Shift work can be brutal, but it doesn't have to be. Welcome to a healthy shift. My name is Roger Sutherland, certified nutritionist, veteran law enforcement officer, and 24-7 shift worker for almost four decades. Through this podcast, I aim to educate shift workers using evidence-based methods to not only survive the rigors of shift work, but thrive. My goal is to empower shift workers to improve their health and well-being so they have more energy to do the things they love. Enjoy today's show. And welcome back to a healthy shift podcast. You know who I am. I'm Roger Sutherland. I'm your host, and I coach to help shift workers just like you to navigate the challenges of health, well-being, performance while working all hours of the day and night. Now, today's episode is one especially for the women out there who work shifts because we're talking about something that can actually make your roster feel twice as hard. PMS. Premenstrual syndrome. Now, I'm a male. No secret there. Well, I hope so. I hope I sound like a male because I certainly try to be a male. I will never know what you go through, ladies. I will never fully understand it. And I want to make that quite clear. I don't stand here talking to you, professing to know that I know what it's like, because I actually don't. And I accept that totally. But I'm a man here trying to understand as much as I possibly can. And I read the research and what the research tells us so I can help you as best as I possibly can. So if you try any of these things that I help, I push out in relation to female health, because I am absolutely obsessed with helping female shift workers with their shift working lives to make it easier because shift work is so much harder for females. It is. The evidence supports this. Dealing with an Inphradian rhythm as well as a circadian rhythm, they both count on each other being in sync. And when the circadian rhythm's out of sync, it throws the Inphradian rhythm out, which throws everything out as well. It means it's a hormonal roller coaster. Now, I don't know what that's like, and I never will, but I do try and understand and I try and help and support by understanding what the mechanisms are, and then you can try them. But you know what I would love, and I'd love more than anything else. And that is, if you do try any of these strategies and you find they help or they work for you, would you let me know? Because I really do count on that feedback so that I can learn. I can say that Jenny tried this and it worked really well for her. It was simple and it worked. Because this is important for me as someone doing what I'm actually doing out there. All right. So let's talk about this. Because if you already struggle with sleep and fatigue and you've got those mood swings from shift work, throwing PMS in, I can only imagine must be brutal. Not to mention gas, bloating, digestive issues. And in that luteo phase of the of your menstrual menstrual cycle, the last week before the menstruation bleed, or the last two weeks before that, generally the last week is the worst. Wanting to work, having to work shift work while you're wanting to stick an ice pick in someone's temple has got to be really difficult. So let's try and work through how we can reduce the impacts of PMS and try and restabilize these hormones a little bit better. Teach you and educate you how this makes such a big difference, or could make a big difference, as to where you're actually going wrong now, to see if it will help you down the track. What if I told you that some of what you eat could actually be making those PMS system symptoms worse? Or some of the things you eat can make it better. Because there's a new study in 2025 which found something that is pretty significant, and it's something that every female shift worker needs to know. And what I will do is I'll link to the study in the show notes for you so that you can go and have a read and have a look yourself because it's pretty important. So let's start with what the study actually found. Well, the researchers looked at women aged between 18 and 35, and what they did was they tracked what they ate and compared it to the severity of their PMS symptoms. Now, obviously, this is self-reported because there's no way to measure that. So it is self-reported. And here's one of the key findings that came out of the study. Women who ate just one serve, about 30 grams of nuts, seeds, or legumes a day had up to, wait for it, 41% lower risk of moderate to severe PMS symptoms. Now we're not going to say it's going to get rid of it, but what it will do is reduce it. How's that? 30 grams. When you get your scales out and you weigh 30 grams of nuts, mixed nuts, you will find it's a very small amount. You don't need to eat much to make a difference. And this is because of the contents of what nuts contain. Now that is huge. And we're not talking about anything extreme. We're just talking about one handful of nuts or seeds