How many days is normal for menstruation?

Women call menstruation "period", which comes every month and the normal cycle is 28 days. But sometimes it is not so punctual, and many women want to ask how many days of menstruation are normal? Today we have invited authoritative experts in gynecology. If you want to know these common sense, it is recommended that you continue reading with them. I hope the following content will be helpful to everyone.

Most common: menstrual cycle 21 to 35 days

"I only have my period once every two months. My boyfriend said that it must be abnormal. What medicine can help me adjust my menstrual cycle to normal?" Xiaolin, with a distressed look on her face, turned to the gynecologist for help. But the doctor ruthlessly discouraged her from doing so. "Your menstruation is basically maintained every two months, and you don't have any related diseases. This is normal and does not require treatment. It is not recommended to take medicine to regulate menstruation."

It turns out that the phenomenon of "menstruation" once every two months, once every three months, or even once every six months or a year not only exists, but also this seemingly "abnormal" menstrual cycle may not be abnormal! Professor Deng Gaopi, director of the Department of Gynecology at the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, said that Western medicine calls "menstruation" vaginal bleeding caused by the shedding of the endometrium, while traditional Chinese medicine calls "menstruation" vaginal bleeding that occurs on schedule every month and repeats over and over again. "But this can only describe the situation of most people. Some people have different cycles."

Deng Gaopi told reporters that the most common menstrual cycle is 28 days, and ±7 days before and after is considered within the normal range, which means that 21 to 35 days is the most common normal menstrual cycle. "Moreover, the calculation method of the menstrual cycle should not be based on the natural month, but from the first day of this menstruation to the first day of the next menstruation." Deng Gaopi said, according to this calculation, some people have a period at the beginning of a natural month and a period at the end of the month. As long as the interval between the two periods is 21 to 35 days, it is normal.

In addition to menstruation, there are also combined menstruation and quarterly menstruation.

Don’t compare your menstrual cycle with others, but compare it with yourself. "The length of menstrual cycles varies, and the key to judging whether it is normal is to see whether a long-term pattern has been formed. If it has been like this for one or two years, the estrogen level in the body is normal, ovulation is normal, and there are no other discomforts, then it is normal." Deng Gaopi pointed out that in addition to menstruation that occurs every 21 to 35 days and menstruation during menstrual amenorrhea, pregnancy, menopause, and early puberty, there is also a special type of normal menstruation, which occurs every 40 to 50 days, or once every two months, or once every three months, or even once a year. As long as a pattern is formed and there is no physical discomfort, it is normal.

"In traditional Chinese medicine, menstruation that occurs every two months is called 'bingyue', menstruation that occurs every three months is called 'jijing', and menstruation that occurs once a year is called 'binnian'. Menstruation that occurs every 40 to 50 days is not given a special name by traditional Chinese medicine, but it is very common for women to have this menstrual pattern." Deng Gaopi said that there is another special condition called "dark menstruation" that has not been seen in the outpatient clinic but has been introduced in traditional medical books. People with dark menstruation will never have menstruation throughout their lives, but they will have ovulation and reproductive functions, and they are also normal people.

Why do women have such different menstrual cycles? Deng Gaopi explained that Western medicine believes that this is related to the length of time it takes for the follicles to develop. People whose follicles develop for a long time have longer menstrual cycles. A menstrual cycle is divided into the menstrual phase, follicular phase, ovulation phase and luteal phase. At the same time, the endometrium goes through a process of cyclical thickening and congestion, from stripping and bleeding to gradual thickening and congestion. However, this process takes longer for some people and less time for others, resulting in some people having a longer menstrual cycle and some people having a shorter one.

Normal cycle should not be adjusted randomly

Xiao Xiao planned to have a child, but after trying for a year there was no result. She wondered if her chances of pregnancy were reduced because she had her period only every 40 to 50 days, so she hoped to have her period come once a month through menstrual regulation treatment.

Experts told reporters that the length of the menstrual cycle has no direct impact or harm to human health, so as long as it is normal, no special treatment is needed. Some people think that their menstrual cycle is abnormal or request treatment in order to shorten their menstrual cycle. The doctor will usually first ask whether the menstrual cycle is regular. If the irregularity has lasted for two or three months, treatment should be given. If it is regular, and combined with routine gynecological and B-ultrasound examinations to exclude other diseases, no treatment is needed. However, some women may undergo artificial cycle treatment under the guidance of a professional doctor in order to increase the chance of conception and achieve pregnancy, but this is generally not recommended because it will disrupt the normal pattern of the reproductive axis.

"Whether menstruation is normal or not also depends on other factors such as menstrual period, menstrual color, etc." Deng Gaopi said that no matter what the cycle is, a normal menstrual period should be 3 to 7 days. A period of less than 3 days indicates that the corpus luteum function is low and the endometrium is shed quickly. Experts point out that in addition to the requirements of cycle and menstruation, normal menstrual bleeding is 30~50 ml, and the menstrual blood should be dark red, neither thin nor thick, not coagulated, without blood clots, and without special odor. In addition, the absence of large mood swings and other obvious discomfort before and after menstruation are also criteria for measuring whether menstruation is normal or not. If you do not meet the above conditions, you can seek medical treatment. "Don't be too nervous if you have irregular menstruation once in a while, but if it happens for more than two cycles, you should consider seeking medical attention."

To sum up, we know the answer to the question of how many days of menstruation are normal. The normal menstrual cycle for women is 21 to 35 days, which means that it is normal to have menstruation at such an interval, so there is no need to worry too much. If you find that your period comes several days early or late, you should pay more attention to it and it is best to go to the hospital.