5 Nutrients You Need to Regulate Your Cycle

Despite what we learned in sex education class, most women do not have a 28 day menstrual cycle. And that’s okay. A 26 or 32 day cycle might be perfectly normal and healthy for you and your body. Even a missed or late period once in a while is likely fine. But a frequent period that comes every 24 days or less, or one that comes sporadically every couple of months can be problematic if you are trying to get pregnant, or it may be indicative of a more serious underlying issue within the reproductive system. Or it might just be plain annoying to never know when to expect it.

Western medicine might prescribe birth control pills to regulate your period or an IUD to eliminate it, but these solutions simply cover up the problem and for obvious reasons, won't work if you are trying to regulate your cycle in order to get pregnant. There are ways to rebalance your cycle without the use of prescription drugs. One of them is getting the right nutrients.

Here are 5 nutrients you need to regulate your menstrual cycle naturally:
1. Iron: insufficient iron can cause you to stop ovulating, which leads to an irregular cycle. Ensure that you are getting enough iron in your diet, especially during your period. Good iron sources include organic beef, game meats, chicken, eggs and salmon. You can also get it from vegetable sources such as blackstrap molasses, beans, lentils, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, dark leafy greens and dried apricots.
2. Vitamin C: Vitamin C promotes proper hormone production. It is also required to absorb iron. Make sure you are consuming vitamin-C rich foods alongside your iron sources above. The best sources are peppers, kale, broccoli, guavas, strawberries, and kiwi fruit.
3. Fiber: fruits, vegetables, beans, lentils and whole grains all contain plant fiber, which helps to detoxify the system. Part of detoxification includes removing excess hormones. If you have too much of one hormone in circulation, it causes an imbalance with another. Fiber also helps to stabilize blood sugar, which promotes balanced hormones.
4. Healthy fats: we hear a lot about omega-3 fatty acids and these are essential for good hormonal balance. Omega-6 fatty acids are also important and can help to relieve many symptoms associated with peri-menopause, PMS and irregular periods. You can find Omega-6 fatty acids in evening primrose, borage and hemp oils (or seeds). Camelina oil is also becoming more popular and this has a good balance of omega-3 and omega-6 oils. Camelina oil is a good one to use for cooking as it has a high smoke point, similar to olive oil.
5. Cholesterol: cholesterol has a bad rap but hormones are made from it so make sure you get enough. Avoid a low fat diet and incorporate organic beef, eggs, whole milk, yogurt and kefir, butter and coconut oil into your meals.

It does take time to shift the balance within the hormonal system. If you follow a whole foods, organic diet while paying particular attention to the nutrients above, you'll see quicker results. But be patient. Slow and steady wins the race.