Here's Why You Suffer From Premenstrual Bloating, Tender Breasts and Breakouts
There’s a lot to be said about PMS and many rabbit holes to go down. My approach is to take a step back and review the basics.
In previous blogs I’ve discussed blood sugar balance and gut health in regards to PMS and hormonal related bloating, and they are very relevant to this conversation, but today I want to dive into the balance of estrogen and progesterone.
Estrogen is the hormone of growth and cell proliferation. It builds the uterine lining throughout the cycle, it’s responsible for your breasts, hips and curves. This is good in context, but when
it is not balanced out by progesterone in the luteal phase, or it is not been eliminated from the body efficiently, it begins to accumulate and store in our tissues, driving common PMS symptoms, ovulation and period pain, low mood, sleep issues, clotty periods, heavy and long bleeds. It is a key component of conditions such as endometriosis and fibroids, the growth of cells in places they shouldn’t be due to estrogen, the hormone of growth and proliferation!
Progesterone is known as the pregnancy hormone. This is such a misrepresentation of the true powers this hormone holds. Progesterone is the most protective hormone for our physiology. Progesterone works to keep many hormones in balance, it is a direct fighter of stress, promotes deeper and restorative sleep, it’s anti-aging and pro longevity and is really important for brain function.
This is why I say ovulation is the star of the show, you must ovulate to make progesterone and you must ovulate WELL.
The luteal phase is also known as the pro-gestational phase of your cycle. Progesterone should be the dominant hormone, organising the body and keeping things (like estrogen!) in check ready for a potential implantation.
If you’re not making enough progesterone due to anovulation or poor egg quality, then estrogen can become the dominant hormone in the luteal phase, contributing to tender breasts and even cystic breasts, feeding bacteria and inflammatory properties which can result in bloating and breakouts.
For many of us it can also result in a long, heavy or clotty bleed which is often painful.
There are two simultaneous approaches here:
Make sure you are ovulating by tracking your fertility signs - check out the free masterclass here
Make sure your body is breaking down and eliminating estrogen efficiently.
You might be making good levels of progesterone, but maybe your body is not getting the estrogen out efficiently, contributing to a state of estrogen dominance.
I’ll be relaunching my group coaching in the new year which has modules dedicated to estrogen elimination and progesterone production, but here are my top tips to get you started:
Eat the raw carrot salad daily to help bind to estrogen in the digestive system. The raw carrot fiber binds the estrogen into your stool increasing the chances of it being eliminated rather than reabsorbed
Introduce well cooked root vegetables throughout your cycle, but specifically in your luteal phase. The gentle fibers in roots like beetroot, parsnip, onion, sweet potato, turnip and white potato encourage optimal bowel movement, preventing constipation which is a driver of estrogen dominance!
If you need to get your bowels moving quickly, a magnesium citrate or a gentle herb like cascara sagrada can help! Start with the recommended daily dose and adjust.
Introduce daily doses of wholefood vitamin C such as ripe fruit, cooked potatoes, red bell peppers and camu camu capsules to support the corpus luteums progesterone production.
Review your meal frequency and timings (discussed in this article) to help optimise your blood sugar regulation so your body can utilise the progesterone it is producing.
As you’re working with a monthly cycle it can take at least three hormone cycles to notice an improvement in your PMS symptoms. As always, consistency is key.
If you would like to hear more about my group coaching program please register your interest here, I will be sending further information towards the new year!