Brigid TitgemeierBeingBrigid Functional Nutrition · Transforming Women's Health Using Food as Medicine

Why Your Cravings Spike Before Your Period with Dr. Sarah Hill

25 Jun 2026 · 1 min

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In this segment, Dr. Sarah Hill explains that binge‑eating disorder and food cravings intensify during the luteal (second half) phase of the menstrual cycle. She attributes the worsening of symptoms to a widespread cultural belief that women cannot trust their bodies, which leads many to ignore natural, cyclical physiological signals. Hill argues that recognizing the body’s cyclical needs and intentionally providing appropriate nutrition and self‑care during this phase can reduce cravings, lessen disordered‑eating behaviors, and improve overall well‑being.

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Binge eating disorder gets markedly worse in the second half of the menstrual cycle. And of course, people's food cravings go up during this time. And I have little doubt that this has to do with the fact that most people have no idea that this is going on. They're ignoring it because women have been taught since the beginning of time that they can't trust their bodies and that their bodies are, you know, pathological, and that their body is like what's keeping them between their healthy living goals because their body is rebelling. And it's like, no, like, there's a lot of wisdom in what our bodies are telling us. It's just that we've only been taught this like one-size-fits-all belief about what it means to be human. And if we understand that we're cyclical and that the needs of our body are cyclical, that we can actually give our bodies what they need and then they stop misbehaving. You know, we can feel a whole lot better if we just actually listen to what our bodies are telling us and then give it what it needs in the first place.