Healthy eating tips during menstruation

There is no standard answer to menstrual diet that applies to everyone. The core principle is only 8 words - adjust as needed, and prioritize comfort. Those mythical "must-eat lists" and "absolute taboos" mostly ignore individual physical differences, and their reference value is far less reliable than your own physical feelings.

Let’s first talk about the controversy about “replenishing qi and blood” that everyone is most concerned about. For example, is brown sugar water a menstrual artifact? From the perspective of Western medicine nutrition, more than 96% of brown sugar is sucrose, and the iron content is only 2mg/100g. It is still non-heme iron that is difficult to absorb. If you want to drink brown sugar water to replenish the iron lost during menstruation, you have to drink three to five kilograms a day. On the contrary, you will easily gain weight by consuming too much sugar. But from the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, brown sugar is warm in nature. Combining it with boiled ginger water can promote local blood circulation. It can indeed soothe dysmenorrhea caused by cold hands and feet and menstrual pain that makes you break into a cold sweat. The two best friends around me are the most vivid examples: one is so cold that her feet are not warm even after sleeping for a whole night in winter. She makes strong ginger and brown sugar tea on the first day of every menstrual period. After drinking it, she can sit up from the bed in half an hour. ； The other one is usually afraid of heat and often suffers from dry mouth during her period. Last time, she followed the trend and drank brown sugar ginger tea for two days, which resulted in three acne breakouts. She also had an extra menstrual period for two days, which was not worth the loss.

When it comes to supplements, we can't avoid the "taboo" question that everyone is more anxious about: Can't touch ice? Will mango stop bleeding? Does watermelon hurt if you eat it because it is cold? In fact, these statements are not so absolute. Take iced food as an example. My former classmate who studied in the UK drank iced milk with foreigners for four years, and also ate ice cream during her menstrual period. She never had any pain. When she returned home, her mother forced her to drink hot brown sugar water for three days, but she felt uncomfortable with bloated stomach. Finally, she secretly switched back to iced yogurt, but nothing happened. Essentially, this is the difference in body tolerance: if you usually eat ice cream, you won’t feel stomach pain or bloating when you eat ice cream during your period, and you don’t have to hold it in at all. ； If you usually get upset if you drink cold drinks for free, then just drink warm drinks during your menstrual period and don’t compete with yourself. As for the claims that mango stops bleeding and watermelon causes pain, there is no clear clinical evidence to support it. As long as you are not allergic or uncomfortable after eating it, it is perfectly fine to take a few bites. There is no need to stop touching your favorite fruit because of an aunt.

Of course, this does not mean that there are no taboos during menstruation. If you pay attention to some small details, you can indeed avoid suffering a little less. I was ignorant in the past two years. I was particularly greedy for salted duck the day before my period. I ate a whole duck by myself. The duck was so salty that I drank three bottles of water without quenching my thirst. As a result, when my aunt came the next day, I was so swollen that I couldn't wear my ring, and my face became round - - Later I learned that body metabolism will slow down during menstruation, and high-salt foods will aggravate water and sodium retention. For people who are prone to edema, it is best to avoid pickled products, heavy-salt takeaways, hot pots and barbecues during those days, which can save several pounds of swelling. And sisters who usually rely on coffee to survive, it is best to drink two cups less during those days. When I was working on a project, I had three cups of American coffee a day. As a result, I had a headache during my period and could not sleep until 2 o'clock. Later, I found out through some information that excessive caffeine can stimulate nerve excitement and aggravate dysmenorrhea, headaches, and emotional irritability. If you really want to drink it, you can switch to decaffeinated coffee, or a cup of hot latte will suffice.

I have been searching for so long, and I have also saved a very personal little recipe. You can also refer to it: If you feel uncomfortable three days before your period, cook some spinach and lean meat porridge. It is warm and comfortable in the mouth. The iron in spinach and lean meat can also replenish the lost nutrients. It is more effective than taking any health supplements.； If your menstrual flow is heavy, you can cook some duck blood and vermicelli soup, or stir-fry pork liver. The heme iron absorption rate can reach more than 20%, which is more effective than drinking ten cups of brown sugar water. By the way, there is another small detail that is easily overlooked: sisters who are usually lactose intolerant, it is best not to touch cold milk during menstruation. The stomach and intestines are more fragile than usual during those days, and drinking it is more likely to cause diarrhea. Don’t ask me how I know this, it’s all pitfalls I have experienced.

Having said that, there really aren’t that many restrictions on diet during menstruation. Don’t be bound by the “definitely not to eat” and “what you must eat” online. If you are comfortable eating and don’t have any discomfort, then that is the way of eating that is most suitable for you. After all, it's uncomfortable enough to visit my aunt. As long as it doesn't hurt, eating something you like is better than anything else.