribe in every U.S. state, as well as in British Columbia, Alberta, and Ontario in Canada.
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Your host:
Karen Martel
Certified Hormone Specialist, Transformational Nutrition Coach, & Weight Loss Expert