This week we saw a wide variety of questions come into our community. Women asked about progesterone levels testing, lines on fingernails and feeling tired after eating. Our moderators provided resources and answers to these health questions as well as many others. Do you have a health question you need an answer for? Post it to our community, and we promise to respond within 24 hours.
Here are some of our top ASKs in the EmpowHER community this week.
1. Why do I feel like falling asleep after I eat a meal?
Via Pexels
A: Eating certain foods, in large amounts will cause drowsiness/sleepiness. High carb, high fat, and highly processed foods are difficult for the body to digest. If you eat these foods in generally high quantities in one sitting, the body will automatically put its energy into digestion. This causes you to feel like taking a nap right away.
The key to eating without causing sleepiness is to eat less carbs, fats and processed foods, and eat more often but in very small portions. This is the easiest way for the body to burn food for energy, and won't make you drowsy.
Read the full answer here.2.I have a dark line on my fingernail- What could it be?
Via Pexels
A: It is wise to have this checked by a dermatologist.Causes range from a nutritional deficiency or imbalance to a form of skin cancer that affects the nail bed, called subungual melanoma. Generally, subungual melanoma only affects one nail.
Read the full answer here.3. I have PCOS: What's some information you can give me about treating it and getting pregnant?
Via Pexels
A: Pregnancy can be difficult when a woman has PCOS. Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a chronic endocrine disorder in women. Characteristics of PCOS are: high levels of male hormones (androgens), infertility, obesity, insulin resistance, hair growth on face and body and anovulation—when the ovaries make few or no eggs.
Ovaries make follicles that hold eggs. With PCOS, the ovaries make the follicles, but the eggs do not mature or leave the ovary. The immature follicles can turn into fluid-filled sacs called cysts . Most women with PCOS have cysts. But women with ovarian cysts do not necessarily have PCOS.
4. How can I tell if I have low progesterone levels?
Via Pexels
A: A serum progesterone test is ordered to check hormone levels. The serum progesterone test is commonly ordered when a woman has trouble getting pregnant. It can give doctors an indication of whether she is ovulating. This, in turn, can provide insight into fertility problems. Your doctor might also choose to perform this test if you are pregnant and he or she thinks you might be at risk of miscarriage or ectopic pregnancy. The serum progesterone test is sometimes performed if you have had miscarriages or a stillbirth in the past or if you have bleeding from your uterus.