Irregular Period Causes
Menstruation is the monthly passing of blood, by a non-pregnant woman, from the uterus, from the time she reaches puberty right up to menopause. A halt to this menstrual flow is the foremost indicator of conception. Normally, the menstrual flow lasts for three to five days and the normal cyclical pattern ranges from 24 – 32 days. This range is because every woman’s menstrual cycle is different and depends largely on the hormones of the woman.
Menstruation comes with varying levels of abdominal pain and sometimes headaches to women, thus causing a collection of women to deal very differently with their menstruation. They can make a woman feel really sick and added to this, the unpredictability of an irregular period can be most unwelcome. Irregular periods are one of the most common complaints women have and, although there is rarely any cause for concern, at times they can be signals of some major health issues.
Irregular periods are usually the cause of hormonal signals that have been thrown out of sync. To elaborate, a period is produced by the body creating hormones (like estrogen and progesterone). These hormones are stored in the pituitary glands, the hypothalamus and the ovaries within the body. These body parts send signals to one another and, at times, these signals get skipped or crossed, resulting in irregular periods.
Irregular Menstruation Causes
Listed below are some of the major causes of irregular periods:
• Pregnancy: A pregnant woman’s body will produce different levels of hormones which will cause multiple other pregnancy symptoms and will also result in an end to her periods.
• Stress: Being fatigued, anxious or worried can cause hormones to be unbalanced.
• Weight control: a poor diet or extreme weight gain or loss could also affect the hormones. Women that suffer from anorexia or bulimia often have no or irregular periods.
• Extreme exercise: Heavy and intense exercise can also do more harm than good and can also lead to irregular periods.
• Birth control or contraceptive drugs and irregular periods are, at times, closely intertwined. It can take some time for the body to adjust to the new levels of hormones provided by the birth control.
• Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (or PCOS) causes cysts to form on the ovaries which interfere with regular ovulation. Symptoms include: excessive hair growth, weight gain, dandruff, infertility high blood pressure and acne. If left untreated, it can lead to serous complications like ovarian cancer and heart disease.
• Inflammatory bowel disease is also linked with irregular periods. It is the inflammation of the lower intestines. Symptoms include abdominal pain and diarrhea.
