Women’s Health Secrets Revealed

90% of the health problems that are attributed to "women are born with weak constitutions" are essentially the result of the combination of hormone fluctuations, gendered lifestyle habits, and hidden pressures from social roles. There is no unified health template that applies to all women. What suits your body is the right one.

I have been doing health education in a gynecological clinic for three years, and I have seen too many girls fall into the trap of this "uniform template". The one who impressed me the most was 28-year-old business manager Xiao Min. After being forbidden by her aunt for half a year, she boiled donkey-hide gelatin and drank brown sugar and ginger tea every day. Even though her nosebleeds were not cured, she gained eight pounds. In the end, it was found out that it was due to staying up late for a long time to catch up on projects + being low-carbohydrate all year round to control weight, and the luteal corpus function could not keep up. I ate whole grains for half a month and went to bed before 12 o'clock. In the second month, my aunt reported on time. The half-cent supplements she had taken before did not work, and caused several blisters on the corners of her mouth.

When it comes to hormones, many people's first reaction is to "supplement". The controversy about exogenous estrogen supplementation has indeed been quarreling for many years: Western medicine guidelines clearly require that only people diagnosed with premature ovarian failure and perimenopausal symptoms that seriously affect their lives need to supplement under the supervision of a doctor. Buying health supplements with unknown ingredients on their own may increase the risk of breast and endometrial lesions.； Traditional Chinese medicine mostly does not recommend direct supplementation of exogenous hormones, but prefers to regulate one's own hormone secretion by adjusting work and rest, diet, and mood to improve the root cause of the problem. ； Some natural medicine researchers also recommend appropriate intake of phytoestrogens such as soy isoflavones, but they also clearly remind people with a history of breast nodules and uterine fibroids to consult a doctor first and not to blindly follow the trend.

You must have had this experience: a week before you came to visit your aunt, you suddenly didn’t like anything you saw, and your face broke out with acne. It was swollen even though you didn’t eat much, and people around you said, “Why are you so angry again?” It’s really not pretentious, it’s premenstrual syndrome (PMS). 70% of women of childbearing age have symptoms to varying degrees, but some people are so mild that they don’t feel it, and some people are so severe that it affects their normal life. Not long ago, I met a girl who couldn't help crying every time before her period. She thought she was depressed. After some research, I found out that it was an emotional symptom of PMS. She adjusted her diet and exercised appropriately, and she was relieved quickly.

There’s another question that’s been talked about a lot: can girls eat ice cream? I’ve seen Northeastern girls who chew popsicles every day in the winter and never feel pain, and I’ve seen girls who take a sip of iced milk tea in the summer and it hurts so much that they break into cold sweats. The essence is individual differences. If you don’t feel uncomfortable, you don’t have to quit. If you really feel uncomfortable after eating it, just don’t touch it. There is no hard and fast rule that “all girls can’t eat ice.” Compared with whether to quit ice cream, what is actually more noteworthy is the lack of muscle mass and iron deficiency anemia caused by many girls' dieting to lose weight. After all, there is a fixed blood loss every month. If you don't take enough red meat and iron supplements, it is easy to have cold hands and feet all year round, and you will be out of breath after climbing two floors. Don't label yourself as "frail" at the beginning. Checking the blood routine first is more reliable than anything else.

Last week, a 35-year-old reader came to me and said that her annual physical examination was all normal, but she was tired every day and could not recover even after sleeping for 10 hours. After chatting for half an hour, she discovered that she had to pick up her children, cook, and help with homework after work. After her husband finished washing the dishes, she had to put away toys and prepare clothes for the children for the next day. It was already 12 o'clock when she lay down, and she had to take care of the elderly on both sides of her during the weekend. The energy consumed by this kind of hidden labor cannot be detected in the physical examination report. The "tiredness" of many women is not a physical problem at all. It is the society's acknowledgment that women have to bear more long-term consumption caused by household labor. At this time, no matter how many supplements you take, it is useless. It is a serious matter to share the housework with your husband.

Oh, by the way, if your aunt is in pain every time and even taking ibuprofen doesn't work, be sure to check whether she has endometriosis. The rate of missed diagnosis of this disease is very high. Many girls have to endure it for several years before it is diagnosed. Don't take it seriously.

In fact, there is no "secret" that cannot be told. Many times we are bound by various rules "girls should be thin, gentle, and take care of the family", but instead ignore the feelings of our own bodies. If you feel uncomfortable, go to a regular hospital for examination. Eat whatever you want as long as your body is okay with it. Don't treat yourself harshly for the sake of others' opinions. It will be more effective than any sky-high price health prescription. One final word, don’t be lazy during annual gynecological examinations and breast ultrasounds. Many problems are not a big deal if they are discovered early, but procrastination will be troublesome. It’s as simple as that.