1. Eating pro-inflammatory oils like canola oil, sunflower oil, rapeseed oil and other vegetable oils for example are all pro-inflammatory (and in a lot more foods than you’d think)

They contribute to period pain by increasing the omega 6 content in the body, which when out of ratio with omega 3 leads to increased inflammation and inflammation leads to period pain

2.  Stress – if you’ve been with me awhile now you’ll know this is HUGE for any kind of issue in the body, but particularly for period pain

The more stressed you are, the more inflammation it causes, it can then decrease magnesium levels which helps with cramping (think when your calf wakes you up in the middle of the night with a cramp)…

The uterus is a muscle so too much stress = more cramping

3. Drinking cold water, this might sound strange but I got a very big telling off from one of my Chinese clients who educated me (and then I did more research into Traditional Chinese Medicine on this)…

That one shouldn’t drink cold water on or around their period

Think about it this way, we are warm blooded animals, and the period is about blood flow, our blood flow decreases when we are cold and drinking cold water cools the body down.

For my clients I recommend for the second half of their cycle they drink warm water (except when exercising because that sucks), and they have seen massive differences in their menstrual health

4. Hormonal imbalance, now this can show up in a number of ways from high oestrogen, low progesterone, high androgens, you name it, but ultimately if you experience any PMS symptoms it’s worth digging a little deeper

Work with a functional medicine practitioner or health coach like myself to figure out what hormones are out of balance and start to remedy them with food, exercise and lifestyle changes.

5. Endometriosis/PCOS, these two conditions are hugely responsible for period pain and are often undiagnosed for so long!

If you’ve been struggling with chronic period pain, please go see a doctor and have yourself diagnosed or have these ruled out, there is so much we can do to help with both conditions once we know what we are dealing with!