Foods That Help With Period Cramps

Some Foods Are Good For Preventing Cramps

Sannoh also found that some foods have the opposite effect, working to prevent cramps. This category includes foods high in omega-3 fatty acids, known to reduce inflammation.

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Omega-3s are found in seafood such as salmon, tuna, anchovies, and sardines. Walnuts, chia, and flax seeds, along with their oils and other plant oils , are also good sources of the nutrient. In addition, many foods on the market, including eggs, milk, and yogurt, have been fortified with omega-3s.

Since menstrual pain results from inflammation, it is important to have a balance of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids in your diet or have more omega-3 fatty acids in your diet, her studys abstract concludes.

What Is The Menstrual Cycle

As women, were conditioned to believe that having a period is a painful, frustrating, and shameful experiencebut it shouldnt be any of those things. In fact, my goal is to empower you to take your cycle into your own hands. Knowledge is power. Get to know your flow and your flow will become a seamless part of your life. These are the four main phases of the menstrual cycle:

• Menstruation phase
• Ovulation phase

Each monthduring the years between puberty and menopausea womans body goes through a number of changes. In essence, to get ready for a possible pregnancy. This series of hormone-driven events is called the menstrual cycle. During each menstrual cycle, an egg develops and is released from the ovaries. The lining of the uterus builds up. If conception doesnt happen, the uterine lining sheds during a menstrual period. Thus, the cycle starts again. The length of each phase can differ from woman to woman, and it can change over time.

Image by Riley Reed

Period Cramps Are A Part And Parcel Of Menstruation But That Doesnt Mean You Have To Live With The Pain Especially When Youve Got These Home Remedies On Your Side

Most women experience a throbbing pain in their lower abdomen while on their period. These are what we call menstrual cramps or period cramps. There are a number of reasons why women go through this pain every month, including higher levels of prostaglandins, uterine fibroids or endometriosis.

But to fix the cause, it is important to reduce the pain first. Here are 7 ways to overcome severe period cramps.

1. Well balanced diet

If you suffer from menstrual cramps far too often, then it is time to make a few changes in your diet. A vegetarian low-fat diet will not only help you to boost your metabolism but also relieve cramps noticeably. Try to replace saturated animal fats with unsaturated plant-fats like nuts, olive oil, and vegetable oils.

Also, read: These 7 Ayurvedic herbs will work like magic to soothe your period cramps

2. Herbal peppermint tea

Herbal teas with peppermint oil help to reduce the pain as the herbs in them act the same as the oestrogen hormone. If you suffer from a blood pressure problem, then it is always advisable to check with your doctor first. Vitamin and oil supplements

According to a report, if you consume fish oil and vitamin B1 supplements from your teen years, you are less likely to suffer from period cramps. Try to add natural sources of these nutrients in your diet like omega-3 fatty acid enriched fishes, eggs, seeds, milk, and oats.

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Cruciferous Vegetables Like Broccoli

Broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts, and other cruciferous vegetables are good sources of fiber, calcium, and magnesium.

These vegetables are also high in iron. Blood loss during your period can significantly lower your overall iron levels, so its important to get it in your diet.

Whether this will help with cramps specifically isnt clear at this point.

Things That May Help With Period Cramps

Dealing with menstrual cramps every month can be as frustrating as it is painful. The good news is there are many remedies that might help you relieve period cramps. Its important to remember that these techniques wont always work, especially for chronic conditions, but they can offer relief for mild to moderate period pain.

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Eat Foods High In Magnesium

Did you know that magnesium helps reduce anxiety, along with sleeping problems, headaches, and PMS? It eases menstrual cramps by relaxing the uterine muscles in the uterus and reduces the prostaglandins that cause menstrual pain. To incorporate more magnesium into your diet, try eating cashews, soybeans, almonds, spinach, avocado, bananas, pumpkin seeds, dark chocolate THE LIST IS ENDLESS! Magnesium supplements are also a great option.

Putting Foods To Work

The key to success is to follow the diet strictly so that the beneficial effects are evident over time.

Eat plenty of:

• Whole grains: brown rice, whole-grain bread, oatmeal, etc.
• Vegetables: broccoli, spinach, carrots, sweet potatoes, Swiss chard, Brussels sprouts, etc.
• Legumes: beans, peas, lentils
• Fruits: apples, mangoes, berries, oranges, etc.

Avoid completely:

• Animal products: fish, poultry, meats, eggs, and dairy products
• Refined grains: white bread, refined cereals, pastries, etc.
• Added vegetable oils: salad dressings, margarine, and all cooking oils
• Fatty foods: doughnuts, cheese, French fries, potato chips, etc.

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Foods That Might Help With Cramps

In the run up to the day your period calculator predicts your next period is due, you might start to notice some cramping. For some, it happens every month like clockwork, while for others premenstrual cramping is a bit more sporadic.

