Seed cycling is a new trend in nutrition specifically for women. It involves eating certain seeds depending on the phase of the cycle. In the first half of the cycle, you eat different seeds than in the second half. Seed cycling is said to alleviate hormonal-related complaints, such as menstrual cramps, but is also helpful for those wanting to have children and during the menopause.
Seed Cycling: Eating seeds and regulating the cycle
Seed cycling (also called seed rotation) means something like rotating seed consumption. You could also say: eat seeds in harmony with your own cycle.
Basically, seed cycling is nothing new, because it is known that some foods contain substances that can influence the hormonal balance. The only new thing is that someone gave the thing a good-sounding name. It became a trend because it is not very complicated. Because you only eat the right seeds at the right time and don’t have to adjust your entire diet. Two questions arise that will be answered later in the article:
- How exactly does seed cycling work?
- Does seed cycling really have a noticeable impact on the cycle and hormonal system?
These seeds are eaten during seed cycling
According to seed cycling, the seeds that regulate the hormonal system (including estrogen and progesterone levels) are oilseeds, i.e., pumpkin seeds, flaxseed, sesame and sunflower seeds.
Seed cycling is said to alleviate hormone-related complaints
It is now said that if you adjust these seeds to your cycle, you can alleviate hormone-related complaints, such as general menstrual cramps, acne, premenstrual syndrome, irregular menstruation, endometriosis, or PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome).
Some even say that seed cycling can help you get pregnant because it improves fertility. During menopause, seed cycling is said to alleviate the associated symptoms, such as hot flashes , sleep disorders, vaginal dryness, tiredness or low moods. Seed cycling is even said to have a positive effect on thyroid hormone levels.
How seed cycling should work
During a normal menstrual cycle, the follicular phase (from the first day of the period) is initially marked by an increase in estrogen levels. The egg matures in the ovary. After about two weeks, ovulation occurs. Now the estrogen level drops and the progesterone level rises. This phase is called the luteal phase. After two weeks, the progesterone level drops, bleeding occurs – and the cycle begins again ( 1 ) ( 2 ) ( 3 ) ( 4 ) ( 5 ) ( 6 ) ( 7 ) ( 8 ) ( 9 ).
If problems arise at any point in the cycle because too much or too little of a hormone is produced, seed cycling should have a balancing effect and thus alleviate symptoms.
During menopause, the rhythm from the fertile years is no longer present and there are always unpredictable hormonal fluctuations that can cause problems. Here, too, seed cycling is said to have a balancing effect so that the fluctuations are not so serious and the menopausal symptoms are milder.
During menopause, the production of estrogen and progesterone has decreased significantly and remains relatively constant at this low level. Seed cycling is said to be able to raise this low level somewhat, so that women are better protected against the typical ailments of old age, such as osteoporosis, arthritis and cardiovascular problems. The skin and connective tissue also remain firmer.
The seeds are crushed during seed cycling
The seed cycling protocol requires eating two tablespoons of the corresponding seeds every day. However, the seeds should be finely chopped so that you can enjoy the ingredients. Otherwise, small seeds such as linseed or sesame are often swallowed whole – and then excreted whole. In this case, they provide fiber and promote digestion, but nothing more.
The seeds can be easily ground in a blender or a suitable food processor. You can add the seeds to your cereal, eat them plain or sprinkle them over your salad. Basically, it would be ideal to eat them plain. Then you can chew the ground seeds thoroughly again and salivate them well before swallowing, which improves digestibility, increases the bioavailability of the ingredients and thus also optimizes effectiveness.
Seed Cycling: The Guide
When seed cycling, proceed as follows:
In the first half of the cycle (the first two weeks, starting on the first day of your period and ending on the 14th day): Eat one tablespoon each of ground flax seeds and ground pumpkin seeds daily.
In the second phase (which also generally lasts two weeks, starting on day 15 and ending on day 28, or the last day before your period starts): Switch to ground sunflower seeds and ground sesame seeds. Eat one tablespoon of each daily.
