What does a healthy menstrual cycle look like?
In order to understand what your menstrual cycle says about your health, it is important to first understand what a normal cycle looks like. How long a menstrual cycle lasts varies from person to person. For most the cycle lasts 28 days, but for some also 35 days. One cycle lasts from the first day of your period to the first day of your next period.
The menstruation… occurs when the egg has not been fertilized. The body rejects the built-up endometrium, causing blood loss. A new cycle always starts on the first day of your period. The menstrual period itself lasts about five days.
During the preovulatory phase… the egg matures in one of the ovaries. As a woman, you are born with hundreds of thousands of eggs. From puberty, the most dominant egg will mature once a month.
During ovulation (ovulation)… the egg is released from the ovaries. It doesn’t matter if you have a long or a short menstrual cycle; ovulation always takes place two weeks before the next menstrual period and the time can be recognized by the transparent mucus that comes out of the vagina at that time. Some women also feel ovulation pain, known as “center pain.”
After ovulation… the egg travels through the fallopian tube to the uterus. Here the egg can survive for one to two days. This is also the time when women are most fertile. At the same time, your uterus is preparing to implant a possible fertilized egg. Extra mucous membrane is created for this. This phase lasts an average of fourteen days.
Is the egg not fertilized? Then the body rejects the extra endometrium and egg, so that menstruation starts again and the whole cycle starts again.
Should you immediately worry if your menstrual cycle is abnormal?
“I regularly have patients who ask themselves whether it is bad if they don’t menstruate every month. Their grandmothers taught them that a healthy woman has her period every month, but that is not necessary at all. Menstruating is only important if you want to get pregnant. So you don’t have to worry if these periods are a little more irregular,” says gynecologist Kerkhof.
Most women menstruate twelve to thirteen times a year, but if your period is missed a few times a year, there is no reason to panic, according to Kerkhof: “It is not abnormal if you occasionally miss a period and it has no effects on fertility.”
However, there are also women who have their periods very rarely or not at all. If the time between periods is more than six months, it is called amenorrhea. Usually there is no ovulation at all. If the time between periods is usually longer than 35 days but less than six months, this is called oligomenorrhea. Ovulation can then take place in light forms, but will be difficult to determine due to the irregularity.
According to Kerkhof, such cycle disorders often have an underlying cause. “Some women do not have a menstrual period due to being extremely underweight or overweight. Your body knows it’s not convenient to get pregnant then.”
“The body is very ingenious and everything is connected. It adapts to any situation. People who lived in concentration camps during World War II usually did not menstruate, because the body goes on the pilot light and feels that it is not desirable to get pregnant in such a situation. That is why extreme athletes and women who are still breast-feeding often do not have their periods.”
However, there are also women who suffer from Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). In these women, ovulation does not occur, because a dominant egg cell does not develop. There are then many cysts, all of which produce hormones. The endometrium then becomes much thicker than during a normal cycle.
“It is important that these women have their periods at least four times a year, because the endometrium also continues to thicken. If this mucous membrane is not drained, endometrial abnormalities can develop and, in rare cases, cancer. Most women with PCOS therefore opt for the contraceptive pill. This induces menstruation every month. Do you have PCOS and a desire to have children? Then it is advisable to contact a gynaecologist,” says Kerkhof.
Is there anything you can do to balance your menstrual cycle?
According to Kerkhof, it is important for a good menstrual cycle that you have a healthy BMI and maintain a normal lifestyle. “Lifestyle is the magic word. Sufficient exercise, healthy eating, taking rest, not smoking and consuming little or no alcohol if you want to become pregnant: it remains extremely important. Furthermore, without the help of professionals you can unfortunately not have much more influence on your menstrual cycle.”