Eating a nutritious diet with an appropriate amount of kilocalories is integral to menstrual cycle health. Dietary patterns that include a diversity of fruits and vegetables, dairy products, fish, green tea, and plant-derived compounds and avoid excessive intakes of alcohol, red and processed meats, and caffeine are correlated with fewer menstrual-related disorders.[1][2][3] There are also associations (but no robust data) between a more “proinflammatory” dietary pattern and reduced levels of sex hormone binding globulin, which might affect menstrual-related symptoms in some people.[4]
Diet is also implicated in the timing of menarche (or the first menses). Menstruation requires energy, so malnourishment and low body weight can result in a later onset of menarche, whereas overnutrition and obesity are associated with an earlier age at menarche.[5][6][7]
References
- ^Sadia Afrin, Abdelrahman AlAshqar, Malak El Sabeh, Mariko Miyashita-Ishiwata, Lauren Reschke, Joshua T Brennan, Amanda Fader, Mostafa A BorahayDiet and Nutrition in Gynecological Disorders: A Focus on Clinical StudiesNutrients.(2021 May 21)
- ^N D Barnard, A R Scialli, D Hurlock, P BertronDiet and sex-hormone binding globulin, dysmenorrhea, and premenstrual symptomsObstet Gynecol.(2000 Feb)
- ^Łagowska K, Strock NCA, Koltun KJ, Williams NI, De Souza MJAssociation of diet quality and hormonal status in exercising women with menstrual disturbances.Appl Physiol Nutr Metab.(2022-Nov-01)
- ^Liu N, Feng Y, Luo X, Ma X, Ma FAssociation Between Dietary Inflammatory Index and Sex Hormone Binding Globulin and Sex Hormone in U.S. Adult Females.Front Public Health.(2022)
- ^Ramezani Tehrani F, Mirmiran P, Gholami R, Moslehi N, Azizi FFactors influencing menarcheal age: results from the cohort of tehran lipid and glucose study.Int J Endocrinol Metab.(2014-Jul)
- ^Juul F, Chang VW, Brar P, Parekh NBirth weight, early life weight gain and age at menarche: a systematic review of longitudinal studies.Obes Rev.(2017-Nov)
- ^Chen LK, Wang G, Bennett WL, Ji Y, Pearson C, Radovick S, Wang XTrajectory of Body Mass Index from Ages 2 to 7 Years and Age at Peak Height Velocity in Boys and Girls.J Pediatr.(2021-Mar)