Seed cycling when you no longer have bleeding
If you no longer have periods, i.e. are going through menopause, then you can basically start on any day, but then stick to the rhythm you have chosen: two weeks of linseed and pumpkin seeds, then two weeks of sunflower seeds and sesame seeds.
Seed cycling, if you want to adjust your cycle to the moon
If you want to adjust your cycle or intake to the phases of the moon, start the first phase with the new moon and the second phase with the full moon. This approach is particularly helpful if you suffer from an irregular cycle and would like to harmonize it.
This is how long it takes until you notice an effect
Seed cycling should be practiced over the long term, as the effect usually only occurs after a few months.
This is how many calories are provided by two tablespoons of seeds
Two tablespoons of oilseeds are not particularly high in calories. They provide about 100 kcal, 9 g of fat, 4 g of protein, 4 g of carbohydrates and 2 to 3 g of fiber.
Can seed cycling really help?
There are now numerous enthusiastic testimonials online that talk about the positive effects of seed cycling. However, scientific evidence is lacking. Of course this is, because who would be interested in it? Who would finance the study(s)?
However, since the seeds used in seed cycling are packed with nutrients and are extremely healthy, there is absolutely nothing to stop you from simply trying seed cycling. The extra portion of vitamins, minerals and trace elements in the seeds alone will have a positive effect on your health and therefore possibly also on your hormone levels.
All four seeds are rich in fiber, manganese, magnesium, copper, vitamin B1, and high-quality fatty acids. They can reduce the risk factors for cardiovascular problems, such as high cholesterol levels, blood sugar levels and high blood pressure ( 20 ) ( 40 ) ( 41 ) ( 42 ) and usually have an anti-inflammatory effect, and in the case of sesame, even improve the performance of athletes ( 50 ) ( 51 ). Pumpkin seeds are considered to be extremely beneficial for prostate and urinary tract problems ( 47 ) ( 48 ) ( 49 ).
How are the balancing effects on the female hormonal system explained? As you will see below, there is a lot of evidence of a hormonal effect of the seeds, but unfortunately there is no clear explanation as to why linseed and pumpkin seeds should be consumed in the first half of the cycle and sesame and sunflower seeds in the second half.
Flaxseed contains plant estrogens
Some seeds actually have a certain hormonal effect, and there are studies on this. Flaxseed seems to have been particularly well researched in this regard, as it has by far the most scientific work done on it.
Flaxseed contains phytoestrogens ( 10 ) ( 11 ) ( 12 ) ( 13 ) which can balance estrogen levels, or at least that is the hope of seed cycling. If estrogen levels do not rise high enough in the first phase of the cycle (follicular phase), the phytoestrogens in flaxseed could provide support.
If the situation is reversed and estrogen dominance is present, phytoestrogens can also mitigate the negative effects of too high estrogen levels because they occupy the receptors for estrogens, so that not as many receptors are free for the real estrogens. However, since phytoestrogens are weaker than estrogens, the negative effect of an excess of estrogen decreases in the presence of phytoestrogens.
Flaxseed protects against breast cancer
The phytoestrogens in flaxseed are called lignans, and flaxseed is one of the foods with the highest lignan content. Lignans are secondary plant substances that are also known to be anti-cancer. They can protect against hormone-dependent breast cancer, as shown by studies in which women ate 25 g of flaxseed daily. It was even discovered that in women who already had cancer, those patients who had the highest lignan content in their blood had a 40 percent lower risk of developing metastases.
Since lignans are broken down in the body after 24 to 48 hours, they should be consumed daily to be effective. While linseed contains 260 to 370 mg of lignans per 100 g, pumpkin seeds only contain around 20 mg, while sesame seeds contain an impressive 830 mg of lignans. Cashew nuts also contain 56 mg of lignans, so they could also be included in a hormone-regulating diet.
