In honour of the release of our Women’s Health Range, the Good Health naturopath team has put together a series of health articles taking a deep dive into the wonderful, complex world of the 3 Ms—menarche, menstruation, and menopause. We will also explore the female hormonal lifecycle and microbiome, potential issues that can arise, and some ancestral tips on how to support what is uniquely, female.
从......初潮开始
Menarche means the first menstruation—the beginning of the menstrual cycle during puberty. We all remember puberty—that time when stronger and stronger signals from the pituitary gland in our brain, causing rising levels of reproductive hormones, made us impossible to deal with (we weren’t THAT bad, were we?!). Menarche usually occurs approximately 2-2.5 years after the onset of puberty and the first appearance of female sex characteristics—breasts and pubic hair. These physical changes are modulated by changes in the levels of hormones that are produced by the pituitary gland—luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH).
> The pulsatile release of gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) stimulates pituitary gonadotrophs to release LH and FSH. LH triggers androgen production in the ovaries and ovulation, while FSH triggers aromatase in follicular cells to synthesise estradiol. Breast tissue enlarges and influences a pubertal growth spurt.
> 这一过程最终会促使卵巢排出卵子，即所谓的排卵，然后月经初潮，标志着身体已经做好了繁殖的准备。
在月经初潮后的第一年，排卵只会发生几次，但到了青少年十几岁时，她的排卵周期将达到 80% 左右，如果整体健康状况良好，最终会增加到 100%。这是女性生育高峰期的开始，一直会持续到 30 岁左右。
初潮的时间
The average age of menarche in the developed world is around 12-13 years of age and has been decreasing from an average of 17 years of age since the mid-1800s. The thinking is that menarche between the ages of 10 and 16 is normal; however, many experts consider 11 or younger to be “early menarche.” Female humans still living an evolutionarily consistent, or primitive, life tend to experience menarche around the age of 16-17. There is scientific evidence that menarche in the mid-teens is a more species-specific time.
Early menarche is associated with low mood, excessive worry-mind, shorter stature, and substance abuse in older adolescents. Asian research shows a link between early onset puberty and an increased risk of metabolic issues, weight gain, and mitochondrial dysfunction (problems with cell energy production and cell health) in adults.
Our genetics and ethnicity play a role in when we begin menstruation, but research shows us that nutrition and stress have the biggest impact. There is also epidemiological and historical evidence that proper nutrition, along with microbiome balance and healthy lifestyle factors, can make the transition through puberty much smoother, physically and emotionally. The human body needs specific nutrients and animal fats to effectively produce sex hormones—these compounds are increasingly deficient in the modern diet. The human female body needs a healthy amount of subcutaneous (under the skin) body fat to ovulate and menstruate—a process controlled by the hormone leptin—not an unhealthy distribution of adipose (fat) tissue—with adiposity in and around organs (visceral fat) and/or the fat marbling of muscles. If a female human lets her body fat percentage get too low, as in the case of many athletes, ovulation and periods can cease.
青春期的潜在问题
在发达国家，儿童肥胖程度的增加、配方奶喂养、塑料和杀虫剂中的合成雌激素以及许多加工食品中的植物雌激素可能导致青春期变化越来越早，包括乳房发育和初潮提前。现在，年仅 10 岁的儿童就会出现肝脏脂肪沉积。含有精制糖、果糖和种子油的超加工食品构成了现代饮食的主体。研究表明，超重女孩童年时期的含糖饮料摄入量与月经初潮提前之间存在密切联系。汽水和浓缩果汁含有大量果糖，会导致内脏脂肪增加和代谢功能障碍。出生或童年时期的压力也会影响发病年龄。
Low-fat, ultra-processed food diets in early childhood are strongly associated with visceral obesity in later childhood and adulthood. Traditionally, human cultures have provided very young and growing children with plenty of animal foods and fats. This is to set them up to have a body that has the appropriate amount of healthy subcutaneous and brown fat into adolescence and adulthood, with minimal visceral fat. Fat-soluble vitamins and bioavailable minerals, mainly from animal foods and fats, also support the skeletal structure of the face and pelvis to develop properly. Proper skeletal development supports breathing, sleep, and comfortable pregnancy and childbirth, among many other benefits.
The body also needs daily cues from the sun to trigger and balance hormonal production and output. Research shows us that reproductive hormone health is heavily influenced by our circadian rhythm—the daily, natural light and dark cycle and its associated hormones, melatonin and cortisol, along with leptin. Screentime, particularly at night, is especially disruptive to circadian biology.
何时向专业医护人员咨询：
- 她 15 岁，没有月经
- 她三年多前开始出现乳房发育，但没有来月经
- 距离初潮已超过 2 年，但月经仍不是每 3-6 周来一次，尤其是如果她连续错过三次或更多次月经的话
- 她的经期不舒服
- 她的出血量非常大（使用护垫或卫生棉的速度超过每 2 小时一次）。
- 经前情绪不稳、消化不良或皮肤糜烂，影响日常活动
如果您认识的年轻女性遇到任何月经问题，您可以阅读更多有关自然疗法的信息，以寻求帮助。, 这里.
It is a challenging and sometimes upsetting experience for a youngster to go through. It is important that girls going through puberty and menarche feel heard, supported, and loved to mitigate any feelings of shame and embarrassment that can arise. They have many years of development beyond puberty while they are still children, albeit “teenagers,” and they need lots of understanding to be able to see out their childhood without excess stress. They also need ideal human nutrition, which includes animal fat and protein. The more knowledge they have about what is going on in their body the better they will navigate that precious time.
点击以下链接，了解更多女性健康系列内容：
TAPS 编号：PP2522
TAPS PP2522
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