Let's Talk About Seed Cycling
- Stephanie Booe
- Feb 14, 2024
- 5 min read
If you're like me, your brow may have furrowed a little bit when you heard me say seed cycling. If you read my last post, then you know that cycle syncing was something that I was already somewhat familiar with and had already been looking into prior to having my hormone test. Well, the same can be said for seed cycling. Since I had already dabbled my toes into cycle syncing, similar posts and articles about seed cycling began to pop up and it really caught my attention.
So when my healthcare specialist recommended that I begin the process of seed cycling to help boost my levels of estrogen, I already felt confident and equipped to start.
But maybe you're not quite there yet and maybe this is your first introduction to seed cycling. If so, that's perfectly fine and I'm excited to be the one who gets to share this information with you!
What is seed cycling?
Seed cycling involves eating flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, and sesame seeds at different points of your cycle to help boost fertility and balance your hormones, menstrual cycle, and overall mood.
Obviously, this isn't going to be a one all type of fix (even though we all wish it could be), when this process is incorporated with other hormone loving lifestyle changes- it can be highly beneficial.
What seeds are we eating and when?
Don't worry, it's not overwhelming! Seed cycling consists of four seeds that you cycle through every two weeks. Stock up on these four types of seeds and incorporate them into your daily diet (we'll talk about how later) and pretty soon, it will become second nature.
Day 1-14 during your menstrual and follicular phase, eat 1-2 tbsp of ground flax seeds and 1-2 tbsp of pumpkin seeds.
Day 15-28 during your ovulation and luteal phase, eat 1-2tbsp of sunflower seeds and 1-2 tbsp of sesame seeds.
Talk to me about the health benefits!
Yes, I got you covered because this was my question too. What about these specific seeds are going to help me with my cycle? But let me tell ya, once you start looking into it, it becomes fascinating! Here's a brief overview:
Flax Seeds: These can help regulate your hormones and reduce inflammation in your body. They're high in omegas, rich in fiber, and may even help with your cholesterol and blood sugar. They also contain lignans which attach themselves to the estrogen receptors in the body and dictate whether your body should produce more or less estrogen.
Pumpkin Seeds: These are high in zinc and zinc is beneficial for boosting fertility, decreasing discomfort during your cycle, and helping to balance your hormones at the first half of your cycle- especially testosterone.
Sunflower Seeds: These are super high in Vitamin E and can be really beneficial for the production of hormones that occur in the last half of your cycle. Since they're packed with folate, they're beneficial for your reproductive system and can also be really beneficial for your hubby too! Some studies show that sunflower seeds have even been linked to boosting sperm count and motility.
Sesame Seeds: These are high in Vitamin E, iron, and calcium. And guess what! They've also been linked to being beneficial for you AND your hubby. Sesame seeds can be beneficial for sperm count and motility in men while helping with progesterone levels and strengthening the uterine lining in women. Which makes these the perfect seeds to have in the last half of your cycle, paired with sunflower seeds.
Does it really work?
So here's the thing, there haven't been enough studies to adequately prove the beneficial connection of cycling these seeds to balance your hormones; however, there is substantial information about the nutritional value that these seeds contain and the role they play in supporting reproductive and overall health. Like I said, this isn't an end all type of cure by any means. Instead, I want us to think of seed cycling as a singular tool (among many others) in our belt to help take care of our hormones.
How can I have them?
There are so many ways you can incorporate these seeds into your daily diet and I encourage you to get creative, but here are a few simple ideas to get you started:
Add them to your yogurt
Mix them in a smoothie
Sprinkle them over a salad
Put them with oatmeal
As a garnish on your avocado or peanut butter and banana toast
Grab the bag of ground flax from Trader Joe's and you'll find an easy power ball recipe on the back of the bag
Feeling creative? Here are a few recipes to try:
Final Thoughts.
I started seed cycling a couple of weeks ago on CD1 (cycle day one) and so far, it's been an easy thing to do. I normally just add all of the seeds I need for the day to some organic whole milk yogurt with a little bit of honey, but now after getting some of these recipes together for you, I can see that I'll definitely be mixing it up and incorporating my seeds into some of these snack ideas- especially those coconut clusters!
My thoughts on seed cycling and the validity of the whole process is this: no matter what you do, you're going to find articles or studies that prove and debunk what you're about to do. At the end of the day, I know that seeds and nuts play a big role in maintaining a healthy, well-rounded diet. I know that seeds are beneficial for us and at the very least, I'm doing nothing more than helping myself to get more nourishing foods in my diet. At the very best, I'm helping my body balance hormones and boost my fertility (which has become very important to me).
I trust the opinion and recommendation of my healthcare specialist and I'm willing to add this process to my lifestyle in order to help my body operate at its best for me and my family. If you're torn or conflicted on the idea of seed cycling, I encourage you to talk to your healthcare provider, do some reading on your own, and come to a conclusion where you feel comfortable.
Again, this isn't going to be an over the night, done in one day kind of thing. It's going to take consistency over the course of the next few months to really see a change, but I'm excited to be on this journey with you and as always- I'll keep you updated. I'll do a follow up post in a few months to talk about the impact this has had for me, so keep your eyes peeled for that!
Until next time, I'm sending hugs!
SB
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Seed Cycling information gathered from:
Cover photo provided by Canva stock image gallery.
*This post is not affiliated or sponsored content. It does not provide medical advice and is strictly discussing a lifestyle tool that I am choosing to incorporate for myself. Speak to your healthcare specialist before making any changes of your own.*
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