Cycle swaps that will promote balanced hormones
Let's go over some cycle swaps that you can do to keep your hormones balanced or at least get you on the right track!
Alright, so let's go ahead and start off with cravings. I'm sure most of us have seen in movies or TV shows, the cliché that whenever you're about to start your period you’ll turn into a monster and crave comfort foods. Specifically sugar, like pints of ice cream, cakes, brownies, cookies, etc. There's some truth behind that. Our bodies will naturally crave these as a serotonin boost. Especially if we're dealing with cramps, headaches, aches, and just overall feeling meh. But if you've been listening to my podcast, specifically the episode where we talked about gut health. Then you know that sugar has an inflammatory effect on the body. This extra inflammation can make PMS symptoms worse by contributing to the hormone imbalance and turning it into a cyclical pattern. Each time you get your period you crave sweets which in turn makes your PMS symptoms worse for your next period.
Plus, if you normally have a high sugar diet, then you're more likely to have an overpopulation of bad bacteria. This will make you crave more sugar as well. That’s because sugar is what the bad bacteria feed off of. It's like your mind is being hijacked. That's why if you're a sugarholic like I was, then you know how hard it is to break that addiction. It has even been compared to a cocaine addiction because it's an overwhelming need for sugar. You get moody, irritable, and short-tempered. So now you know you're not “being dramatic.” It's the bad bacteria in your gut that is hijacking your brain, making you want to crave the thing that they eat.
If you do find yourself craving sweets on your period, opt for more nutrient-dense options. For instance, dark chocolate, preferably anything 70% or higher. Roasted veggies because they retain their natural sugars. Peanut butter snacks like a protein ball, Kombucha, fruit and nut mix, etc. What I normally reach for when I'm craving sugar is a Greek parfait with chia seeds, frozen berries, and some granola on top. These will help satiate that craving as well as help your body continue doing its job without adding any extra burdens.
Another good cycle swap is skipping coffee during your period. Most of us will have coffee throughout our cycle to help push us through the day. But your period is the time where your hormone levels are at their lowest and your body is hard at work shedding your uterine lining. So, it's pretty natural for you to be more tired during that phase of your cycle. What I usually tell my clients is that when you're on your period, it's like your inner winter. It's the time in your cycle to rest, recharge and reflect on the previous month. Planning the month ahead and checking in with yourself. Instead of pushing yourself while on your period, you can plan ahead and make sure that you have that time to rest and recharge. It's like quality time with yourself. Instead of getting that coffee to force yourself to be productive, opt for herbal tea or some kombucha. It’s a great pick me up to support your liver since the second half of your cycle. It's hard at work processing all of that used-up and excess hormones in your system.
The last swap I want to talk about is probably the most important. Switching out of conventional tampons and pads. I was recently listening to a Fertility Friday podcast (I’ll have it linked in the show notes for you) where they talk about how most conventional menstrual products are made with synthetic materials because it's more cost effective and has more absorbency. Which will make it more “convenient” for consumers wanting to wear them for longer. Which of course is a huge no no. Because as you know, you shouldn't be using tampons for longer than six hours at a time because of Toxic Shock syndrome. Now I'm sure most of us have heard of Toxic Shock Syndrome, but most aren’t really sure what it is. So I decided to look into the research that they were talking about. Looking into how synthetic material leads to Toxic Shock syndrome while more organic cotton ones had never had that problem in the past. I’ll also link the research article as well in the show notes. But essentially what happened was when they started to introduce more synthetic products or synthetic materials into menstrual products, the initial research done seemed that everything was fine. No adverse effects were seen. Where the problem came up was not so much in the synthetic material itself, but rather in the bacteria that flourished in the vaginal cavity.
Your vagina has its own ecosystem. Similar to how your gut has good and bad bacteria, your vagina has a similar situation. But what ended up happening is that these synthetic materials were letting in a lot of oxygen. Remember that the main focus of these products was not only to cut costs but also to make the absorbency higher. That way they could market them saying that you can use them for longer. It was both the higher absorbency and the synthetic materials that lead to a certain type of bacteria Staphylococcus aureus. Now it's not rare for this bacteria to be found in the vagina. The problem wasn't so much the bacteria itself but what happened was when they were using these synthetic materials along with longer use time. It lead to a very specific breeding ground for this bacteria to be able to explode in population. Something else that played a big part in this is how your pH changes. During your period your pH will become a little bit more neutral while on the rest of your cycle it's a little bit more acidic. Normally your body takes care of this bacteria on its own before it can get out of control, but during your period your body is a lot more susceptible to bacteria because of the pH shift. So if you're introducing this foreign synthetic material in that is letting that bacteria be able to have more oxygen and have that warmer moist environment to breed and get out of control which lead to more cases of Toxic Shock symptoms.
All of these findings came out in the 80s regarding a menstrual product company called Rely made by Procter and Gamble. Rely tried to push the boundaries when it came to absorbency with their new synthetic blend. There was even a lawsuit because a couple of people did die of Toxins Shock Syndrome from their products. Many others were diagnosed with it leading some to classify it as an epidemic. After the lawsuit, Rely tested their new products to see if these synthetic ingredients were going to cause any issues. The study was done on mice…. Yeahhhh. And if you didn't know, mice don't get periods. Not only that but unlike humans, they don’t get any cervical fluids. The brand ended up rebranding after trying to downplay what happened. What's interesting is that organic cotton tampons and pads don't have that problem at all. There has been no recorded occurrence in Toxic Shock Syndrome occurring with organic cotton products. Synthetic blends are still very common in most of our more popular menstrual product brands. That including brands like Playtex, Tampax, and Kotex. So it's safe to say that you should definitely switch from using conventional products when possible.
There have even been some instances where individuals after switching to organic natural products saw their hormone imbalances started to get better. That's because when it comes to synthetic products, there is a good chance that there is synthetic estrogen involved. Especially when it comes to plastics. These xenoestrogens in the environment do cause a toxic load on your system specifically your liver. Which can lead to estrogen dominance because your liver is having a hard time processing the used up and excess hormones. Other options for menstrual products are my personal favorite, menstrual cups or menstrual underwear.
Unlike in the 80’s we now luckily have a wide variety of products and companies to choose from. So we don’t have to rely (no pun intended lol) on more questionable companies that are just trying to get money from us without really caring about what they put in their products or ingredients.
