Supplements for Period Pain, Heavy Bleeding, Nausea and Vomiting

Excruciating pain, heavy bleeding, nausea and vomiting are all symptoms many of my clients first come to me with.

Whilst I first and foremost use nutrition and lifestyle changes to help my clients resolve their endo symptoms, there are also supplements that have been shown to specifically lower premenstrual and menstrual problems such as pain and nausea, and I use a selection of these when necessary with my clients. I’ve seen so much success with these supplements that I included them in the supplement module of my course, Live and Thrive with Endo. In today’s episode I’m sharing another clip from this module, this time focusing on the supplements that help to relieve these specific symptoms.

Last week I shared the supplements shown to target endo and some of those supplements have also been shown to alleviate dysmenorrhea and other menstrual issues too, so I would definitely listen to both of these episodes.

Also, I want to make it clear that I believe in using diet and lifestyle changes to manage endometriosis, and getting to the root cause(s) of our symptoms. I usually use supplements later in my coaching with clients, to allow them to experience changes in their symptoms from an anti-inflammatory diet, physio, gut healing, etc. but if a client is really struggling then we do bring supplements in sooner. My point is, these shouldn't be used in isolation, but rather in tandem with healthy habits that support you to live well with endo and resolve the root problem behind your inflammation, hormonal imbalances, fatigue, etc.

I’ve also distinguished between studies on animals or in vitro in contrast to studies on humans, as of course, for those supplements which haven’t been tested on humans yet, we need more research and larger studies would be helpful for all of these supplements. I also do not advocate for animal testing and so this episode isn’t about promoting or supporting animal testing, but is rather about sharing with you the information that we have so far, whilst acknowledging the gaps in the research and the ethical issues.

Here’s the transcript from the module:

Disclaimer

So before we get started I just wanted to share a quick disclaimer as supplements can occasionally come with side effects and health risks. 

So as outlined in the agreement you signed when you enrolled into the course, you should consult with your doctor before starting a new supplement regime, this is especially important if you are on medication as some supplements can change how the medication works. It may also be important to get tested first before taking some supplements, like with vitamin D and iron. I’ll mention this in the slide if this is necessary, though I do generally recommend getting your levels tested either way.

This is even more important when you’re trying to conceive or are pregnant, as some supplements aren’t safe during conception and pregnancy. 

As you’re aware, I am not a dietician or medical professional. These practitioners are licenced to give specific prescriptive doses to individuals whereas I am not. Instead, these are general yet therapeutic doses (which essentially means effective) for the specific issues I highlight them as useful for in this lesson, provided to you for educational purposes with the intention that you will then discuss these with your doctor or the practitioner you’re working with before beginning. These doses are either from the studies, from my training or from other practitioners and are generally safe to use - if there are any risks, I have highlighted them in the slides. 

Finally, you’ve probably heard the phrase ‘you can’t out-supplement a bad diet or lifestyle’ and it’s especially true with a chronic condition. You’re not going to reap the full benefits of these supplements if your diet choices and lifestyle are standing in direct opposition to them. I do think supplements play a role with endometriosis, especially as gut health issues, deficiencies and high inflammatory markers and low antioxidant markers are factors we see in our population, but they need to be alongside healthy choices. So keep that in mind as we go through this lesson today.

Okay, now that’s the boring bit over! Let’s get to supplements!

Period Pain and Associated Symptoms

So now let’s move onto some supplements which have been shown to be effective for period pain and associated symptoms like nausea and vomiting.

 

Magnesium

Okay, you know I’m a major fan of magnesium and here’s why:

Magnesium supports healthy oestrogen metabolism

Supports blood sugar stability by improving insulin sensitivity

Lowers inflammation by inhibiting inflammatory prostaglandins and lowering oxidation levels

Reduces dysmenorrhea 

Supports progesterone production by supporting processes involved in hormone regulation

Reduces PMS symptoms

Magnesium oxide and citrate reduce constipation

Dose wise, if you’re looking to use citrate or oxide for constipation, Dr Allision Siebecker recommends 500mg to 2000mg per night, building up gradually until you get a healthy bowel movement the following morning, and then continue for maintenance or as needed. Do not go straight in at the higher dose as this will cause diarrhea.

For pain, you can use 500-600g of Epsom salts 2-3 times a week for optimal absorption or 150mg to 450mg a day (though some practitioners use higher levels). Honestly, most of us are so deficient in magnesium that this should be an ongoing supplement, but for endo pain, try using for a minimum of six months though I expect you’ll see results much quicker.

For blood sugar, the recommended dose is 150mg to 200mg of magnesium glycinate or l-threonate two to three times per day. You can use this ongoing.

