Seed Cycling 101: Benefits for Your Menstrual Cycle, Hormone Health, and Fertility

Seed cycling is more popular than ever right now. And the health benefits from this wellness trend spread far and wide to include: regulating your menstrual cycle, balancing hormones, reducing symptoms of PCOS, easing cramps and PMS, and improving fertility.

While seed cycling isn’t new, the practice is gaining popularity because of just how simple, accessible, and easy it is. To start seed cycling, you’ll simply eat specific types of seeds at different phases of your menstrual cycle to support the main hormones of each phase. This simple rotation of flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, and sesame seeds is such an easy way to support your hormonal health and feed your fertility.

Here’s how you can sprinkle seed cycling into your daily wellness routine.

What is seed cycling?

Seed cycling is the safe and simple practice of consuming different types of seeds to support your hormone health throughout the month. By providing your body with specific nutrients at very specific times, seed cycling supports your natural hormonal fluctuations and helps to alleviate signs of hormonal imbalance like heavy periods, mood swings, acne, breast tenderness, and even hair loss.

Seed cycling simplifies the 4 phases of your menstrual cycle by breaking your monthly cycle down into 2 main phases—the follicular phase and the luteal phase. During the follicular phase of your cycle, flax seeds and pumpkin seeds are ingested to boost testosterone production while supporting your body’s estrogen needs. Then sesame seeds and sunflower seeds are consumed in the luteal phase to support progesterone levels.

How to get started with seed cycling.

To begin seed cycling, it’s easiest to start on the first day of your period and then follow the 28 day pattern where you consume flax and pumpkin seeds from days 1-14 and sesame and sunflower seeds on days 15-28 of your cycle.

On days 1-14 of your cycle, your follicular phase, have 1 tablespoon each of flax seeds and pumpkin seeds. Then on days 15-28, your luteal phase, have 1 tablespoon each of sesame seeds and sunflower seeds. Once you get to the 28th day, begin at day 1 again and repeat the cycle.

Make sure you’re using raw seeds and opt for organic when possible. Skip the toasted or roasted options because cooked seeds won’t have the same impact. And make sure to use ground flax seeds instead of whole.

Some people have a hard time digesting seeds (due to conditions like IBS and diverticulitis)  and prefer to grind them so all the nutrients can be absorbed. Grinding is optional for the pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower seeds, but flax seeds always need to be ground before eating. 

Don’t skip this part, or else they’ll be evacuated from your body fully intact and undigested, which defeats the purpose of eating them. 

You can grind your flax seeds yourself or purchase them pre-ground, but keep in mind that flax seeds that are already ground will go rancid much quicker than whole seeds. Because of this, it’s best to grind only a few days’ worth of seeds at a time or keep your ground flax meal in the refrigerator or freezer to maintain its freshness.

Enjoy your seeds plain or blended up in a smoothie, sprinkled on top of yogurt, or topped over a salad. Whatever is the most convenient and delicious way for you will work!

How to begin seed cycling with an irregular period.

If your menstrual cycle is shorter than 28 days, lasts longer than 28 days, or is irregular with skipped periods, a missing period, breakthrough bleeding, or spotting—seed cycling can help get your menstrual cycle body back into a healthy rhythm.

When your period isn’t a reliable way to kick off your seed cycling journey, there’s an alternative that everyone has access to—the Moon! Yes, really. The lunar phases can be used as a substitute until you’re able to sync back up with your period.

To do this, use the New Moon as day one of your follicular phase and the Full Moon as the start of your luteal phase. You can find out when the next New Moon is happening with a simple Google search. There’s even an option for your Google calendar to display the phases of the Moon just like how it does with federal holidays. This takes less than a minute to switch on and will make this entire process so much easier.

Once you know when the New Moon and Full Moon will be happening based on where you live, this is what you’ll do . . .

Instead of starting your flax and pumpkin seeds on day one of your period, you’ll start them on the New Moon. Take 1 tablespoon of each of both seeds every day until the Full Moon occurs, about 14-15 days later. Then on the Full Moon, you’ll take your sesame and sunflower seeds—1 tablespoon of each daily. Do this until the next New Moon and repeat the process.

