Period Talk: Onset Of Menstruation Is The Time For Right Nutrition In Girls

Menstruation or period is considered one of the important milestones in a girl’s life. Periods generally start for a girl child from the age of 8 years to 13 years. With the onset of puberty and menstruation a girl witnesses’ lot of physical and hormonal changes in her body. This is the time when the development spurt is at an all-time high in girls, it’s very important for parents to take good care of her nutrition.

Girls face lots of problems and inconveniences during the first time of their periods, till they get used to this physical change in their body. Some girls face Menorrhagia i.e., excessive period bleeding which lasts for more than 7 days, nausea, lightheadedness, stomach ache, and headaches. This results in a lot of misunderstandings and misconceptions about periods which can also take the form of period blue or scare. The roles of parents during this crucial time in a girl’s life are very critical, they should not only counsel her about periods, changes in her body but also about the importance of nutrition, hygiene, and exercise. To know more about menstruation and nutrition ETV Bharat Sukhibhava spoke to expert Nutritionist Divya Kalsekar, and she shared some important guidelines with us.

Diet should be nutritious and digestible

As many girls today have PCOS problems due to lifestyle problems and junk food binges, Divya advises light and easily digestible food for girls. Diet should be rich in proteins, iron, and calcium, but should not be loaded with fat and junk food. A girl not only experiences physical changes but also a lot of psychological changes, like getting used to breasts and facial, body, and pubic hair. The skin becomes oily and pimples break out for many, it is important that we balance all these changes with the right nutrition. The right diet will not only help her in adjusting to the bodily changes but will also give her a positive outlook.

What Should be the diet?

Junk food and carbonated drinks are a big no, although girls consider these as stress food, Divya advised that the intake of these foods not only results in excessive weight gain but can result in child obesity also.

So, the child should be encouraged to eat a lot of colorful vegetables in her diet, green leafy vegetables like spinach, fenugreek, pulses and cereals, and whole grains. Along with vitamins and minerals these foods provide Folic acid which is considered important for a menstruating girl.

Generally, women and girls face iron deficiency, so it is recommended for them to consume iron-rich foods. To compensate for the iron deficiency in the body, one can consume pomegranate carrots and beetroot, also grape juice, carrot, and beetroot juice can be included in the diet.

Divya further adds that if the girl child is healthy she will not face many period problems which have become a norm nowadays due to unhealthy eating habits. Also, period bleeding will be normal and she will not face other related problems like cramps, nausea, stomach ache, and headache.

What should not be included in the diet?

Divya advised that at some times the regular food items, like pulses can also be a health problem in some specific conditions, like during periods the digestion system of girls is weak. So when the girl gets periods for the first time, she should be given nutritious but easily digestible food and the same food regime should be maintained during periods in general.

Food items like pulses and whole grains can be heavy during the periods, which can lead to digestion problems in girls. Kidney bean (Rajma), horse gram, split black gram (urad dal), and coarse grains should be especially avoided. Spicy and rich food, packaged food, processed food, chips, fast food, and tea and coffee should be avoided. These food items are not good for digestion, which can also impact period pain and induce sleeplessness problems in girls.