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So sometimes why women are then labelled as too moody or too hyper or hysterical? The answer lies in their hormones, which control their menstrual cycle. Symptoms of change Most women, who are affected by PMS, suddenly begin to feel miserable a few days before their period each month. They feel bloated, their clothes fit tight, their bodies retain fluid, their breasts feel swollen, tender and painful. Some women become depressed and cry without reason. A few become nervous and irritable. Some feel extremely exhausted; others find it hard to concentrate. They crave for bread or pasta or sweets — mainly carbohydrates. Some feel exceedingly hungry and no amount of food seems to satisfy their appetite. Some develop nausea, constipation and may lose their appetite. Headaches, body aches, lethargy, mood swings and irritability are common to most women suffering from premenstrual syndrome (PMS). PMS can be mild or severe. It is a condition where about 50-80 per cent of the women undergo an emotional imbalance. Their diet can have a profound effect on the severity of PMS. Knowledge of how some foods affect you may help you to control these symptoms better. Sugar cravings
Solution: Eat five to six mini meals a day. This will keep your blood sugar steady throughout the day. Spreading meals over the day will check your sugar cravings and will also keep you energetic and in good mood. Coffee Caffeine can worsen symptoms of PMS as it increases breast-tenderness, increases anxiety and keeps you high-strung. If you are a regular coffee drinker, drink less coffee four to seven days before the menstrual cycle. "So how will I feel energetic if I reduce coffee? Fear some patients Solution: Take a B complex daily, especially around your periods. It gives you the desired energy and helps you cope with the day. Water retention Take Vitamin B6 supplements to reduce water retention. This vitamin inhibits the pain sensation and helps in controlling the estrogens level by facilitating their removal from the body. It also helps prevent water retention. Bananas are rich source of vitamin B6. Snack on nuts and incorporate beans and whole grains into your diet. Calcium Intake of this mineral can reduce menstrual pain; decrease pre-menstrual water retention or the feeling of bloated. It also stabilises the swings and improves concentration. Usually the problem lies not in calcium intake, but in calcium retention. Your calcium intake might be adequate or even surplus. Bust most of us generally lose 70 per cent of the calcium that we take in. It is important to cut this loss and improve the body’s calcium retaining ability. Foods like excessive animal protein, extra salt and sugar may leach out calcium from your body. So reduce the non-vegetarian content from your diet. Banish the salt shaker from the dining table and say no to sugar. More than three cups of black coffee and cigarette smoking induces calcium loss. Limit yourself to two cups of coffee per day. And remember even if you crave for more, opt for coconut water, buttermilk or fresh lime juice. Avoid soft drinks because the phosphorous in aerated drinks discourages calcium absorption and retention. If you need to increase your calcium intake, have more of green leafy vegetables and legumes. You may also take a glass of carrot juice. Phytoestrogens
To sum it up, a low fat, fibre rich and moderate protein diet helps control menstrual pain and makes life at that time of the month, a lot less painful The writer is a nutritionist. She treats obesity and related health disorders online. She can be reached at ask@health-total.com / www.health-total.com
Health
Capsules
Traffic pollution can harm the arteries that supply blood to the kidneys, says a new study. Long-term exposure to exhaust fumes increases the risk of heart attacks and stroke. Dr Murray Mittleman and a team at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, measured kidney function in 1,100 stroke patients using a recognised test called the glomerular filtration rate (GFR). The GFR is an indicator of how well the kidneys are working. A low GFR suggests kidney problems. Half of the stroke patients in the study lived within 1km of a major road in the Boston metropolitan region, BBC News reported. Dr Tim Chico, heart expert, University of Sheffield, UK, said, "Most people with kidney disease had high blood pressure, which increased risk of heart disease, while heart disease and its treatment frequently placed a strain on kidney function," he said. The study was published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. Hysterectomy not tied to heart risk Some studies say that women whose uterus has been removed may be more likely to experience heart troubles. But a new study says the heart disease risk is