Scanty menstruation (also known as Hypomenorrhea) is a medical condition in which a woman’s menstrual flow is very scanty. It is the opposite of the more common menstrual disorder – Menorrhagia (i.e. Excessive Menstrual Discharge). In some cases, hypomenorrhea is absolutely normal. It occurs at the extremes of a woman’s reproductive life, i.e. just after puberty and just before menopause. This is because the irregular ovulation that a woman experiences at these stages of her reproductive life causes the lining of the uterus NOT to develop properly. In more abnormal cases, hypomenorrhea may be a sign that something has gone awry.
Here are some of the reasons why you may be experiencing scanty menstruation.
(1) Heredity – Some women with hypomenorrhea actually inherited it from other female members of their family. If an investigation were to be carried out, it would very likely be discovered that other female members of her family like mother, aunties and sister(s) also have a history of hypomenorrhea.
(2) Pregnancy – A lot of women have been told that as long as they see their period, there’s no way they’re pregnant. Although this is true in most cases, there are still a lot of women who are completely clueless until after a few months into Pregnancy. Some pregnant women still do experience vaginal bleeding due to implantation. However, this is not the same as menstruation. Bleeding can also be a sign of something gone wrong, such as an infection, placental problems, miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy. In such cases, a pregnancy test is needful (See our article on How to have a Healthy Pregnancy to learn more about this).
(3) PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) – If a woman has PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome), her ovaries will not produce the necessary hormones needed to keep the menstrual cycle regular. As mentioned earlier, irregular ovulation causes the uterine lining NOT to develop properly. Consequently, a woman with irregular menstruation/ovulation is highly unlikely to get pregnant.
(4) Uterine Causes – Some women may have to go through a dilation and curettage procedure (also called a D&C) due to miscarriage or other medical conditions. Most D&C procedures actually go without complications. However, in some cases, the wall of the woman’s womb sticks together and forms scar tissues during the healing process. This makes the surfaces of the endometrium smaller – leading to a condition known as Asherman’s syndrome which is characterized by less blood flow during a woman’s period.
(5) Hormonal Imbalance – Hormonal problems such as – low thyroid hormone level, hyperprolactinemia (abnormal lactation), high insulin level, high androgen level etc can also cause scanty periods. One of the mostly recommended solutions for the treatment of hypomenorrhea caused by Hormonal Imbalance and PCOS is EVERGREEN FORMULAR FOR WOMEN. This is a high quality and proven fertility supplement that can increase a woman’s chances of conceiving despite the above mentioned conditions.
Other causes of hypomenorrhea include – Excessive physical or emotional stress, Birth control pills, Crash dieting, etc. (see our article on PCOS Diet) for foods you should avoid while trying to conceive.
