You may have heard the term hormone-balancing attached to several products in the wellness industry and thought, ‘Maybe that’s why I’m struggling with XYZ!’ But while hormones are gaining traction in the overall health space and are vital pieces of the overall puzzle, the many claims heard that blame them for all health problems and promise a magic fix are completely unfounded.
That said, research into hormones, their effects, and what affects them continues to grow, giving us a clearer picture of what they can and can’t do. Some foods, in particular, may help foster improved hormonal health, and with the credible evidence to prove it, you may just find some benefit in adding in some or all of the foods that can help you get to where you want to be health-wise.
What food can and can’t do to your hormones
We must preface this entire conversation first by saying that no single food is a magic potion that can fix your hormones.
It’s not about the food itself. It’s about what the food provides that gives your body a boost to get to balancing on its own. Even superfoods can’t help you outrun lifestyle habits or physiological changes that wreak havoc on hormonal health.
That said, there are a few things that specific foods can provide that act as a tool in your journey toward better hormonal health.
Estrogen
Flaxseeds · Whole soy foods · Cruciferous vegetables
1. Flaxseeds
Flaxseeds are full of good-for-you nutrients, but when it comes to hormonal health, the most notable is lignans, a type of plant compound that acts as a phytoestrogen, which is basically just the official term for plant compounds that act on the same receptors as estrogen, though not in the same way.
One research study investigated the effects of flaxseed against traditional oral hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for mild menopausal symptoms in 25 patients and found that eating 40 grams of flaxseeds per day may be as effective as some hormone therapies, though larger trials since have not found it to clearly beat placebo for hot flashes.
This estrogen-balancing effect was also found to improve levels of the hormone insulin in the patients as well, working as a dual-effect agent.
2. Whole Soy Foods
Soy foods, including tofu, tempeh, and edamame, contain a form of phytoestrogen known as isoflavones. These compounds also mimic estrogen in the body, though perhaps not as strong as the lignans found in flaxseeds.
Researchers sought to find exactly how these foods could be applied as complementary menopausal care and found, in a meta-analysis of a mix of randomized controlled trials, that consuming 54 mg of isoflavones was helpful in reducing hot flashes frequency and severity by 20.6% and 26.2%, respectively. The study pulled data from 277 publications and 17 clinical trials.
While the study used concentrated isoflavones to garner their results, whole soy foods still contain these compounds, albeit in smaller amounts.
3. Cruciferous Vegetables
When looking at cruciferous vegetables and hormone balances, we have to look at research that examines the plant compounds and what they do for the body. One research study examining breast cancer risk found that those who ate more cruciferous vegetables had a lower overall risk of developing estrogen-driven breast cancer, specifically broccoli and cauliflower.
The case-control study monitored thousands of patients and their intake of cruciferous vegetables from 1982 to 1998. Then, 1491 patients who had been diagnosed with breast cancer and 1482 who acted as controls, randomly selected from a group of over 8000 participants, were compared against their intake, and it was found that those who ate more of the vegetables had a reduced risk.
It’s hypothesized that glucosinolates, plant compounds that break down into other compounds, may affect how estrogen is metabolized.
In a small study of 34 healthy postmenopausal women, aged 47 to 77, researchers looked at the connection between these compounds from cruciferous vegetables and found that while it doesn’t directly reduce estrogen, it can encourage more optimal estrogen breakdown within the body. It’s important to note that the results showed a small positive trend, so more research would be needed to further confirm these findings on a larger scale.
Androgens
Fatty fish · Spearmint tea · Walnuts and almonds
4. Fatty Fish
Fatty fish can encourage better hormonal balance because of the omega-3 fatty acids. Dietary sources of these nutrients are limited, and fatty fish is among the top choices when it comes to getting enough without turning to supplements.
When it comes to sex hormones, one study examined how omega-3s work in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). The study size was small, containing only 78 participants, all of whom were overweight or had obesity and PCOS. Each participant took omega-3 supplements and, after the eight-week period, saw reduced levels of male hormones that bring on symptoms in the condition.
While supplementation differs from eating foods high in omega-3s, the study confirmed that adequate levels of these fatty acids can help balance overly high male hormones in women.
Preclinical evidence also supports using omega-3s for insulin control. Because those studies were conducted in animals or showed mixed or very small changes in humans, they should be taken with a grain of salt.
5. Spearmint Tea
Spearmint is the one on this list that sounds least like medicine, and it is also the only herb here with hormonal effects that have been measured directly. Some of the volatile oils in spearmint appear to have anti-androgenic rather than anti-estrogenic effects.
In one small randomized controlled trial, 42 women with PCOS and hirsutism were randomly assigned, 21 to each group, to drink either spearmint tea twice a day for 30 days or a control tea. In the spearmint group, both free and total testosterone fell, while luteinizing hormone and follicle stimulating hormone rose.
Subjective ratings of hirsutism also improved, although the objective Ferriman-Gallwey hair score did not change significantly. The hormones moved and the visible symptom did not, at least not in 30 days. That gap between a blood marker and a mirror is common in this research, and it is why a single 42-person trial is a starting point rather than a verdict.
