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I've incorporated 30mg of zinc and have been taking it for about 2 weeks now. My cycle started yesterday and my cramps are HORRIBLE. Having bad cramps for the first couple of days is the norm for me, but this is BAD. Like, ibuprofen is barely helping and I am often hunching over type of bad. I thought zinc is usually supposed to have a positive influence on the menstrual cycle, not worsen it.
Could this just be a fluke?
I have no symptoms of a severe deficiency. Plus I'm a pescetarian as well as take a multivitamin with 5mg of zinc in it, so I probably don't.
I started taking a zinc supplement for 2 reasons - my acne and my cycle. But it totally threw off my cycle this month from how it normally is, and since I am on the regimen I stopped taking it since it's not really doing me any favors.
Unless you know that you have a deficiency in zinc you should only be taking the RDA otherwise it can cause other problems. Recommended amount is 8mg.
The RDA has nothing to do with health. Don't rely on that value to determine minimum requirements. Most americans are deficient in both zinc and magnesium.
Optimal zinc level is 120 ug/dl. <85 is deficient. Deficiency can result in excess conversion of testosterone to estradiol. This could certainly exacerbate a cycle if supplementing still leaves results in deficiency. No way to say without levels.
I just started taking zinc, too and my cycle is late as well. I'm a bit worried now 'cause my normal cramps are terrible, so I'm hoping zinc wont make it worse. However, every month for the last year or so I've drank red raspberry leaf tea around my cycle time and it helps incredibly with cramps and menstrual breakouts. I recommend you try it and see if it helps.
Good luck!