not more severe in middle-aged women after hysterectomy. After following 3,000 women for 11 years, researchers found that heart-risk factors like cholesterol, markers of inflammation and blood pressure were not much worse in women in the years after a hysterectomy, as compared to those who did not have it. Waist to height ratio better health indicator than BMI A study by Oxford Brookes University has found that measuring the ratio of someone's waist to their height may be a more accurate way to predict life expectancy than body mass index (BMI). BMI is calculated as a person's weight in kg divided by the square of their height in metres. Having a waist no more than half the length of your height can help prevent the onset of conditions like stroke, heart disease and diabetes. People with the highest waist-to-height ratio, whose waistlines measured 80 per cent of their height, lived 17 years fewer than average, The Telegraph reported. Dr Margaret Ashwell presented her findings at the European Congress on Obesity in Liverpool. Body clock ‘out of sync’ in depressed people Genes controlling
circadian clock rhythms are profoundly altered in the brains of people
with severe depression, a new study has found. These clock genes
regulate 24-hour circadian rhythms affecting hormonal, body
temperature, sleep and behavioural patterns. The findings provide the
first evidence of altered circadian gene rhythms in brain tissue of
people with depression and suggest a physical basis for many of the
symptoms that depressed patients report. The study was published in
the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Anger increases heart-attack risk Bottling up emotions is thought to harm mind and body. But a new study says that the opposite extreme may be no better. In a study of thousands of heart attack patients, those who recalled having flown into a rage during the previous year were more than twice as likely to have had a heart attack within two hours of that episode, as compared to other times. Healthy lifestyle offsets work stress People with job stress may lower their risk of heart disease by adapting a healthy lifestyle, a new study has found. Researchers set out to determine whether a healthy lifestyle can help reduce the effects of job stress on coronary artery disease. They looked at 7 cohort studies that included 1,02,128 people ranging in age from 17-70. "The risk of coronary artery disease was highest among participants who reported job strain and an unhealthy lifestyle; those with job strain and a healthy lifestyle had about half the rate of this disease," said researchers. The study was published in Canadian Medical Association Journal. Ultra-low salt intake may not be good
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Most women crave
chocolates and sweets during PMS as it satisfies hunger and boosts
their mood by increasing serotonin levels. Serotonin is the ‘feel
good’ chemical released after consuming carbohydrates. But the
flipside is that sugars quickly let you down by pushing the pancreas
to produce more insulin which in turn brings down the blood sugar
below what it was, thus leaving you even more depressed, moody and
overweight.
As the name suggests
these are weak plant estrogens. These are found in soy products,
vegetables, fruits and legumes. Phytoestrogens help to prevent
fluctuation in hormone levels and reduce menstrual pain. Vitamin E and
evening primrose oil are also known to be very effective in the
treatment of pain and discomfort related to PMS. The amount of fat in
your diet affects estrogens levels and causes PMS. So consume not more
than 4-5 tsp of oil in a day. Snack on almonds and roasted chana if
you feel excessively hungry just before your periods.
People at high risk for
heart problems, who have been told for years to sharply cut salt from
their diet, may not actually benefit from ultra-low sodium diets. They
could even face some harm, an independent panel of health experts has
said. The Institute of Medicine (IOM), in a report to US health
officials, reviewed the latest data on the link between salt intake
and health. While blacks, diabetics and other people, more likely to
have heart problems, are urged to slash their salt intake, the IOM
review showed there was limited evidence such a diet helped, and that
too little salt might increase the risk of heart trouble. "The
evidence on both the benefit and harm is not strong enough. This
suggests higher-risk populations need other steps to curb heart
disease risk. Health advocates, including the American Heart
Association, were quick to dismiss the findings, saying the recent
studies reviewed by IOM focused on sick patients and not the majority.
"However, the bottom line is still: cut back on sodium,"
said the Centre for Science in the Public Interests. — Agencies