6. Walnuts and Almonds
Nuts make the list because of their effect on a protein called sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG). SHBG carries testosterone in the bloodstream, and higher SHBG means less free testosterone is available to affect your tissues.
In a 2010 trial published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 31 women with PCOS were given either walnuts or almonds, supplying 31 grams of fat per day from the nuts, for six weeks. The two types of nuts had different effects. In the walnut group, SHBG rose from 38.3 to 43.1 nmol/L, and LDL cholesterol was also about 6 percent lower. In the almond group, the free androgen index, another measure of free testosterone, decreased from 2.6 to 1.8.
Again, a small study: only 31 participants, and it lasted six weeks. But the effects of the two nuts were different, which means they are not interchangeable here. If your goal is the effect on SHBG, it’s the walnuts you’re after.
Cortisol and Insulin
Spinach · Dark leafy greens · Oats · Pulses · Blueberries
7. Leafy Greens
Spinach and other dark leafy greens are a good source of magnesium, which has been linked to supporting sleep. In one large-scale study, researchers looked for a link between magnesium and sleep and found that people with higher levels had higher-quality sleep than those with lower levels.
The study followed almost 4,000 patients over 20 years. It’s important to note that participants with the highest levels got magnesium both through food and supplementation, with specific levels that showed the correlation with the best sleep being at roughly 195.8mg/1000 calories they ate each day.
This matters for hormonal balance because sleep and hormones work together. Poor-quality sleep directly affects the body’s circadian rhythm, which plays a role in metabolic regulation, including hormones such as cortisol, leptin, and ghrelin (hunger and satiety hormones), as well as insulin sensitivity.
8. Oats
In February 2026 the European Food Safety Authority published a scientific opinion that concluded that a cause-and-effect relationship has been established between the consumption of at least 3 grams of oat beta-glucan per 30 grams of available carbohydrate and reduced postprandial (after-eating) glucose peak concentrations.
This is not an authorized claim, but an opinion, and in order to be able to print it on a package it still needs approval from the EU. Beta-glucan is the active fraction in oats. It belongs to the group of soluble fibers that thicken the gut content.
Beta-glucan doesn’t work hormonally but by mechanically thickening the gut content. This slows down the speed with which carbohydrates are digested and absorbed, resulting in a flatter rise. The EFSA based its conclusion on 16 human intervention studies.
9. Beans, Lentils and Chickpeas
Of all the foods above, pulses have the largest body of evidence, and consequently the most nuanced and complicated summary.
A systematic review and meta-analysis published in Diabetologia pooled results from 41 randomized controlled trials. They found that pulses consumed alone (11 trials) lowered fasting insulin (mean difference −0.49; 95% CI −0.93 to −0.04) and fasting glucose (mean difference −0.82; 95% CI −1.36 to −0.27). When pulses were consumed as part of a low-glycemic-index diet (19 trials), they found a reduction in glycosylated proteins of 0.28.
They did, however, note significant and unexplained heterogeneity among study results, and a 2021 updated systematic review found only a small and borderline significant reduction in HbA1c. Some of the scientists who conduct this research have funding from the pulse industry, which doesn’t make their findings less valid, but it’s good to know. So, pulses likely reduce blood sugar levels, but by how much is still up for debate.
10. Blueberries
Blueberries make the list on insulin sensitivity, measured about as rigorously as it can be.
In The Journal of Nutrition, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study enrolled 32 obese but non-diabetic individuals who were insulin resistant. They received either a smoothie containing 22.5 g of blueberry bioactives twice per day or a placebo smoothie that was nutritionally equivalent for six weeks. Insulin sensitivity was measured with a hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp, the gold standard method. In the treatment group, insulin sensitivity increased 1.7 versus 0.4 in the placebo group.
Fat mass, total caloric intake and systemic inflammatory markers were unchanged, meaning the observed effect wasn’t just weight loss in disguise. Once again the catch is the same one that applies to the soy research above: the researchers gave a concentrated dose of bioactive compounds, not a bowlful of blueberries. Whole blueberries contain the same compounds in smaller amounts.
Thyroid
Brazil nuts · Seaweed
Iodine and selenium are the two nutrients critical for thyroid function, but are also the two that are easiest to get too much of or too little of. That’s because these nutrients are found in food in varying levels that depend on where the food was grown.
11. Brazil Nuts
Brazil nuts earn a spot here because they are high in selenium, which is a mineral used by the thyroid to convert its hormone into the active form. Two nuts a day may be all you need. In a randomized trial of 59 adults in New Zealand, participants either ate two Brazil nuts a day for 12 weeks, took a 100 microgram selenium supplement, or received a placebo. Selenium levels increased 64 percent in the Brazil nut group and 61 percent in the supplement group. The selenium-dependent enzyme measured was increased slightly more in the Brazil nut group than the supplement group.
