Key Takeaways

Cycle disorders such as a very short or very long average cycle can have various causes.
Being overweight, exercising, or having an underactive thyroid – the list of possible causes is long.
In this article you will learn how to prevent cycle disorders.

Cycle fluctuations are normal to a certain extent. Although the assumption that a “normal” cycle is 28 days may stubbornly persist, very few women have cycles that are always the same and with a “normal length”. It is important to know that cycle fluctuations occur almost always in the first half of the cycle, so before ovulation. The second half of the cycle has an almost fixed duration.

When is a cycle irregular?

When physicians talk of a cycle fluctuation, they mean when the cycle is shorter than 23 days or longer than 35 days. If your cycle fluctuates by more than eight days on a regular basis, a visit to your doctor is advisable. If the fluctuations occur within these limits, it is completely normal. The length of...

References & Literature

Mihm, M., Gangooly, S., & Muttukrishna, S. (2011). The normal menstrual cycle in women. Animal reproduction science, 124(3-4), 229-236.
Reed BG, Carr BR. The Normal Menstrual Cycle and the Control of Ovulation. In: Feingold KR, Anawalt B, Boyce A, Chrousos G, de Herder WW, Dhatariya K, et al., editors. Endotext. South Dartmouth (MA): MDText.com, Inc. Copyright © 2000-2022, MDText.com, Inc.; 2000.
Kalantaridou, S. N. et al. (2004). Stress and the female reproductive system. Journal of Reproductive Immunology, 62(1), 61–68.