Many women face menstrual issues with their monthly cycles, from irregular bleeding to severe menstrual cramps. When looking at these issues from a functional medicine standpoint, the practitioner tries to locate the source of the problem by examining your full health profile.
Whether your symptoms come from premenstrual syndrome (PMS) or irregular periods, functional medicine doctors develop personalized treatment plans that include solutions like the following:
Hormonal imbalances are a common cause of PMS and other menstrual issues. A functional medicine doctor will utilize hormone labs to track imbalances before, during, and after your menstrual cycle. Depending on the results, they’ll develop a plan to rebalance your hormones and get your cycle back on track.
A functional medicine practitioner might recommend a particular diet to help alleviate your menstrual symptoms. Food intolerances and eating too much sugar and processed foods can lead to hormonal imbalances and chronic inflammation.
You might have to change up your diet by increasing healthy fats and proteins. Food sensitivity and gut testing can also help pinpoint specific foods you may need to add or remove from your diet.
Natural remedies are another specialty of functional medicine doctors. Depending on your symptoms, they could suggest herbal treatments, such as:
Chasteberry – relieves PMS symptoms
Parsley – can help regulate menstrual cycles
Cinnamon – alleviates painful periods and heavy bleeding
Another natural way to reduce menstrual issues is to avoid endocrine disruptors, which exist in everyday items like house cleaners, plastics, unfiltered water, and cosmetics. Endocrine disruptors can cause problems with your hormones, causing irregular periods.
By testing for toxins, you can determine if your body is burdened with any environmental toxins that might be contributing to hormonal imbalance and menstrual irregularities. If elevated toxin levels are found, steps can be taken to reduce exposure and facilitate the elimination of these toxins from the body.
If you have menstrual issues that conventional medicine hasn’t been able to help, you might find more success with a practitioner that takes a holistic approach to treating menstrual and reproductive health problems.
Schedule an appointment with Dr. Alicia Newsome, a certified functional medicine doctor today.
