Having a period, can sometimes make you very uncomfortable. For guys, there is no need for them to imagine how pain sometimes periods can be, unless they have a uterus. Sometimes, premenstrual symptoms, or known as PMS, causes cramps, bloating and even back pain.
We have known many people taking painkillers into consideration, while some of our customers find that their periods got better and easier to manage, after taking up our award winning weight loss therapy, called Metabolite Wellness Therapy.
Foods To Eat & Avoid During Your Period
In this article, let us share with you on what are the food that could make your period feel better and what makes it worse.
Above Image taken from Brilio.
Food To Avoid
Cold Food:
We placed all types of cold food at the top of our list, as this is almost a guaranteed cause of the many cramps during our period. This is because your uterus lining is more sensitive when it is shedding its’ lining.
When your internal body temperature is reduced by the food you consume, it causes the uterus to also cool down, causing menstrual fluids to become more viscous. Therefore, making your uterus to work harder to prepare for its’ next phase.
So, we recommend to start taking only warm food and beverages, even before your menses starts to happen.
Oily Fried Food:
I am referring here on saturated oil, which is generally used for cooking. Additionally, if you are taking oily food that are cooked outside, these are not merely just saturated fats, but also reused oil, which contains many kinds of harmful chemicals and free radicals. These triggers inflammation and heatiness within the body, which will cause more pain during our period.
By the way, there is an article on livestrong.com, stating on the harmful effects of consuming cooking oil, which potentially causes cancer.
So during your period, when your body is clearing off the menses, it had to do additional work to clear off these toxins you took from oil food. What a Pain!
Carbonated Beverages:
Some of you, who may be a fan of these soda beverages can make you feel even more bloated during your period. As these drinks are not only taken cold, but also high in sugar value.
These can cause “coldness” within the uterus organ and also disrupt your hormonal system during this crucial process, causing more severe pimples outbreaks.
Salty Food
Excessive amount of salt in our food generally increases the kidney’s load in eradicating and balancing the sodium and potassium levels of our body.
Therefore, when salt, which is mostly sodium overloads the body, you may sometime notice more water retention. In menstrual context, this causes weaker energy levels within your menstrual and digestive functions, causing bloatedness and weight gain during your period.
These salt can be silently added into your meals, without you noticing that it even taste salty. This is especially true for processed food! So be sure to refer to the labels and you might be surprised that even “healthier” choices might contain higher sodium levels.
Processed Food:
Some of these food, which are instant noodles, canned food and potato chips, contain high levels of unhealthy trans-fat and oil. These ingredients are very known in the TCM nutrition context, that cause your body to accumulate plenty of “wind”, disrupting the digestive and hormonal functions.
Moreover, both of these functions are more vulnerable to accumulate “wind”, when you are having your period. I will be talking more on the eradication of these “wind” in the lower section of this article.
Food To Eat
Dark Leafy Vegetables:
During your period, you will tend to lose more minerals, especially iron. Dark leafy green vegetables, like kale, black fungus, black cabbage, spinach, helps to not only replenish iron and other minerals into your body, but also obtain lots of antioxidants and vitamins during this process.
In TCM, dark coloured vegetables are generally warm in nature and are known to replenish energy(chi), within your bladder and kidneys. This will definitely help to soothe your menstrual flow.
Apart from dark coloured vegetables, you can also try green onions, which is proven to help out both removing toxins, supplementing pre-biotics and helps in smoothing your period.
Grains:
Whole grain bread, cereals and oats have plenty of vitamin B, fiber and also iron. These fiber can help with digestion, reduce bloatedness and relieve that heavy feeling during your period.
Omega 3 Foods:
If you are very prone to menstrual cramps during your period, try to take omega 3 regularly. This nutrient is known for it’s natural muscle relaxant and an anti-inflammatory properties, which are deeply researched and proven to reduce menstrual cramps.
You can get these from fatty fishes like salmon and tuna. For plant alternatives, you could get it from vegetables like chia seeds, pumpkins, avocados, flax seeds and walnuts.
Calcium Rich Foods:
Research shows that taking adequate calcium and vitamin D can help on regulating depression and mood swings, it is a way to also help on influencing your hormones that stabilize your emotions during these period.
Some examples of calcium rich foods are lentils, seeds, yogurt, toufu, cheese, and fish like sardines.
Anyway, we also provide many health services that can also help on keeping your warmth inside your body.
Please do not hesitate to consult us more. We are more than glad to help you on reducing your pain and making you beautiful at the same time.
