Red Raspberry Leaf for Menstrual cycles

Some of us have to deal with uncomfortable symptoms during our menstrual cycles. These can be mild or so bad that they hinder our lives.

People with these symptoms, usually look for relief from them. There are quite a few things on the market that may help and red raspberry leaf is one of them.

For this post, information about the leaves and how they may provide relieve will be presented.

Icky hormonal symptoms

Our menstrual cycles come with hormonal fluctuations. Depending on one’s body, the reaction to these fluctuations may be quite poor. These bad reactions are what causes the pesky symptoms that plague a lot of people each cycle.

The symptoms are most commonly experienced in the luteal phase (PMS/PMDD) of our cycle and during our periods. They can also show up a couple of days before ovulation, the day of ovulation and for a couple of days after our periods end.

The symptoms that people may experience include the following:

• GI issues (loose stools, gassiness, constipation, nausea etc.).
• Acne
• Body aches and pains.
• A sore throat, runny nose, stuffy nose and sneezing (lesser known symptoms!).
• Headaches and migraines.
• Abdominal and pelvic cramps.
• Ovarian pain during ovulation.
• Mood issues.
• Fatigue and/or insomnia.
• Lightheadedness/dizziness.
• Cravings and increased hunger.
• Heavy bleeding during periods.
• Spotting in between periods.

There are other possible symptoms than what is on this list but those are the most common ones. Some people deal with the same ones each month at the same intensity or there may be some variations.

About red raspberry leaves

Raspberries are one of many types of berries and they are one of the most popular among them. As loved as they are, not very many people know that the leaves from the raspberry plant possibly have a slew of benefits.

If you have a raspberry plant and are interested in using the leaves, you must harvest them before the plant blooms. They are then to be dried until they can be crumbled easily. It is best to wait to crumble them until right when you are ready to use them though.

Most people who use red raspberry leaves, make tea with them. This can be done by steeping one tablespoon of the crumbled leaves in one cup of boiling water for 10-15 minutes. The smell of this tea is said to be very pleasant with a fruity, black tea flavor to it. People also say it is slightly sweet on it’s own.

You can also get red raspberry leaves in prepared tea bags, liquid drops, capsules and K-Cups.

There are numerous nutrients in these leaves. They include vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, B vitamins, calcium, iron, potassium and magnesium. It may also have some other antioxidant properties as well.

How it may help during menstrual cycles

Red raspberry leaves have been used as traditional medicine since around the mid 1700s. There has been a combination of anecdotal and some scientific evidence that it actually helps.

The hormonal symptoms it may help with include the following:

• Menstrual cramps
• Heavy periods
• Spotting in between periods
• Nausea
• Diarrhea
• Sore throat
• Breast pain
• Fatigue

It has been said that these leaves may be helpful due to the nutrient and antioxidant content. Most notable is the vitamin B6, calcium and magnesium that they contain. These are nutrients that have been shown to help with hormonal symptoms by balancing things out.

To see if red raspberry leaves help with one’s menstrual cycle, drinking the tea or taking capsules are options. If one chooses to drink the tea- no more than three cups a day is recommended. If one chooses to take capsules instead of tea- up to 900 mg per day is recommended.

Red raspberry leaves can be taken every single day to prevent symptoms, during the luteal phase of one’s cycle or whenever it is needed.

Other possible benefits

There are some other things that red raspberry leaves could possibly help with. They are as follows:

• Morning sickness.
• Inducing labor- Very, very little evidence for this so don’t count on it.
• Respiratory viruses and all that comes with them.
• GI viruses and all that comes with them.
• Non-hormonal headaches and migraines.
• Non-hormonal diarrhea.
• Relief of skin conditions such as eczema and rashes.
• Increase of insulin sensitivity.

It is important to note that there also may be some estrogenic effects so anyone who is sensitive to that hormone should be careful.

My use of red raspberry leaves

I found out about using red raspberry leaves for menstrual cycle symptoms years ago. At first, I tried to drink three cups of the tea a day but I got kind of sick of that. I then switched to taking capsules of it daily.

As I recall, doing this really helped reduce my symptoms. I didn’t experience much in the way of nausea as I usually did and my menstrual cramps were all but non-existent.

I remember being very excited that I found something that helped me. After a while, I completely stopped buying them though. This was because I kept forgetting to put them in my Amazon cart and then I eventually kind of forgot about them.

For the past year or two, I have started to keep around red raspberry leaf teabags. I have begun to use it sporadically again- a couple days before my period begins when I have nausea. It takes the discomfort away pretty quickly which is great. I also drink some the first day of my period as it diminishes any cramps I may get.

I am planning to buy the capsules and start taking them everyday instead of just a few days a month. I am not going to get my hopes up but it would be nice to have even less symptoms than I have now (Claritin hasn’t been a complete cure)!

I will also keep the tea around to help with sore throats, coughs and possible immune system benefits.

These leaves could help you!

So, I typed all of this to say that this may be an option for people if they are struggling with their menstrual cycles and have not yet tried these leaves. It sure has helped me a lot and I am glad I found out about it.

Have any of you tried red raspberry leaves? If so, did they help you at all?

Thanks for reading!

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Medical disclaimer: I am not a medical professional and I am not telling you what to do in regards to your health. Consult your doctor for an evaluation before taking any herb or supplement.

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