“Many women believe they should eat warm things, such as red dates and donkey-hide gelatin, to nourish the blood during their period. In fact, this is a very general and incorrect view.” This is not the case. Diet during menstruation is quite particular; only by eating the right things can it have the effect of nourishing and health maintenance; otherwise, it can harm the body.
Chocolate: Chocolate can lead to emotional instability. Chocolate can make emotions more volatile and increase sugar cravings. Besides causing weight gain, it also increases the demand for Vitamin B. At the same time, sugar depletes the body's Vitamin B and minerals and makes a person crave more sugary foods. Consuming high-sugar sweets not only fails to alleviate menstrual discomfort but may, due to blood sugar instability, affect the body's hormonal balance and worsen the feeling of discomfort.
Sichuan Peppercorns, Cloves, and Black Pepper: During menstruation, one should eat light, bland, and nutrient-rich foods. It is not advisable to eat strongly stimulating spicy foods to avoid dilating blood vessels, which can cause an early period and excessive bleeding. Foods like Sichuan peppercorns, cloves, and black pepper are seasonings that can enhance the flavor of dishes when used normally. However, women during their period should avoid these spicy and stimulating foods, as they can easily lead to symptoms like dysmenorrhea and menorrhagia.
Crab: It is very cooling in nature and can clear heat, cool the blood, and dispel stasis. Women during their menstrual period should avoid raw, cold, and cooling foods, especially those with cold-type dysmenorrhea, who should especially avoid eating it.
River Snails: They are very cooling in nature and can clear heat. Women should avoid eating cold-natured foods like river snails during their period.
Pear: It is strictly inadvisable to eat too many raw pears during menstruation.
Persimmon: Persimmons contain tannic acid, which easily combines with iron and hinders the human body's absorption of iron from food. Since women lose a large amount of blood during their period and need to supplement iron, it is not advisable to eat persimmons.
Watermelon: Women should refrain from eating watermelon during their period.
Green Tea: Menstrual blood contains relatively high levels of hemoglobin, plasma protein, and pigments, so women lose a large amount of iron after their period and should supplement it. Tea contains more than 30% tannic acid, which easily combines with iron ions in the intestines to form precipitates, hindering the intestinal mucosa's absorption of iron ions. It can also cause breast tenderness, anxiety, irritability, and emotional instability. At the same time, it depletes the body's stored Vitamin B and disrupts carbohydrate metabolism.
Bamboo Shoots: Bamboo shoots are cold in nature and contain a relatively high amount of coarse fiber and insoluble calcium oxalate. Women should avoid eating them during their period.
Salt: It is harmful for women to eat salty food before the onset of their menstrual period. Salty food increases the body's storage of salt and water, which can lead to headaches, excitability, and irritability before the period begins.
Caffeinated Beverages: They can cause breast tenderness, anxiety, irritability, and emotional instability. At the same time, they deplete the body's stored Vitamin B and disrupt carbohydrate metabolism.
Alcohol: Alcohol depletes the body's Vitamin B and minerals. Excessive drinking can disrupt carbohydrate metabolism and produce excessive estrogen, dilating blood vessels and causing an early period and excessive bleeding.
Soda: Many women who enjoy carbonated beverages experience fatigue and listlessness during their period, which is a sign of iron deficiency. This is because soda and other beverages mostly contain phosphates, which have a chemical reaction with iron in the body, making it difficult to absorb. In addition, drinking too much soda can neutralize stomach acid with the sodium bicarbonate in the soda, reducing the digestive and bactericidal capabilities of stomach acid and affecting appetite. Milk: Dairy products are the culprit for dysmenorrhea: such as milk, cheese, cream, and yogurt. These foods can interfere with the absorption of magnesium.
Cold Drinks: Those with cold-type menstrual disorders should avoid them.
In summary, regarding diet during menstruation, one should avoid raw and cold foods. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that blood circulates when it is warm and stagnates when it is cold. If one eats raw and cold foods during their period, it first hinders digestion and secondly damages the body's vital energy (yang qi), leading to internal cold. This cold stagnation can impede the smooth flow of menstrual blood, causing too little blood or even dysmenorrhea.
Even during the height of summer, it is not advisable to eat cold drinks during the period. It is best to eat well-cooked and warm foods during menstruation. In winter, one can also appropriately eat some warm-nourishing foods like lamb, chicken, and longan.