a day. Now, here's where it gets really interesting. Because when the researchers looked at the sugary foods, they found the exact opposite. Because for every extra serve of sugary snacks, the risk of PMS went up by 33%. So what we're looking at here is by reducing those sugary snacks, will reduce PMS symptoms by 33%. So if you took the sugary snacks out and you included a handful of nuts, that's a hell of a swing from 33% risk to a 41% lower risk. That's a 74% difference. It's massive. So when you think about those lollies, chocolates, those soft drinks that you might be grabbing on shift to get through the night, they're not actually helping you. And in fact, they're most likely making things worse. Not to mention the weight gain, but they're most likely making things worse. So let's unpack why this matters so much for our shift workers. When you're on night shift or rotating shifts, your hormones are already under pressure. Your circadian rhythm is disrupted. You're sleeping at odd hours. Now, cortisol, which is your stress hormone, is often elevated. And all of this impacts the delicate balance of your reproductive hormones. Okay, now let's add poor nutrition on top of that. Lots of processed food, sugar, not enough real nutrients. And it is dead set a perfect storm for PMS symptoms like cramps and mood swings, fatigue, bloating. Put your hand up. All of the above. And this tends to happen on night shift, everything's disrupted, and it really does just make sense when you have a look at it. You don't have to put up with it. You can actually make little changes along the way that will make a big difference to you. Because when you eat nutrient-dense foods like nuts, seeds, legumes, what you're doing is you're giving the body the building blocks that it needs to regulate those hormones more effectively. The reason? They're packed with magnesium, which is a relaxant which helps to reduce cramps and mood changes. We could all use more magnesium without supplementing it, a handful of nuts. Omega-3 fats, this actually helps to reduce inflammation. Inflammation, ladies, think about it. Protein and fiber. This helps to keep your blood sugar stable. And this is the key for our mood and energy. And the fats are also helping us with hormones product, with hormone production, particularly oestrogen and progesterone. Really important. And the best part, how easy are nuts and seeds. Honestly, you don't have to refrigerate them. You can keep them in a small container in your bag, in your kit bag, in your locker. You can even leave them in the console of the car. They're portable, they're non-perishable, and they're actually perfect for long nights. And 30 grams, a handful of nuts, can actually help you to get through the whole night. Believe it or not, it actually keeps you feeling quite full. I always have a handful of nuts with my sugar-free hot chocolate at four o'clock in the afternoon. And this gets me through to dinner time. It's a great snack to have, and the benefits are enormous. So let's have a look at some practical takeaways. What can you do with what I've just told you? Here's how to make a small but a very, very powerful shift in your own routine. Just start with 30 grams a day. Now that's about a small handful. Roughly 10 to 12 almonds or two tablespoons of mixed seeds. Mix it up. Rotate between almonds, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, chickpeas. Each has a slightly different nutrient profile. So the more you mix them up, the better you'll be. And swap the sweets. Next time you hit the vending machine or you bring snacks in for your shift, replace a chocolate bar or lollies with just a handful of nuts, just in a very small container. And if you've got a sweet tooth, go for roasted chickpeas with a bit of cinnamon. And if you've never tried it, get chickpoos and air fry them. Look on the Google, air fried chickpeas, and you can find that you'll get some fantastic recipes and you can use them as a snack. Gold. Absolute gold. Because that's going to hit your sweet spot and it's not going to spite your sugar, your blood sugar. And then prep your snacks like you prep your meals. It's easy to forget snacks when you're doing your meal prep, but they're often the difference between eating well and grabbing some sort of junk on the run. Again, I want to reiterate this. This is not about being perfect. It's just about making a little bit of a better choice each time and more often. Because over time, this will all add up and it becomes a habit. And if PMS does hit you hard each month, tracking how you feel when you start to make these swaps is a really good idea. And in fact, just tracking your cycle full stop makes a huge difference to you because it starts to correlate and sow a seed in your mind. See what I did there? Sorry, but it helps to sow you sow a seed in your mind. If you give it a couple of cycles, you might actually be surprised at how much of a difference this small change