October 17, 2022

REPLAY: Six Foods to Eat Before Your Period to Reduce Pain with Endometriosis

33 minutes

This week’s episode is a replay as my guest for this week has had to postpone (but they’ll be on very soon)! I thought I’d continue on the theme of improving your period pain with endo, and wanted to share some of the best foods for lowering inflammation and supporting a healthy cycle.

Of course, please avoid the foods that you know you react to and don’t tolerate. Every body is different and so just because a food is shown to be anti-inflammatory, that doesn’t mean it’s right for you.

As most of you will know by now, I lean towards making healthy choices to support us with endo all month long, but that doesn’t mean that focusing on foods to add in just before our period can’t be useful. In fact, if you’re struggling with where to get started with endometriosis management, I would start here and with my last episode.

As always, these are just options - you don’t have to do them all nor do you have to do them exactly as suggested, tweak and tailor to your lifestyle and preferences. If you’re triggered by any of this, seek the support of a therapist and dietician/health coach/nutritionist before making further dietary changes.

So, here are any foods to to eat before your period to reduce pain with endometriosis:

Spinach and other leafy greens such as kale, boy chow, lettuce, rocket, chard and other greens. Add these in for anti-inflammatory nutrients, magnesium iron and fibre. Leafy greens can help to reduce period pain, fatigue, PMS symptoms like bloating and can aid reducing any excess oestrogen.

Olive oil and other Vitamin E containing foods such as almonds, olives, avocados, greens and sunflower seeds. Vitamin E has been shown to reduce inflammation in numerous studies, as well as reduce pain with endometriosis and painful periods.

Broccoli and other cruciferous veg like kale, cauliflower, asparagus, broccoli sprouts, sprouts and cabbage. These help to reduce oestrogen dominance by supporting the body to remove old oestrogen that needs clearing out and can cause symptoms like clots periods, heavy periods and period pain.

Salmon and other sources of omega 3 fats such as mackerel, anchovies, sardines, herring, walnuts and chia seeds. Omega 3 fats help to lower inflammation and have been shown to reduce period pain and in studies on rats, reduce the size of endometriosis lesions. Add no more than two portions of fatty fish a week in addition to walnuts and chia seeds, and be cautious of large fatty fish as these can have a higher mercury content.

Tomatoes and other colourful vegetables such as berries, red cabbage, parsnips, peppers, squashed carrots. Studies have shown that people with endometriosis have higher levels of oxidation (which leads to higher levels of inflammation and therefore pain) and that when participants added in a high anti-oxidant diet in the form of extra fruits and vegetables, their oxidation levels lowered.

Turmeric and other herbs and spices like cinnamon and ginger. Many herbs and spices are anti-inflammatory, yet turmeric, ginger and cinnamon are particular stand-out stars, with curcumin (the active compound in turmeric) showing promise with endometriosis lesion suppression and ruction in mice, and ginger being an effective pain reliever in people with primary dysmenorrhea.

Bonus food! Raw cacao and sugar free dark chocolate. Rich in magnesium, iron and anti-oxidants, raw cacao can help lower inflammation and support energy production, whilst helping us with those sugar cravings! Just be mindful of how much you have as cacao does have a little caffeine.

More show notes and links here.

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This episode is produced by Ora Podcasts.

This episode is sponsored by BeYou Cramp Relief Patches. Soothe period cramps the natural way with these 100% natural and discreet menthol and eucalyptus oil stick on patches. Click here to find out more and to shop: https://beyouonline.co.uk/pages/how-it-works

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