Work With Your Period Cravings, Not Against Them

If you think you’re the only one who feels like they could eat a whole bar of chocolate or an entire pizza in one sitting before your period, you’re mistaken. Premenstrual cravings are common. Even those with a “clean” and rigid diet at other times of the month report strong, almost unstoppable cravings around their period. 

Most of the advice around premenstrual cravings feels unsympathetic: “Oh, you’re craving chocolate…try to eat less chocolate.”

If it were that easy, we wouldn't be having this conversation. Attempts to white-knucke your way through cravings often backfire. Allow me to offer a different approach. 

Honour your need for serotonin 

There are many fluctuations that happen before the period and it’s likely not just one neurotransmitter or hormone to blame for cravings. That being said, research suggests that serotonin seems to play an important role in premenstrual cravings. 

Your premenstrual cravings may be linked to a serotonin deficit or altered serotonin activity in the brain. Carbohydrates trigger serotonin production which is why so many women crave sugar, bread, potato chips and pastries before their period. This is also why medications that increases serotonin levels may help with premenstrual food cravings. 

The advice to stay away from all sugar before your period feels unrealistic in light of what is happening in your body. If you can completely switch from your candy, ice cream and chip cravings to fruits and vegetables, that’s great! For many women, that full swap feels impossible. 

Rather than trying to run away from carbs, consuming carbs strategically can help you boost serotonin, satisfy the cravings, and still nourish yourself well. Think of ways you can layer in good nutrition with the flavours and carbs you may be craving. Here’s what I mean:

• Instead of having a chocolate bar that will leave you feeling hungry again in an hour, try a different way to get your chocolate fix. Have whole grain toast with peanut butter and a chocolate spread with some flax sprinkled on top. Is it a perfectly “healthy” snack? No. But it will at least give you some fibre from healthy, whole grain carbs and protein from the peanut butter while still allowing you to have the flavour you’re craving. 

• Instead of having a big bag of chips, consider having a smaller serving of chips and some salted pistachios instead. This way you get some protein and good fats from the nuts while also having a bit of what you’re craving. 

Note: these recommendations may not be appropriate for your dietary needs, so work with a naturopathic doctor or other healthcare provider to help you come up with some individualized ideas. 

Pay attention to emotional eating at play 

If you struggle with anxiety, irritability or low mood before your period, food can act as a source of comfort. Foods that are higher in fat, sugar and salt tend to trigger greater feelings of comfort and pleasure because of the way they impact the brain. That’s why we reach for these foods when we’re experiencing premenstrual mood swings. 

When it comes to emotional eating, your food cravings are telling you that your underlying emotions need extra attention. This is why it’s so important to plan for your premenstrual phase and add uplifting and comforting activities into your schedule. Plan to go out to the movies, take a mental health day off work, go out for dinner—make the time before your period as enjoyable as possible and this may help you manage your emotions without always turning to comfort eating. You might even find that you come to enjoy your premenstrual time because of this.

Take it easy 

There’s no point in being hard on yourself about your cravings. Guilt has been shown to negatively impact our food choices because of the way it demoralizes us. Instead, focus on how you can sprinkle in good nutrients wherever you can. During this time of the month, focus more on what you add to your diet and less on what you take away. 

If you feel like your cravings are dominating your life both within and outside of your premenstrual phase, you may benefit from the 21 day Emotional Eating Journal. To learn more about it, click below. 

Acupuncture to Reduce Smoking, Drinking and Other Cravings

Do you have any habits or addictions in your life that you wish you could get rid of? Almost everybody has some sort of habit they struggle with. For some it’s stress-eating, nail biting or constant cell phone checking. For others it’s smoking, alcohol consumption or gambling.

Feeling like you can’t control behaviours like these can be incredibly frustrating. You may be fully aware of the damage that some of these habits do to your health and that awareness may make you want to quit but it doesn’t always make it easier to quit. These habits can rob you of your time and your wellbeing and leave you feeling helpless and sometimes even embarrassed.

How Acupuncture Can Help

As a naturopathic doctor, I’m licensed to perform acupuncture and I have found it to be a valuable tool for many conditions. Acupuncture has been used to manage addictions in hospitals and treatment programs for over thirty years in North America and around the world. The National Acupuncture Detoxification Association developed a protocol that is the most commonly used protocol in these settings. Most of the research on this protocol revolves around reducing smoking and alcohol consumption but ongoing research is exploring how it can reduce other unhealthy habits.

Though the studies of this acupuncture protocol have had mixed results, many researchers agree that acupuncture can be useful for reducing addictions when combined with other treatments. I certainly don’t recommend this as a solo treatment, but I’ve had success using it when combine with other interventions like lifestyle changes, counselling, herbal and nutritional supplements or medications. The best combination of treatments will be different for everyone. I also like to combine this protocol with other traditional acupuncture points depending on your unique symptoms and health status.  

Historically, acupuncture was found to make quitting addictive habits easier by reducing withdrawal symptoms, cravings, stress and irritability and improving wellbeing, sleep and energy. In my own practice, I’ve found acupuncture can indeed make quitting habits like smoking easier. I have even successfully used it to help with food addictions but using this acupuncture protocol for food addictions has not been scientifically studied to my knowledge.