 

Ginger

Okay another one I love is ginger! 

Ginger has been shown to be just as effective as ibuprofen and mefenamic acid for dysmenorrhea, so if you’re looking to get off NSAIDS, this could help. It’s also been shown in multiple other studies to reduce dysmenorrhea.

Additionally, it’s been shown in research to aid with nausea.

It’s a generally a wonderfully powerful anti-inflammatory and pain reliever, demonstrated in numerous studies.

Aid withs migraines and headaches and has been shown to be as effective as migraine medication when taken at a dose of 250mg at the start of the migraine.

Ginger is a natural antihistamine, shown to just as effective as loratadine.

Dose wise, the recommendation for dysmenorrhea is between 750mg to 2000mg per day, split into doses of around 250-500mg in the lead up to your period and during the first 3-4 days of your cycle. If you wanted to lower inflammation overall for endo, Dr Aviva Romm advises you could also take ginger daily for three-six months (at least) at 1000mg a day, though you could go higher as long as you didn’t exceed 2000mg per day. 

I do just want to caution, if you have interstitial cystitis, ginger may be irritating for the bladder. Additionally, high doses in one go can cause stomach upset like diarrhea so always take in divided doses and build up your doses to test your tolerance.

 

Cinnamon

Cinnamon is another lovely supplement which can really help with periods.

Cinnamon has been shown to significantly reduce heavy bleeding in people with primary dysmenorrhea. 

It also has been shown to significantly reduce nausea and vomiting during menstruation.

·Significantly reduces pain with primary dysmenorrhea.

 Very effective for balancing blood sugar by improving insulin sensitivity.

The studies of cinnamon for dysmenorrhea used 420mg three times a day or 1000mg three times a day during first three days of the participants cycles. 

The dose for blood sugar balance is 3000mg a day, divided into doses and taken with carbohydrate foods, though up to 6000mg has been used in studies. This can be ongoing to support with blood sugar stabilisation or short-term to help you to get on track with your blood sugar.

Due to the oxalate and histamine levels of cinnamon, cinnamon may cause bladder irritation to those with interstitial cystitis. Cinnamon extract may be more beneficial because it significantly lowers the histamine and oxalate content, though it’s unclear whether the studies used cinnamon extract or powder, but the extract still appears to be safe in these doses. Of course, consult your doctor and read the label recommendations.  When choosing your product, look for ceylon cinnamon not cassia cinnamon, which contains toxic compounds that can be harmful at high doses. If you have kidney stones, you may need to adopt a low oxalate diet temporarily so consult with a partitioner before taking lots of cinnamon powder.

 

Vitamin D

We all know that vitamin D is an essential nutrient, here some of its super powers:

Low vitamin D have been associated with endo, chronic pain conditions, insulin resistance and menstrual disorders such as PCOS.

In research, vitamin D supplementation has been shown to significantly reduce pain with dysmenorrhea.

It’s also been shown to reduce premenstrual syndrome and the associated symptoms.

So in my training we’re taught that a safe maintenance dose that you can take with normal vitamin D levels is 2000IU, though the department of health recommends a minimum of 400IU a day. So you could start lower or just stick to that level if you feel more comfortable dosing at the lower end, however it’s really only enough to avoid deficiency but is not an optimal amount for good health. 

In terms of testing, a healthy optimum level of vitamin D is 50 ng/ml or near that number. If your levels are lower then you’ll need to increase your intake. 5000IU daily is the recommendation for low levels of vitamin D but because of the risk of vitamin D toxicity if you take too much, you should work with your doctor to agree on the required dose for you personally and retest between 60 to 90 days after beginning to supplement at these higher levels. Once you’re at a healthy range, you can drop down to a maintenance dose.

 Show Notes References

Magnesium

https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/5/10/3910

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/dme.12250

https://drbrighten.com/boost-low-progesterone/

https://www.composednutrition.com/blog/increase-progesterone-naturally

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2675496/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25023192/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5112180/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30880352/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4847116/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17229895/

 

Ginger

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23865123/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26177393/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25912592/

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ptr.6730

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7171779/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23657930/

 

Cinnamon

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4443385/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30396627/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5220230/

https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/89/3/815/4596714

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30396627/

https://examine.com/supplements/cinnamon/

https://jandonline.org/article/S2212-2672(16)30899-1/fulltext

Vitamin D

https://endometriosisnews.com/2016/11/11/ovarian-endometriosis-linked-to-vitamin-d-blood-levels-in-study

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4427945/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29447494/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6250088/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22371927/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27147120/

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/vitamin-d/

https://drhyman.com/blog/2010/08/24/vitamin-d-why-you-are-probably-not-getting-enough/