Women should avoid eating ice during their menstrual period. To ensure the complete discharge of menstrual blood, the blood must be in a "warm" state to flow smoothly. Consuming cold food stimulates a change in blood temperature, which can impede circulation, lead to blood clots, and cause menstrual cramps.
Foods to Avoid During Menstruation
In addition to ice, it's advisable to avoid foods with cooling properties, such as: iced products, eggplant, loofah, cucumber, winter melon, crab, river snails, kelp, bamboo shoots, oranges, pears, pomelos, watermelon, etc. Also, avoid astringent foods like sour plums or unripe sour fruits, as well as pungent and heaty foods like fried foods, chili peppers, pepper, and mustard, to prevent poor blood circulation.
Foods to Eat During Menstruation
During your period, you should eat more scallion whites, black fungus, peanuts, walnuts, red dates, longans, and rosebuds. If you accidentally consume cold food or ice, drinking brown sugar boiled with ginger can help balance blood circulation and promote its smooth flow.
Lifestyle Tips
Besides avoiding ice, women should pay special attention to keeping warm during their period. Avoid exposure to cold, wading in water, getting caught in the rain, sun exposure, and taking cold showers. Sexual intercourse, sitz baths, and swimming should be prohibited. Maintain cleanliness of the vulva, underwear, and sanitary napkins.
Traditional Chinese Medicine advises against women eating ice during their period, whereas Western medicine considers it to have no restrictions. Menstrual blood is the shedding of the uterine lining, expelled through uterine contractions. When you eat ice, the temperature of your digestive tract drops, which can weaken uterine contractions, making it harder for menstrual blood to be discharged. This can lead to blood clots. The uterus then has to contract more forcefully to expel these clots, which is a possible reason why eating ice can cause menstrual cramps.
Western medicine does not restrict any foods, and even eating ice during the postpartum confinement period is permitted. Although eating ice might cause uterine contractions and lead to menstrual cramps, these clots can be expelled by the body's natural mechanisms, so women need not be overly concerned. However, if excessive menstrual cramps occur due to eating ice, it is advisable to visit a gynecologist to check for other possible medical conditions.