Unlocking Wellness: The Power of Seed Cycling for Hormones

March 13, 2024 Pooja Singh

Hormone Challenges: Women face a lot of hormonal swings in different stages of their lives. Their hormone levels are different even each week of the menstrual cycle. Hormones affect women’s energy, moods, physical activity, and health. Balancing hormones for women is extremely important as it can cause lifestyle diseases like PCOS or trigger early perimenopause.

PCOS (Polycystic ovary syndrome) is a lifestyle disease that causes irregular periods, facial growth, weight gain, hair loss, insulin resistance, and infertility. Different women experience different levels of symptoms.

Perimenopause: Perimenopause is the time in a woman’s life before menopause when hormonal, and biological changes and physical symptoms begin to occur leading to menopause. During perimenopause periods flow becomes lighter and then eventually in a few years it stops leading to menopause. Its symptoms include hot flashes, extreme fatigue, vaginal dryness, and altered mood swings. In case you ever did fertility treatment there is a greater chance of hitting perimenopause early in life

Eating a balanced diet and including seeds in your diet can help ease your symptoms. Food food-based approach to balance your hormones is gentle on the body and can be tried by everyone. Let’s learn what is seeds cycle and which seeds to include in which phase.

Seeds Cycling with Four Super Seeds

What are seeds cycling?

Seeds cycling is the practice of consuming four different seeds, sesame, pumpkin, flax, and sunflower, in different stages of your menstrual cycle or moon cycle in case you are in perimenopause or menopause. Eating seeds during different stages helps balance estrogen and progesterone.

Different Phases of Seed Cycle

Follicular Phase – Days 1-14 – It is the first 14 days of your regular menstrual cycle and in case you are in peri menopause or menopause it starts with a new moon. During this phase estrogen levels increase and progesterone levels decrease. You should consume 1 tablespoon of grounded pumpkin and Flaxseeds daily during days 1 to 14. These seeds are rich in omega-3 essential fatty acids, zinc, and selenium which are essential for the production of healthy hormones. They are also a great source of fibre and lignans which balance estrogen and prevent its dominance

Luteal Phase – Days 15-28 – It is the last 14 days of your regular menstrual cycle and in case you are in peri menopause or menopause it starts with a full moon. After the first 14 days of a healthy period, ovulation occurs and estrogen levels decrease and progesterone levels increase. You should consume 1 tablespoon of grounded sesame and sunflower seeds daily during days 14 to 28. Sunflower seeds and sesame seeds contain lignans and essential fatty acids like omega 6 which help to block excess estrogen. Sunflower seeds are a great source of selenium which helps liver detoxification. This overall helps balance hormones for the second phase.

How to use seeds in recipes for daily consumption

Add grounded seeds in Chapati, parathas, crepes, dosa
You can add grounded seeds to smoothies, yogurt, chia seed pudding
Sprinkle them on toast, healthy bowl of salad and soups
Make homemade granola with seeds

Conclusion

Try to use seed cycling for a month and see the difference you feel. Four seeds, sesame, pumpkin, flax and sunflower, are super foods which can help you with daily essential requirement of micro nutrients as well. Seed cycling is not a cure for hormone imbalance so consulting a doctor is essential.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Consult with a healthcare professional before making any changes to your diet or lifestyle.