If this idea that your menstrual cycle is somehow connected with the Moon seems odd to you, you’re not alone in thinking that. There are several synchronicities between the two, but the basics are this . . .

The average length of the menstrual cycle is approximately 28 days, which is similar to the moon's lunar cycle of about 29.5 days. Much like a woman’s follicular phase, there’s an increase in energy when the Moon is waxing between the New Moon and Full Moon. And like the luteal phase, there’s a decrease in energy when the Moon is waning from the Full Moon until the next New Moon.

If this approach feels good to you, go for it. If it feels just a little too wacky, that’s okay too. You will still benefit from choosing a random day to start seed cycling. Just choose a day to begin, take your ground flax and pumpkin seeds for 14 days, and then take sesame and sunflower seeds for the next 14 days. When your 28-day “cycle” is up, repeat the process.

How does seed cycling help to regulate hormones?

A majority of what’s known about seed cycling comes from individual experiences. There aren’t any clinical studies to support the benefits of seed cycling, but there is a ton of scientific evidence supporting the benefits of seeds to help regulate your hormones. 

For example, studies show that:

Seeds are high in Zinc, which helps to regulate progesterone levels by increasing the production of Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH), which in turn leads to ovulation and results in the production of progesterone.

Zinc also helps to improve the formation of the corpus luteum, which is a temporary gland structure that forms in the ovary and secretes hormones. It’s produced from a follicle that has matured and released an egg during ovulation. After the egg is released, the follicle transforms into the corpus luteum, whose primary function is to produce progesterone, which is necessary for the development of the uterine lining and the maintenance of early pregnancy. If pregnancy doesn’t occur that month, the corpus luteum will dissolve, leading to the start of a new menstrual cycle.

Seeds are rich in selenium, a trace mineral that plays a crucial role in liver detoxification. Selenium acts as a powerful antioxidant, protecting the body from the damage caused by free radicals and oxidative stress. Selenium is also great at reducing inflammation, which is a crucial step if you’re trying to get pregnant.

Seeds are high in vitamin E and omega-3 fatty acids which have been studied to improve reproductive outcomes when combined due to the positive impact on hormone production and ovarian follicular function. Studies also suggest that high intakes of omega-3 can help to improve oocyte quality.

Seeds are a source of lignans, a type of phytochemical which are converted into enterolignans in the presence of a healthy gut flora. They then bind to estrogen receptors and can help reduce excess estrogen and balance hormone levels.

Seed cycling is broken down into an estrogen phase and a progesterone phase:

Days 1-14 are the estrogen phase. For the first half of your menstrual cycle, eat 1  tablespoon each of ground flaxseed and pumpkin seeds daily. Flax and pumpkin seeds help improve estrogen levels and can even remove excess estrogen that is trapped in the body. This can help relieve your estrogen-related health concerns like weight gain, tender breasts, irregular periods, mood swings, and headaches. If you experience missing periods or other menstrual irregularities, the seeds you take in this follicular phase may reduce the number of anovulatory cycles you have because your ratio of progesterone to estrogen will improve before entering the luteal phase.

Days 15-28 are the progesterone phase. For the second half of your menstrual cycle, eat 1 tablespoon each of sunflower and sesame seeds daily. Sesame and sunflower seeds help boost progesterone levels. They help to ease symptoms like heavy bleeding, cramps, blood clotting, insomnia, hot flashes, and bloating. And they’re especially beneficial to women with PCOS. The effect this phase has on your progesterone is directly related to your ability to get pregnant, as progesterone is vital for conception. If you’re looking to have a baby soon, seed cycling might be a perfect place for you to start. 

Seed cycling for fertility.

Seed cycling is such a great way to support your body when you’re coming off of birth control and want to start a family. This process gently nudges your hormones into the right place naturally without any side effects. 

How do you know if your hormones are out of whack? The best way to know exactly what’s happening in your body is to have the very specific functional fertility labs done that we offer at Magnolia Wellness. Then once you have a true snapshot of your hormone levels and a thorough explanation of any imbalances, you can get right to the root cause of anything that might get in the way of your fertility.

To learn more about ways you can overcome infertility and have the family you’ve been dreaming of, book a one-on-one virtual Fertility Consult here.