Nourishing Your Gut, Hormones & Healing from the Inside Out
At Body to Soul, we’re all about helping women get to the root cause of their symptoms—whether that’s bloating, fatigue, hormone imbalances, weight gain, or chronic gut issues. And sometimes, the most powerful tools for healing are the ones that have been with us the longest. Enter: bone broth.
This humble, simmered elixir has made its way from traditional kitchens to modern wellness routines for good reason. Bone broth is deeply nourishing, gut-healing, and hormone-supportive, and current research is starting to explain exactly why it works so well.
Bone Broth: More Than Just Comfort Food
Bone broth is created by simmering animal bones, joints, and connective tissue with herbs and vegetables for hours. The result? A rich, mineral- and amino acid-packed broth that can be sipped or cooked into meals. While it’s been praised in cultures across the globe for immune and digestive health (hello, Grandma’s chicken soup), it’s now gaining scientific validation for its gut-supportive and anti-inflammatory properties.
So how can bone broth help you feel more balanced? Let’s dig into the science—simplified.
Healing the Gut, Calming the Inflammation
Your gut isn’t just where digestion happens—it’s where hormones are metabolized, inflammation is regulated, and your immune system lives. Many symptoms women experience—like bloating, fatigue, PMS, and brain fog—can be traced back to poor gut function and chronic low-grade inflammation.
Bone broth delivers a powerful combo of amino acids that support intestinal barrier integrity, reduce inflammation, and nourish the cells that line your digestive tract.
Key Amino Acids in Bone Broth and Their Benefits
- Glutamine (GLN): A gut-healing superstar, glutamine helps seal a “leaky gut,” enhances mucosal repair, and has been shown to reduce intestinal inflammation in both humans and animals. In women with IBS and IBD, glutamine supplementation has improved gut barrier function and even normalized bowel movements.
- Histidine (HIS): Known for its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, histidine can help calm immune overactivity, especially in inflammatory bowel diseases. It may also prevent relapse in ulcerative colitis and protect against inflammation-triggered damage.
- Arginine (ARG): This amino acid supports tissue repair, immune function, and nitric oxide production. It’s especially beneficial in colitis models, where it improves gut barrier repair and reduces inflammation through key cellular pathways.
- Glycine (GLY): Often associated with better sleep and detox support, glycine also helps protect the gut lining, reduces inflammatory cytokines, and regulates oxidative stress—especially under stressful conditions.
- Proline (PRO): A collagen-building amino acid that supports mucosal healing, proline and its collagen-derived forms enhance tight junctions (the connections between gut cells) and promote a healthy gut microbiome.
Bone Broth’s Mineral Magic
In addition to amino acids, bone broth is a natural source of essential minerals like:
- Calcium & Phosphorus – Support bone health and modulate the gut microbiome.
- Potassium – Helps reduce intestinal permeability and supports gut-brain signaling.
- Magnesium – Often depleted in women with gut issues; replenishment can reduce inflammation and promote better gut bacteria.
- Zinc – Critical for tight junction integrity, immune function, and reducing diarrhea and inflammation in IBD.
These minerals, though modest in amount per serving, can add up over time—especially when you sip broth regularly or use it in cooking.
How Bone Broth Supports Hormone Health
When your gut is inflamed or “leaky,” hormones like estrogen can recirculate improperly, triggering symptoms like mood swings, acne, or irregular periods. By healing the gut barrier, bone broth helps regulate hormone metabolism and supports detoxification through the liver and colon.
Glycine, in particular, plays a key role in detox pathways, while amino acids like glutamine and proline reduce inflammatory triggers that affect both the gut and endocrine systems.
Easy Ways to Add Bone Broth to Your Day
Incorporating bone broth into your daily rhythm doesn’t have to be complicated:
- Morning: Swap your coffee for a warm cup of bone broth to gently activate digestion.
- Lunch or Dinner: Use it as a base for soups, stews, or even cooking rice and quinoa.
- Evening Wind-Down: Sip before bed to promote relaxation, sleep, and overnight gut repair.
Just remember: quality matters. Look for organic, pasture-raised, or grass-fed sources—or better yet, make your own at home to ensure it’s free from preservatives and additives. Click here to see our guide for making your own nourishing beef bone broth at home.
Choosing Bone Broth
While making bone broth at home is surprisingly simple and hands-off (hello, slow cooker magic!), we totally get that life can be busy—and grabbing a high-quality store-bought broth can be a super convenient option. Just be sure to choose wisely. As we mentioned earlier, look for bone broths made from organic, pasture-raised, or grass-fed animals whenever possible. These options tend to be richer in nutrients and free from unwanted additives.
Here’s a fun tip: pop your broth in the fridge. If it thickens or turns gel-like, that’s actually a great sign! It means it was simmered long enough to pull out all that nourishing collagen, gelatin, and other gut-loving, skin-supporting, hormone-balancing goodness.
A few other things to keep in mind when choosing your broth:
- Sodium Content: Bone broth can be sneaky high in sodium, especially the store-bought kinds. To keep your intake in check, look for low-sodium versions—we love Kettle & Fire, Brodo, and Bare Bones—or skip adding extra salt when cooking with it. If you’re DIY-ing your broth at home, it’s super easy to control the salt content (or leave it out altogether).
- Animal Source: Most store shelves are stocked with beef and chicken bone broth, but don’t stop there! Pork, turkey, and even fish bone broths are amazing too—each with their own unique flavor and health perks. Curious about the differences and benefits of each type? Let us know in the comments! We’d love to dive deeper in a separate post.
A Word of Caution
While bone broth is generally safe and beneficial, trace amounts of heavy metals like lead may leach from bones during long simmering. If you’re pregnant, nursing, or have a heavy metal sensitivity, consult a healthcare provider and choose bones from trusted, clean sources.
Final Thoughts: Sip Your Way to Whole-Body Balance
At Body to Soul, we believe healing is never one-size-fits-all. But simple, ancestral tools like bone broth can be powerful allies in restoring balance—especially for women struggling with gut and hormone imbalances.
By regularly sipping this nutrient-rich broth, you’re doing more than just nourishing your body. You’re supporting your gut barrier, calming inflammation, and creating space for your body to do what it does best—heal.
Looking for personalized guidance?
Tired of bloating, fatigue, stubborn weight, or mood swings? You don’t have to keep guessing or settling for temporary fixes. We use functional nutrition and mindfulness to help you rebalance your hormones and feel like yourself again.
Ready to get started? Schedule your appointment with one of our registered dietitians today.
Sources:
Matar, A., Abdelnaem, N. & Camilleri, M. Bone Broth Benefits: How Its Nutrients Fortify Gut Barrier in Health and Disease. Dig Dis Sci (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10620-025-08997-x
Mar-Solís LM, Soto-Domínguez A, Rodríguez-Tovar LE, Rodríguez-Rocha H, García-García A, Aguirre-Arzola VE, Zamora-Ávila DE, Garza-Arredondo AJ, Castillo-Velázquez U. Analysis of the Anti-Inflammatory Capacity of Bone Broth in a Murine Model of Ulcerative Colitis. Medicina (Kaunas). 2021 Oct 20;57(11):1138. doi: 10.3390/medicina57111138. PMID: 34833355; PMCID: PMC8618064.