makes. Even if you are a person who does not suffer, adding a handful of nuts every day is enormously beneficial anyway. Males as well. Really big difference. Now, a quick word of warning, and I want to put a great big note of boldered it, and I want you to listen to this. Not all snacks labeled healthy are actually healthy. I want you to be really careful with honeycoated nuts, salted nuts, all of those sort of things. Because they often contain added sugar that completely defeats the purpose. Don't go for flavored nuts just because it's good and you think, oh, I'm eating nuts. That's like eating potato chips and saying, Oh, I'm eating potatoes. It defeats the purpose. And the portion size still really matters because energy nuts are really, really energy dense. And I mean really energy dense. So stick to around 30 grams a day. Don't take the container, take the 30 grams. 40 grams. What does it matter? We're saying 30 grams is the measure demand here, but you know, 30 grams or 40 grams of nuts is going to be better than slamming down a Marsbar or a Snickers. Honestly, it's going to be so much better for you. Also, you've got to avoid skipping meals and then trying to fix it with snacks. Your hormones and blood sugar thrive on consistency, especially during the locial phase of your cycle. And in particular, let's narrow that down again to the week before your period, when cravings and mood swings tend to peak. When we reach for the bucket of ice cream and the and the packet of Doritos and curl up on the couch that time. So think of snacks as support, not as a substitute for real meals. It's just to get you through. But having a handful of nuts has got so much benefit, it will make a huge difference to you. So let's have a challenge. Let's be real. When you're on a 12-hour night shift or you're running between patients, or you're sitting in a patrol car at 3 a.m., grabbing something convenient is often the only option. And you know where I'm going with this? This is why this study is so valuable because it gives you a simple, evidence-based swap that fits into real shift life. You don't have to overhaul your diet, you just need to make small changes that work on the go. So here's what I want you to do next. Go to any of my Instagram posts and just put the word snacks as a comment. Or go to my Instagram story and type the word snacks. S-N-A-C-K-S. Snacks. Because when you do that, I will send you a link to download my free non-perishable snack guide. Yes, you heard right. It is free. All you gotta do is go and type the word snacks. That's it. And I will send you my free non-perishable snack guide, which is packed with quick, shift-friendly snack ideas that will help you to stay fueled and balanced no matter what shift you're on. And every single one of them is non-perishable, which means you can keep it in your bag, you can keep it in your car, or you can keep it in your kit bag, your handbag, your locker, you can keep it anywhere forever because they are non-perishable. And if you are struggling with PMS or sleep, or you're just feeling like you can't get on top of your health while you're working shifts, that is my jam. This is exactly what I do. I help women inside my coaching program with all of this to cut through all the rubbish and actually help you with evidence-based strategies. I will help you around nutrition, what to eat and when, recovery and routines around your roster and your home life so that you can feel more energetic, more stable, and a lot more in control. My goal is to give shift workers more energy to enjoy their lives outside of shift work, not just spending all that time recovering so that they can get to the next shift. And if that sounds like you, what you need to do is book a free call through the link, which is down in the show notes, and let's chat about what's going on for you and how I can actually help you with it. Because I will. I've helped numerous others, and I will be able to help you as well. I am sure of that. All right, that's it for this episode of A Healthy Shift. If you found this one helpful, can you do me a favor? Male, female, whatever, please share it with a shift-working female who needs this. And if you could, I'd be ever so grateful if you would actually leave a really nice rating or review. You can leave a review on Apple Podcasts for me, and it would make such a big difference. And remember, small changes like swapping sugar for a handful of nuts can make such a massive big difference over time. I'm Roger Sutherland. Thank you so much for listening, and I will catch you on the next episode. Thank you for listening. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe so you get notified whenever a new episode is released. It would also be ever so helpful if you could leave a rating and review on the app you're currently listening on. If you want to know more about me or work with me, you can go to ahealthyshift.com. I'll catch you on the next one.