Although sunflower seeds contain almost no lignans and pumpkin seeds contain significantly fewer than flax seeds, these two seeds also seem to have a protective effect on breast cancer, so it is certainly not the phytoestrogens alone that make seeds healthy and anti-cancer foods ( 43 ) ( 44 ) ( 45 ) ( 46 ).
Flaxseed for menstrual problems and cycle irregularities
Smaller studies in women found that taking flaxseed improved hormone levels and also cycle rhythm, prolonged the luteal phase, and reduced premenstrual breast pain ( 14 ) ( 15 ) ( 16 ).
Flaxseed for menopausal symptoms
In menopausal women, flaxseed was able to slightly increase estrogen levels, improve hormone metabolism, reduce hot flashes and vaginal dryness, and improve quality of life ( 25 ) ( 26 ) ( 27 ) ( 28 ).
In a three-month study, women were given a dietary supplement containing 100 mg of linseed extract and black cohosh extract, a medicinal plant that is regularly recommended for menopausal symptoms. Many symptoms, such as hot flashes, headaches, nervousness and mood swings, improved, although it is of course impossible to say whether the effect could not be attributed in particular to the black cohosh ( 29 ).
For the sake of completeness, it should be mentioned that there are also studies that showed that lignans and other phytoestrogens and seeds were no more effective than placebo preparations in treating menopausal symptoms ( 31 ) ( 32 ) ( 33 ).
The estrogen-inhibiting or estrogen-promoting effects of lignans are described as relatively weak overall. They are even more likely to have an anti-cancer effect than the ability to regulate hormone levels ( 17 ) ( 18 ) ( 19 ).
Seeds provide zinc for progesterone and estrogen production
Three of the seeds eaten during seed cycling provide a lot of zinc (daily requirement 8.5 mg), which is needed for hormone production:
- Pumpkin seeds 6.4 mg zinc per 100 g
- Flaxseed 1.5 mg zinc
- Sesame 7.8 mg zinc
- Sunflower seeds 5.7 mg zinc
However, you only eat 10 g of each seed, so the zinc in the seeds alone cannot be decisive for the desired effect.
Seeds contain a lot of vitamin E, which is important for hormone balance
In the luteal phase (second half of the cycle), it could be the lignan content in sesame that prevents estrogen dominance, while the vitamin E in sunflower seeds could promote progesterone production.
However, studies do not look good here: Sesame, for example, was unable to influence estrogen levels in menopausal women even after 5 weeks of taking 50 g daily. However, other sex hormones could be influenced, antioxidant levels increased and blood lipid levels improved.
Even though it is often said that a good supply of zinc and vitamin E is important for a healthy hormonal balance and good reproductive ability, there is no evidence that it would be particularly beneficial for the hormonal balance to consume these vital substances in the form of the seeds mentioned ( 21 ) ( 22 ) ( 23 ) ( 24 ).
Yes, there are even studies in which neither zinc nor vitamin E were particularly effective – neither in terms of menopausal symptoms nor on hormone levels ( 34 ).
However, the seeds do not only provide zinc and vitamin E, but also many other substances, so that a completely different effect can be expected here than when consuming isolated nutrient preparations alone, as was the case in some studies.
Seed cycling to regulate hormone levels
Overall, it can be said that the seeds used in seed cycling do indeed have health benefits, but it is not certain whether the relatively small amounts of seeds used and the special timing have the promised regulating effects on the hormone balance. So like with all things – give it a try. It can’t hurt, but it might help. We are all different and have to find what works for us.
We would therefore recommend improving your overall diet and lifestyle, and of course you can integrate seed cycling, perhaps even with higher amounts of seeds and with other foods containing phytoestrogens, such as soy products and cashews.
When it comes to hormonal disorders, always look for the causes, and also think about all the many natural food supplements that can be used for hormonal disorders, such as resveratrol for PCOS or saffron for PMS.