Can losing a lot of weight affect your menstrual cycle?

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Answer

Yes, losing weight can affect your menstrual cycle. This happens for several reasons. One, as stated below, is due to a lack of body fat, particularly brown adipose tissue around the midsection. The body will try not to allow pregnancy if you do not have the physical resources to protect that pregnancy. Also, any large weight adjustment causes a shift in hormones, because estrogen release is partially based on your fat cells. When you lose a large amount of weight, estrogen automatically declines. If you stop losing this weight at a healthy weight, once your body adjusts to the new amount of hormones, you should return to normal. Another reason for lack of menstruation after weight loss is poor nutrition, related to a lack of iron, zinc and lack of healthy dietary fats. Regardless of how much you exercise, or how much you weigh - if you have a lack of iron, zinc and healthy fat in your diet, you can develop amenorrhea.

The important question to ask is when is it a problem. Anytime you miss your period for three months in a row, you need to see your doctor. You need to be having four regularly spaced periods a year to maintain the proper balance for fertility. The concern is more than that, however. When you have a lack of estrogen in the body, which is often the case related to amenorrhea, you can develop osteopenia and subsequently osteoporosis. This is because estrogen is one of the major factors in the intake of calcium into the bone. For athletes, or just people who are overexercising, there is particular concern about this - because of the constant pressure being put on those bones. You become more likely to suffer shin splints, bone spurs, and fractures.

Answer

You should call a doctor. Losing weight can affect the menstral cycle, but not stop it completely. You should also take a pregnancy test if you have been sexualy active in the last 5 months. Having a period stop happens in some women occasionally and they aren't pregnant. You will probably just be given some medication to get it going again.

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How much body fat do you have? A womans' menstrual cycle depends on how much body fat she has. If you don't have enough, your body probably shut it off for whatever reason the body shuts it off for. Definitly go to a doctor though.

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yes losing alot of weight does indeed affect ur menstrual cycle. i lost 80 pounds in one year and when i got down to my target weight i notcied my periods were very light and then it started to stop for two months, and then i would get it again and then not have it for another two months.

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I'm 19 and haven't had a period in a year and a half. I went to the doctors to get my blood tested for any potential problems and it turned out the only thing out of the ordinary was that I have low estrogen. This is because I'm athletic and have low body fat. So in answer to your question, if your body fat percentage is too low to support pregnancy, or you lose a lot of weight in a short period of time, your menstrual cycle will stop. Go to the doctor though, to see if there's anything more serious going on, and you might be needing calcium supplements.

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Losing weight is definatly one of the most primary things that affect period loss.

Personally I havent had my period in over 20 months because I lost over 80lbs in about 6-7 months.

Although I enjoy not having to deal with it...it does bring up alot of worry on if Im okay.

If your period has stopped and you recently lost alot of weight then just start adding a little more healthy non-saturated fats into your diet and your period should come back.

First answer by melzn32. Last edit by Celticfife. Contributor trust: 59 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 167 [recommend question]

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