Women in their menstrual years tend to feel their best when they eat regular, balanced meals. Extreme dieting and fasting can cause our hormones to downward spiral into chaos. All to often women skip the carbs and eat too little protein, but a balanced plate can provide you with nourishment that gives you long lasting energy with stable blood sugar throughout the day and eliminate binge cravings. The truth is, not all carbohydrates are bad for your body and in fact there are a lot of carb sources that have tremendous health benefits. The problem that really needs to be addressed is the type of carbs we’re taking in. A sweet potato and a doughnut are both high-carbohydrate sources (the sweet potato is actually higher in carbs than the doughnut), but they have vastly different impacts on the body. Some great forms of carbs are beans, lentils, vegetables, whole grains and quinoa. How much protein do you need? The answer is nuanced. Ultimately, it’s best to take a bio-individual approach. Meaning, you want to consider your activity level, age, menstrual cycle, blood sugar, and more. That said, while the DRI (Dietary Reference Intake) is 0.36 grams of protein per pound—this amounts to 54 grams per day for a 150 pound person—most experts will tell you that’s too low. We find that a good rule of thumb is roughly 20-30 grams of protein per meal. Again, this will vary across the board (particularly if you’re pregnant). For more on how diet affects your hormones download our free guide from our bio link 💕