R eal food has healed me in so many ways, but one problem that has persisted throughout my real food journey is PMS. For me PMS meant a short temper, crying easily, and craving junk foods. Often this would start about 10 days before my period and get progressively worse until I would often wonder if I was going nuts. Within one day of starting my period, all symptoms would disappear and I would become a productive, balanced Elizabeth once again.
Believe it or not, this scenario is an improvement compared to what I've experienced before changing my eating habits. Back then PMS seemed to last more than half of every month, my mood swings were more turbulent, I often felt depressed and I could easily down more donuts than Homer Simpson.
But after eating well for a year and a half while also working on other areas to improve my health (stress, sleep, sensible exercise, etc.), I felt like I could use some more help in this department. PMS was one of my top reasons for trying out the milk diet, because ultimately I want to heal any health issues I have with real food whenever possible. And you can't get much more real than pure raw milk.
Since the milk diet is known for stimulating metabolic function and healing imbalances, I figured it couldn't hurt to try it out for PMS.
How does the milk diet heal endocrine imbalances?
That's a good question, and one I'm not fully capable of answering. However, one thing I know is that our hormones are built from material provided by our diet (fat, protein, etc.). The efficiency of this process is also influenced by our metabolism, which regulates the rate at which hormones are produced and received throughout the body. So eating an intensive diet like the milk diet provides the body with the bioavailable nutrition and metabolic stimulation it needs to produce and utilize hormones that regulate everything from reproductive health to mental alertness to fat storage.
My Results with the Milk Diet and PMS
During my 23 days on the milk diet I kept track of my moods and cravings to gauge my PMS. My findings were not dramatic, but I did notice things moving in a positive direction. My mood was slightly improved, and my cravings were nothing more than passing fancies. As I mentioned in my podcasts, I was able to turn down chocolate cake without a problem while on the milk diet... and right smack in the middle of PMS as well. As someone who has never turned down a decent piece of chocolate cake in my life, I was seriously impressed by this.
My cycle was also extremely regular on the milk diet, and I experienced less bleeding and cramping during my period as well (sorry if that's TMI, but I feel it's relevant). Moreover, I'm still experiencing these benefits more than one month after coming off the milk diet. My PMS symptoms are less pronounced and start later than usual, while my cycles are still very regular and far closer to painless than before.
Nothing I've ever tried to help me cope with PMS has worked this well for me, and that's enough to motivate me to do another round on the milk diet in May (or possibly June). This time I'm aiming for a shorter round so I'll have the resources to drink more milk each day and also focus even more on resting. Who wants to join me? :-)
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This post is a part of Real Food Wednesday hosted by Kelly the Kitchen Kop this week.
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