Two Brazil nuts are supposed to provide approximately 100 micrograms of selenium, but in this study, the nuts provided an average of 53 micrograms (range 20 to 84 micrograms). Selenium content varies with the soil in which they’re grown, so much so that there are two values for Brazil nuts in the USDA database that differ about sevenfold. This means that two nuts a day may be reasonable, but a handful is not a good idea since too much selenium has other adverse health effects. Do Brazil nuts or selenium supplements help the thyroid itself?
In people with autoimmune thyroiditis, selenium supplements have been shown to decrease thyroid antibodies after three months of treatment (meta-analysis of 16 controlled trials published in 2016). However, the quality of evidence was rated as low, more side effects were reported in the selenium groups, and it hasn’t been shown that these changes in antibodies improve symptoms a patient can actually feel. These findings are in line with a Cochrane review. If you have a thyroid condition, talk with your endocrinologist. Don’t just reach for the Brazil nuts.
Sources: Brazil nuts: an effective way to improve selenium status, AJCN 2008 · Selenium supplementation significantly reduces thyroid autoantibody levels, Thyroid 2016
12. Seaweed, Within Reason
The thyroid hormone molecule is literally built around iodine, which is why iodized salt, bread and dairy are good dietary sources. Adults should get about 150 micrograms (mcg) of iodine a day, and most Americans get that without trying. Seaweed is the only whole food with significant quantities, which is why it’s on everyone’s thyroid-hormone-support list. Here’s the warning label those lists leave off:
Iodine content in seaweed can vary tremendously, and that can be a problem, since too much iodine can affect thyroid function in either direction (hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism).
People at greatest risk of side effects from too much iodine include the elderly and anyone with preexisting thyroid disease, according to a review published in Nature Reviews Endocrinology in 2014, and they’re often not aware they’re getting excess amounts. A separate analysis of 12 kinds of commercially sold seaweed shows why. Nori (the sheet sushi is wrapped in) was on the low end, at about 16 mcg of iodine per gram of seaweed. Processed kelp granules for use as a salt substitute had more than 8,000. Within one kelp species, the amount varied from about 500 mcg of iodine per gram in sun-bleached seaweed to more than 6,500 mcg per gram in fresh young blades.
The authors of that analysis point out that in some cases, a single meal of seaweed could put you over the 1,100 mcg-a-day upper limit. The practical version: nori’s fine. Occasional seaweed salad, fine. Skip the kelp powders, supplements and anything touting itself as a thyroid booster.
Sources: Variability of iodine content in common commercially available edible seaweeds, Thyroid 2004 · Consequences of excess iodine, Nature Reviews Endocrinology 2014
How to work these foods in
If you don’t eat any of these foods, telling you to just add it to your plate every day isn’t going to be very effective. New lifestyle habits take time to develop, so the best way to incorporate these foods into your already existing diet is to see what they fit in with.
For example, if you start your day with a smoothie or oatmeal every day of the week, adding flaxseeds is a great way to incorporate them without doing any heavy lifting, learning new recipes, or figuring out what they taste good with.
Fatty fish is a little harder, and it’s not going to be a daily occurrence on your plate. Pick one or two days per week to center one meal, whether it be lunch or dinner, around the one you like the most or the one that’s most convenient.
That way, it won’t feel like you’re giving up things you love to replace them with fish because that will get old fast and be much harder to adhere to.
Soy foods, leafy greens, and cruciferous vegetables can follow the same pattern. Add them to your existing diet plan twice a week to get started. Oats, beans and blueberries slot into meals you are probably already eating, and spearmint tea and a handful of nuts are the two easiest additions on the whole list. It’s about adding, not taking away, by keeping them on your regular grocery list without putting too much pressure on yourself to eat a certain amount every day.
What to be careful with
Eating certain foods to support hormonal health is great, but you will need to pay attention to a few things. For example, if you are on HRT or being treated for a hormone-sensitive condition, it is worth raising flaxseed and soy with your provider rather than assuming more is better.
Soy foods, specifically, should be added with caution for people who take thyroid medications because they can reduce how much of it you absorb if taken too close to the dose, specifically levothyroxine. Separating the two by several hours is usually enough, and avoiding soy altogether is not necessary. The same goes for kelp supplements and kelp powders: the iodine dose in them is unpredictable, and if you take thyroid medication that is a question for your prescriber before it is a grocery decision.
When food isn’t the answer
As mentioned above, food can be helpful in keeping your hormones balanced, but it’s not a magic potion, and it is not a replacement for medical care. It’s important to speak with your healthcare provider to determine whether a diet change is all you need or if you need medical intervention.
Angelica Bottaro is a medical writer and researcher with a background in psychology and journalism.
Is your neighborhood healthy?
Get a free report on your tap water, air quality, walkability and more
I’ve eaten pretty healthy most of my life. Been a vegetarian on & off, Being in an organic vegan diet for a year, including flaxseed, hemp seed, greens, soy, broccoli & & cauliflower, I am still hot flashing all night. I’m 72 years old, went into menopause at 50, so 22 years. I’ve tried almost everything. My A1C is 6.0, & diet controlled insulin levels. Do you any suggestions? Drs aren’t much help these days. Thank you!