Either way, if youre looking for the best food for period cramps, you’ve come to the right place. The top line? Choose light, healthy fruits and vegetables that wont be heavy in your stomach. Fruits and veggies, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds can help decrease inflammation in the body and can help menstrual cramps.

The great news is the best foods for period cramps can often be found in your fridge! Top health foods on this list are common and great choices when youre looking for what to eat when you have cramps. There are plenty of foods that might help with menstrual cramps.

If youre looking to adjust your diet and stock up on foods that might help with cramps, here are some to try:

The Link Between Your Diet And Menstrual Cramps

Paying attention to nutrition and diet has long been proven to be a powerful and natural strategy of keeping the inflammation down in our bodies. Similarly, eating high levels of sugars, processed foods, alcohol, and caffeine can aggravate inflammation in your body.

In fact, a 2016 study by Journal of women’s health has found that inflammation in the body is linked to increased period pain and premenstrual symptoms. So, eating a natural and nutrient rich diet that keeps the inflammation down is definitely an influencing factor when it comes to menstrual cramp management.

It has also been found that a diet high in animal products and industrially processed oils leads to an increase in levels of hormone estrogen.

Higher levels of estrogen lead to the formation of thicker uterine lining, which will amp up the release of higher levels of prostaglandins as it breaks down the lining during periods. This will in turn lead to a more severe sensation of pain.

While there are no specific foods that ‘cure’ menstrual cramp when they occur. But practising good nutrition in your regular diet will have positive consequences on the frequency and severity of cramps.

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Milk And Milk Products

Most milk and milk products, such as yogurt and cheese, are great sources of calcium.

Some evidence suggests that calcium supplements may be able to help with menstrual symptoms like period cramps, as well as mood changes and fatigue.

However, most studies didnt investigate the effect of calcium from foods, so its unclear whether milk products can help relieve pain in the same manner.

Most milks, including many plant-based ones, also contain vitamins D, E, and magnesium. And there is some evidence to suggest these nutrients may provide pain relief during menstruation when taken as supplements.

Whether that means that drinking milk will have the same effect isnt clear. But dairy and plant-based milks can also help you stay hydrated.

Foods To Eat To Reduce Period Cramps

If you are one of the many girls and women who experience painful menstrual cramps, a diet change may bring some relief, a new study suggests.

The analysis of previous research revealed that certain foods such as coffee, red meat, highly processed foods and those high in omega-6 fatty acids, like nuts seemed to increase pain. Meanwhile, other foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains and those that were high in omega-3 fatty acids, like fish seemed to lessen cramping, according to the report presented at the annual meeting of The North American Menopause Society.

This started out as a search for something to remedy my own pain, said study author Serah Sannoh, who was an undergraduate student at Rutgers University when working on the study and now is a first-year medical student at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University. I knew I was not the only one with this pain.

It turns out, Sannoh said, that as many as 90% of adolescent girls have menstrual pain. She noted that college students often consume the types of foods likely to worsen menstrual cramping. Among girls this age, there is high coffee intake, and processed foods are easily available on campus.

For her study, Sannoh combed through the medical literature searching for studies that explored the impact of diet on menstrual pain and eventually found five that met her criteria.

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Avoiding Inflammatory Foods Is Key To Quelling Cramps

For this study, Sannoh conducted an extensive review of the literature, ultimately finding some 20 articles on the topic. They were comprised of questionnaires, randomized trials, and nested control case studies.

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Her conclusion: Diet can indeed have a large effect on menstrual cramps. Foods high in omega-6 fatty acids, which promote inflammation in the body, seem to be especially troublesome.

Thats especially a problem for teens, Sannoh says. The American diet eaten by girls this age tends to be very high in these fats, which are generally found in processed oils and meats. The fast food places and college food halls where these girls eat serve a lot of these foods, she says.

Sugar, salt, and coffee are other inflammatory foods found to worsen cramps. The reason all these foods affect menstrual cramps has to do with basic biology.

Inflammatory foods increase the release of prostaglandins, which increase vasoconstriction that leads to pain, explains Monica Christmas, MD, director of the Center for Womens Integrated Health at the University of Chicago and a board trustee for NAMS, who was not involved with the study. Specifically, these prostaglandins constrict blood vessels in the walls of the uterus, causing cramping, she says.

Women and girls with high levels of prostaglandins tend to have more severe menstrual cramping, Sannoh observes.

A Closer Look At Estrogen

There may be a more fundamental approach. Rather than focusing on the prostaglandins themselves, it may help to look at the cellular factories that make them. Oral contraceptives, or birth control pills, lower the production of prostaglandins by slowing the growth of the uterus lining. As a result, 90% of women who take birth control pills experience reduced menstrual pain. However, diet changes may lead to similar results.

Estrogens are female sex hormones, a sort of hormonal fertilizer that makes the cells of the body grow. In every monthly menstrual cycle, the estrogen levels in a womans body rises and falls. These hormones are responsible for breast development at puberty, and each month they cause the lining of the uterus to thicken in anticipation of pregnancy.

