“Does a woman’s immune system weaken at certain times of
her
menstrual cycle? I have always noticed that if I get sick, it’s almost
always just before I get my period,” a woman asked.
اضافة اعلان
Experts say that while there is not enough data to prove that
you are more likely to feel sick before or during your period, there are some
hints that it is possible. Emerging research suggests that the immune system
can fluctuate during this time, sometimes exacerbating underlying chronic
disease symptoms or creating new ones that some women may mistake as signs of a
new illness.
Just before a period, for instance, some women report symptoms
typically associated with the flu, such as body aches, malaise, and even fever.
This so-called period flu is not caused by an actual virus, said Dr Taraneh
Shirazian, a gynecologist at
New York University Langone Health. But it can be
the result of a person’s immune response to natural inflammation as the uterus
cramps and sheds cells. “It’s how your body perceives the inflammation,” she
said.
Hormones may also be to blame for these symptoms, Shirazian
said. Luteinizing hormone, or LH, surges just before ovulation and then sharply
drops when a period starts, she said. As LH levels shift, people can experience
fatigue, bloating, headaches, and nausea. “Some women go through this with
really aggressive symptoms every cycle, every month,” Shirazian said.
In a 2018 review in partnership with the period-tracking app
Clue, researchers also noted that in women with certain underlying illnesses —
such as inflammatory bowel diseases, epilepsy, and autoimmune disorders —
symptoms associated with the illnesses sometimes worsened during ovulation,
improved about a week later and worsened again during menstruation.
This, said Sabra Klein, a microbiologist at the
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, could be the result of seesawing hormones
and immune system changes over the course of a period.
Other research has found that between 19 percent and 40 percent
of women with asthma have reported more intense and frequent asthma flare-ups
or attacks right before or during their periods. Perimenstrual asthma, as it’s
called, has been linked to increases in asthma-related emergency department
visits and hospitalizations, including intubations.
Some small studies have also shown that women with multiple
sclerosis reported worsening symptoms right before or during their periods. And
patients with lupus have reported more pain and fatigue around their menstrual
cycles.
The evolutionary function of the menstrual cycle is to give
women an opportunity to become pregnant, said Dr Kimberly Keefe Smith, a
reproductive endocrinologist and gynecologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital
in Boston. When fertilization does occur, some parts of the immune system are
suppressed so that the body does not reject the fetus.
During the menstrual cycle, the ovaries secrete estrogen and
progesterone, which affect different branches of the immune system in different
ways depending on the part of the body. Progesterone, in particular, can be an
immunosuppressant when present at high levels in the body, such as during
pregnancy, Keefe Smith said. But estrogen and progesterone alone can’t explain
a weakened immune system, she added; patients who receive extra doses of the
hormones during certain medical treatments or while on birth control, for
example, are not more susceptible to feeling sick.
Without definitive data, scientists can’t provide clear guidance
on how women should think about their chances of feeling sick based on their
cycles.
“This has been grossly understudied,” Klein said. “I can’t
really tell you if you’re more likely to get a cold or have infections, because
the more detailed studies just haven’t been done.”
Although additional research is needed to better understand how
the menstrual cycle influences disease susceptibility, she added that if you
consistently find yourself feeling sick at a certain point in your cycle, do not
ignore it. You can take steps to protect your health leading up to your period:
Make sure you are eating a balanced diet, getting enough sleep, and washing
your hands for at least 20 seconds. “Every woman knows their body best,” Klein
said.
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