Do you ever feel bad when your period starts, or maybe about a week before your period? Social media is calling it the “period flu,” and places like TikTok are full of tips on why it happens and how to deal with it. Unfortunately, many of these posts are misinformed, so let’s get to the bottom of it.
Menstrual flu has nothing to do with stomach flu or actual flu
“Flu” is the nickname originally used for the pandemic flu – the illness we get from the influence of the stars (get it?). The “flu” is a nickname originally used for influenza – a disease we get from the influence of the stars (get it?). Influenza was not identified as a viral cause until the 1930s, but before and after that, many similar illnesses were identified with the flu.
The so-called flu-like symptoms usually include fever, chills, headache, body aches, sore throat, runny nose, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.
These symptoms are common in the flu, but many other symptoms can include some or all of these symptoms. The common cold, neoconiosis, food poisoning (“stomach flu”), strep throat, various miscellaneous childhood illnesses, and many sexually transmitted diseases are among them.
That’s because these symptoms indicate that your body is processing fecal matter. Your immune system is dealing with something, no matter what it is. It may be fighting off a bacterial or viral disease, or even cleaning up damaged tissue after an injury. Have you had ink lately? As your body heals, you may experience the “tattoo flu”.
Flu-like symptoms can also appear suddenly due to a cascade of hormonal reactions during menstruation. For example, prostaglandins help open the cervix and empty the uterus, but they also have a similar effect on your intestines – causing the infamous menstrual diarrhea and its associated flatulence, pain and nausea.
Do you need to “balance your hormones” to avoid the menstrual flu?
I have no problem with TikTokers, who will let you know that period flu exists and provide tips on how to deal with it. But what bothers me is the people who tell you about it, like a secret Big Doctor they don’t want you to know about. Then they sell their “hormone balancing” services.
“Balance” is not an endocrinology term, and some medical professionals don’t like it. There are tons of different hormones in our bodies that regulate different processes, all doing important work. The hormones that maintain our menstrual cycle fluctuate greatly during the month, which is a good thing. Certain hormones are supposed to spike at certain times to enable ovulation, promote endometrial growth, and reset everything at the end of the month.
So if someone tells you that your hormones need to be “balanced” or that a common condition like a mild flu or PMS is a sign that you need to buy what they’re selling, take them with a grain of salt. When I searched for “period flu” on TikTok yesterday, five of the first eight videos were of people selling books, supplements, lab test kits (so you can find out about your hormonal imbalance and they can sell you more stuff), and one-on-one coaching. Clicking into these people’s link trees, I also found sales pitches for weight loss products and parasite detoxifiers. (Convincing people they have parasites is “another TikTok scam”.)
The MD Anderson Center has a very straightforward take on hormonal disorders: If you have a hormone-related health problem that is serious enough to affect your life and cause you to seek treatment, you should go see a fucking doctor. (My choice of words, not theirs.) On the other hand, if you’re only experiencing common mild symptoms, you don’t need fancy hormone guidance or products to deal with them.
How can you deal with the menstrual flu?
First, pay attention to your symptoms and notice if they come back at the same time as your menstrual cycle. If there is a month when your “period flu” seems worse than normal, or if it includes symptoms you don’t normally have, then you probably have a different medical problem. Don’t suffer; check out.
Because menstrual flu is not a disease per se, but simply a set of symptoms that can occur during the course of a normal cycle, you don’t need to identify some underlying cause and treat it with supplements or a strange diet. Each symptom can be addressed individually. For example, WebMD notes that if you have problems with menstrual diarrhea, anti-diarrheal medications can be helpful. Taking ibuprofen (or other NSAID medications) can help prevent cramping, especially if you can check your calendar and start taking it before your period begins.
If you’re looking for legitimate medical information about menstrual flu online, you’ll find plenty of information by searching for “premenstrual syndrome. The phrase has fallen out of favor in pop culture, ruined by too many men’s jokes about women’s moodiness. But “period flu” is the equivalent of the “physical symptoms of PMS” discussed in sources like this page from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
In addition to treating the symptoms and taking care of yourself, there are a few less-appreciated lifestyle changes that can help improve PMS symptoms, especially if you do these things all the time, not just during your period: exercise:
ACOG recommends 30 minutes of aerobic exercise “most days of the week,” even if you are not symptomatic. The idea is not to go jogging when you have cramps, but to be a regular exerciser.
Carbohydrates. While TikTokers are sharing tips to fight your appetite, ACOG recommends eating more carbohydrate- and fiber-rich foods such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains. It’s a proven fact that food is good for you.
Sleep. Lack of sleep can make you more likely to feel tired, depressed and groggy. Better sleep may not completely “cure” the menstrual flu, but it may reduce some symptoms.
Relaxation. Massage, meditation and other stress-relieving activities can be helpful for some people; they may be worth a try.
Calcium and magnesium. These simple supplements are cheap at the drugstore, so don’t waste hundreds of dollars on lab tests, guidance and name-brand supplements from online hormone experts. the ACOG specifically recommends consuming 1,200 mg of calcium daily to relieve the physical and emotional symptoms of PMS.
So if you suffer from the menstrual flu, you’re not alone – you don’t have to embark on a hormonal healing journey with the most persuasive-sounding people on social media. If you have worrisome symptoms, or if you’d like to consider a method of birth control that can alleviate the difficulties associated with your cycle, consult your OB/GYN or your regular doctor. But if you have only mild symptoms, consider making some small adjustments to your exercise, diet and sleep habits. And consider resetting your T ikTok algorithm and sticking to silly dance videos.