Estrogen gradually rises as a womans period ends and falls again at the start of a new cycle. Then, for about two weeks, the hormone rises toward a peak and falls quickly around the time of ovulation. It rises again in the second half of the month and then falls just before the next period for a total of two rises and falls throughout the cycle. The uterus sheds its lining in a menstrual flow, accompanied by crampy pain.

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How To Get Rid Of Period Cramps Naturally

A lot of women have their own ways of dealing with tough menstruation cycles and PMS symptoms, from tips handed down by mom to turning to medications. And if those work for you awesome!

But if youre looking for some new, natural ways to combat that painful time of the month, then this is the list for you. From essential oils and Epsom salts to fish oil and your favorite tunes, these methods for how to get rid of period cramps will help ease period pain so you can live your best life all month long.

1. Try acupuncture.

When youre in pain, the idea of getting pricked by needles probably doesnt sound too appealing. But acupuncture, a type of Traditional Chinese Medicine, has been used for more than 2,000 years to treat chronic pain and can be especially effective during a hard-to-handle menstrual cycle. In fact, one small study out of Australia and New Zealand found that acupuncture treatment can ease period pain, including secondary symptoms like headaches and nausea, in women.

The pilot study of women ages 18 to 45 years old had them undergoing one of four types of manual or electro-acupuncture treatments over three menstrual cycles. Half of the women experienced at least a 50 percent reduction in the severity of their symptoms over three months of being treated with acupuncture and reported they were able to use fewer painkillers to treat pain.

2. Take a hot bath with Epsom salts.

3. Get a dose of extra-virgin olive oil.

4. Try fish oil supplements.

5. Get more sleep.

Make Your Periods Less Painful With The Right Food By Shreya Gupta+2 More Last Updated: Dec 14 2022click To Rate This Article

Periods are a monthly affair for women. Although timely periods are considered as a sign of good health, the 3 5 days of the flow can cause great discomfort, inconvenience and pain. Sometimes the pain can reach almost intolerable levels which make it difficult for women to go about their routine. But the good news is that there are some simple no-hassle ways to deal with period pain. This includes a healthy diet. There are a few food items that can help to reduce period pain and associated discomfort and make your next period a little less agonising experience. Here is a list of 7 of them.

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Improving Your Diet Will Help Alleviate Period Cramps

Research has shown that reducing fat and increasing vegetables in your diet may help ease monthly cramps. A low-fat diet actually decreases overall levels of inflammation in the body, says Aldo Palmieri MD, an ob-gyn at UCLA Health and a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine in Los Angeles. A low-fat, vegetarian diet not only helps your health generally, says Dr. Palmieri, but it can have an indirect yet noticeable effect on menstrual cramps, too.

Trying to achieve a healthier diet? To start, swap out less healthy fats like the saturated fats found in animal products, and choose healthier ones like unsaturated fats found in olive oil, suggests the American Heart Association . And if youre having dairy, pick low-fat or fat-free products. Overall, try to get 25 to 35 percent of your total daily calories from healthier fats found in fish, nuts, and vegetable oils, the AHA suggests. A balanced plate is essential examples can be found at the healthy eating plate site from Harvard University in Boston.

During Your Period Avoid Omega

Omega-6 fatty acids are popularly known as pro-inflammatory and these foods have been associated with triggering painful menstruation, Bachmann and Sannoh said.

Omega-6 fatty acids are commonly found in red meats and processed foods like french fries.

Research overall suggests that consuming diets high in omega-6 fatty acids increases the presence of pro-inflammatory prostaglandins, which may lead to increased menstrual cramping, Bachmann and Sannoh said.

But omega-6 fatty acids should not be avoided at all times, because a balance of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids is necessary for our bodies, they noted.

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Get More Calcium Into Your Diet

Studies have shown that calcium not only helps reduce mentstrual cramps, but it can also alleviate other PMS symptoms such as moodiness and fatigue.

Dairy products such as milk, cheese, and yogurt are rich in calcium. If you’re lactose intolerant or prefer a dairy-free dairy, non-dairy sources of calcium include fresh dill and dark, leafy greens.

Adequate Balance Of Magnesium Calcium & Potassium

Potassium is the most important ingredient in cranberries. It assists the body in retaining less water and decreases the bloating that is associated with PMS.

It also aids in preventing muscle cramps by acting in ensuring the effective contraction of muscles.

Manganese is the second vitamin found in cranberry juices that helps women to avoid signs of PMS. Studies have shown that magnesium levels in women who suffer from PMS are lower than in people who dont suffer from the condition.

Thus, experts have asserted the effectiveness of magnesium supplements to prevent PMS and treatment strategies.

Manganese can also help ease some of the fatigue experienced by women experiencing periods.

Based on an examination of the magnesiums impact on PMS youll have to consume cranberries every two months before you notice any difference. In order to enhance the results that are based on well-designed clinical trials are needed.

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