Fast or Famine? How intermittent fasting may be sabotaging your hormonal health

How and what to eat to reduce PMS and maximise energy, fertility and well-being as a woman.

Intermittent fasting has become the go-to method for weight loss and improved energy—but if you're a woman, especially of reproductive age, your body operates on a very different rhythm. Our hormones shift throughout the month, and when we work with our cycle instead of against it, everything improves: energy, digestion, mood, even our skin.

Let’s break it down phase by phase and explore how to feed your hormones, not your cravings.

🩸 Days 1–5: Menstruation Phase

Goal: Rebuild, Replenish, Nourish

This is the time to nourish deeply. Your body is shedding the uterine lining, iron levels are dropping, and your energy may be lower.

What to eat:

• Grass-fed meats and liver – High in iron and B12 to rebuild blood stores

• Bone broth and stews – Collagen and minerals to support skin and joints which suffer when oestrogen is low

• Avocado & ghee – Healthy fats for hormone production

• Leafy greens & beetroot – Blood and spleen nourishing to replenish what you’ve lost

• Warming teas & spices – Think ginger, raspberry leaf, and cinnamon

🌱 Days 6–14: Follicular Phase

Goal: Hydrate + fuel egg health

Oestrogen is on the rise! Your body is preparing to release an egg, and stable insulin levels are key. This is the best time to lean into low-carb, nutrient-dense meals.

What to eat:

• Eggs & oily fish – For cholesterol (oestrogen production) and DHA (egg quality)

• Leafy greens & cruciferous vegetables– hormonal balance

• Healthy fats – Olive oil, flaxseed, avocado, sesame oil

• Nuts & seeds – Zinc from pumpkin seeds, selenium from brazil nuts for fertility

• Citrus fruits & berries – Vitamin C supports hormone production

• Low-carb vegetables – Courgette, onion, garlic

💥 Days 14–17: Ovulation Phase

Goal: Detoxify + reduce inflammation

Oestrogen peaks here—support your liver and clear out the excess before it becomes problematic. Rage, irritability, sore breasts, heavy bleeding and hormonal headaches are all signs that your body isn’t eliminating oestrogen fast enough.

What to eat:

• Raw carrots – Bind and eliminate excess oestrogen

• Broccoli sprouts & leafy greens – Rich in sulphurophane for oestrogen detox

• Dandelion tea – A gentle detoxifier for your liver

• Oily fish – Anti-inflammatory omega-3s

🔥 Days 18–28: Luteal Phase

Goal: Support Progesterone production, your nervous system + stabilise your mood

Your body now shifts to calm and sustain. Progesterone needs nourishing, steady energy—this is not the time to fast!

What to eat:

• Low GI carbs, tropical fruit and root vegetables – Sweet potatoes, squash, legumes

• Leafy greens & cruciferous vegetables – For continued hormone detoxification

• Dark chocolate – Rich in magnesium to ease PMS and cramps

• Bone broth – Soothing for digestion and gut health

• Seaweed – Iron and iodine for thyroid and hormone balance

Feast, don’t fast. Your body needs support to produce progesterone and keep you emotionally balanced.

The Hidden Saboteur: Cortisol

Here’s the kicker: when you fast at the wrong time or under stress, your body produces more cortisol. This “fight or flight” hormone raises blood sugar and tells your body: now is not the time to make babies. The result? Your sex hormones suffer, and so does your cycle.

How to reduce cortisol? Hug someone. Seriously.

Oxytocin—produced through hugging, laughing, cuddling your dog, expressing love, meditating, and meaningful connection—is cortisol’s natural antidote. The more oxytocin, the less stress your body holds, and the more balanced your hormones become.

The bottom line: listen to your body.

Every symptom is here to tell us something. Heavy periods, very light periods, headaches, hormonal migraines, rage, irritability, depression, anxiety, sore breasts, excessive bloating or irregular cycling patterns are not signs of a normal cycle, it is your body’s way of communicating distress. The best course of action is to investigate your symptoms with the support of a qualified health practitioner that can uncover the root cause of the symptoms and bring you back into balance.

Your body isn’t a machine. It’s a rhythm. A cycle. A wave. When you nourish it according to its natural phases, everything changes—because you’re no longer at war with your biology. You’re finally in sync.