When children grow up and become teenagers at the age of 12 to 18 years old. Many things in the body are changed such as the boys will have bigger voices or the girls will have menstruation (or period) and breasts.
Menstruation is blood vessels in the endometrium that peel and come out. Estrogen and Luteinizing hormone (LH) are sex hormones that cause ovulation and menstruation in ladies. One cycle of menstruation is 28 days and the menstrual period take about 3-7 days. The color of the period may red or dark red. Many bodies have misunderstanding about the color of the blood that comes out during menstruation. Dark color of it is not inoperative or bad blood. But truly, it causes from the blood that stuck in ovary for long time reacts with oxygen in the air and make the color darker.
Pre-Menstrual Syndromes or PMS are the symptoms before have menstruation period. The presentations of PMS are hot temperature, stomach-ache, stress, depression, weak muscle or head-ache.
How to decrease the Pre-Menstrual Syndromes?
1. Avoid coffee or caffeine drinks because they cause insomnia (difficult to sleep) and stress in the next morning.
2. Reduce salt in foods.
3. Take low fat foods, decrease meat and increase vegetables, reduce sweet foods and increase carbohydrate foods such as breads or rice.
4. Exercise about 10-15 minutes a day can decrease PMS.
5. Vitamin B complex can decrease the PMS but you have to concern about the milligrams of vitamin B6 inside, if too much of it may cause beriberi.
6. Calcium is helpful for calm down the stress and work as painkiller.
7. Vitamin E decreases the symptoms of pain around breasts.
8. Taking magnesium for decreasing blood sugar need and reduce pain around breasts.
9. Avoid taking aspirin as painkiller for a long time but you have to consult the pharmacists before. Generally, Mefenamic acid is helpful in this case, if you do not have any medical problems.
10. Some herbal medicines such as ginseng or glycyrrhiza will balance the hormones and make you feel better.
What are the symptoms during menstruation period?
During menstruation period estrogen will decrease to low level and prostaglandins secretion causes many symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, influence, headache, stomach pain, diarrhea or hot flush. The symptoms may high peak at the day of 1 to 3 of period after that everything will be better. About 10% of women have severe pain and cause inability to go to school or working.
How to relief the pains?
First way: Take the medicines for inhibit prostaglandins. This group of medicine is NSAID (Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug).
Second way: Take contraceptive pills especially, combine pills that contain estrogen with progesterone inside. This way have disadvantage points such as you have to take the pills for everyday and can not have any child during taking the pill.
Third way: Massage gently around stomach, paste hot pack on it and exercise.
How to take care yourself during menstruation?
1. Accept the changing of body and try to understand it. Relaxing and do not worry about the period.
2. Take more time for relaxation, go to bed early do not work hard.
3. Supplements may necessary such as Calcium, Vitamin B Complex, Magnesium and folic acid. Moreover, consume more vegetables that contain the vitamins above.
4. Exercise bout 10-15 minutes for clearance the stress but avoid swimming because it is easy to have bacterial infection from swimming pool during menstruation period.
5. Concern about hygiene by change the sanitary pad at least 3-4 times a day. And select pH balance products for the sex organ.
6. Should be use non alcohol, color or perfume sanitary pads. Avoid using tampons in young girls because sometime it is difficult to use.