The Catch

If you’re thinking this is too good to be true, now’s a good time to talk about the catch. I find that acupuncture will not make somebody who is unwilling or not ready to quit a habit suddenly able to quit. I have only found it to be helpful for those who are ready to take action to quit and want support to make the quitting process less difficult. It is very important to understand that the acupuncture won’t do the work on its own. It’s meant to be an aid to help you as you do the work.

Breaking habits can be hard. If you’re ready to leave an unhealthy habit behind, get as much support around you as possible. This will increase your chances of success. Get your health back, get your time back, get your sense of self-command back and let your bad habit become a thing of the past.  

Are Low Motivation and Low Mood Holding You Back from Health?

Imagine living just one day in a perfectly healthy way. You wake up refreshed and ready to go. No need for caffeine. You make a healthy breakfast for you and your family. Everyone is out the door on time feeling put-together and enthusiastic. You get through the day on healthy snacks and a healthy lunch – no cravings for afternoon sweets. You get home still humming with energy to not only make a healthy dinner but to work out as well. By bedtime all your evening chores are done and you’ve wound down enough to fall asleep within 15 minutes of hitting the pillow.

Contrast that with the reality that most people deal with. Waking up feeling unrefreshed. Definitely not “enthusiastic” about the day ahead. Tormented with cravings for sweets, carbs and coffee to get through the day. Just enough energy to make dinner after work but certainly not enough to work out. Lying in bed feeling tired but still not able to sleep.

Most people have a huge gap between their current health habits and the ones they wish they had. How do you even begin to move in the direction of the healthy lifestyle you dream of? Many try to muscle through on raw will power. You declare that, starting this week you WILL work out three times. Starting this week, you WILL NOT give in to cravings for junk food. But then as each day rolls around, you’re hit with the reality that you’re not motivated to do these things. You just don’t want to.

It’s hard to follow all the steps for a healthy lifestyle when you feel down and have zero motivation. You can try to impose all kinds of rules on yourself but if your mind is not in the right place, it won't happen. This is why it’s so important to be gentle with yourself and start with the right foundation. You need to nurture yourself back to better health rather than trying to force it.

Whenever I have a patient who is stuck in an unhealthy lifestyle, they’re relieved when they find out that I won’t be throwing them on a super strict diet, exercise and supplement plan. Because both of us know they’re not ready for that. We start at the foundation. We work on gentle ways to restore good quality sleep, balance stress hormones and support mood. We replenish nutrients that are lacking. We SLOWLY take out toxic foods, habits and chemicals that drain energy and cloud thinking.

With this approach, mood steadily begins to rise as patients start to feel less drained and more clear-headed. Motivation returns. Soon enough doing a couple minutes of exercises here and there doesn’t seem so far fetched. Resisting cravings is not as hard as it was before. Healthy recipes are more appealing. You get the picture. An upward spiral has begun. Habit by habit a new, healthy lifestyle is being created. All because we started with nourishing the things that are important for mood and motivation.

That healthy lifestyle can seem impossible from where you’re standing right now. But with the right approach, I have no doubt that you can get there.

The Missing Part of Most Weight Loss Programs

Holiday season is upon us and the new year is right around the corner. You know what that means – weight loss advertisements! You’ll soon be hearing those familiar phrases. Phrases about shedding holiday pounds and starting the new year off right. Ads will centre around gym memberships, diet programs and a few supplements.

Now, I have nothing against many weight loss programs. Many are based on sound principles for weight loss – a good diet and workout plan. I just wish more programs addressed one key thing that stands in the way of weight loss for so many people: the mind.

Most of my patients know what they should be eating to lose weight. Most know how much they should be exercising. It's often something deeper than a simple lack of willpower or time that stands in their way. For many, it’s hard to do the things they know they should do because their mind is not in a good place. 

The reality is that it’s hard to get up and make yourself a healthy meal when you don’t even feel like getting out of bed to face the day. It’s hard to spend thirty minutes at the gym when your mind is scolding you about other worries you "should" be focusing on instead. Food - especially junk food - can be a major comfort when you're feeling down.  Feeling down, stressed or anxious is a major barrier to getting in shape.

You can tell yourself that you HAVE to cut the sweets after work no matter what, but the mind is a powerful thing. If it's not happy it doesn't make the best choices. When it comes time to make that healthy choice it can easily overpower your “have-to’s”.

Then there’s the other dilemma. You’ve had some success with weight loss, but it didn’t last long. You were on a roll, then eventually your mind got in a funk and you started comfort eating to soothe your worries. Or you started not feeling in the mood to go to the gym. The weight went back up.

This is why it is so important to get your mind in the right place before or while starting any weight loss mission. Treat your low mood. Treat your anxiety. Treat your chronic stress. Don’t ignore these things and only focus on the body. Treating these issues is what will enhance your weight loss efforts. Treating them will make the results last.

I treat these issues of the mind with herbs, nutrients, lifestyle changes and acupuncture. I watch my patients transform with this care. They begin to feel more excited about their lives and about taking care of themselves. It becomes easier to make those choices to follow that healthy diet and exercise plan. The weight begins to come off, but they also feel like they are thriving in other areas of their life too.

So, this time around when you’re making weight loss or healthy lifestyle resolutions don’t only think about your body. Give your mind some love as well.