---
title: Is cortisol dysregulation a cause of PMS or PMDD? | Niyora
description: No. Overall, very little evidence showed that women with and without PMS/PMDD have systematic differences in cortisol levels or how they respond to stress. Re
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/a-lack-of-consistent-evidence-for-cortisol-dysregulation-in-premenstrual-2016/
---

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- Is cortisol dysregulation a cause of PMS or PMDD?

Case-control study, 2016

# Is cortisol dysregulation a cause of PMS or PMDD?

No. Overall, very little evidence showed that women with and without PMS/PMDD have systematic differences in cortisol levels or how they respond to stress. Researchers recommend more rigorous studies before drawing final conclusions.

 Strong study design

Women with and without PMS/PMDD from 38 research studies

## What they did

A systematic review examined 38 original research articles testing whether cortisol is linked to PMS/PMDD. The researchers looked at three types of studies: correlational studies, environmental-challenge studies, and pharmacological-challenge studies.

## What they found

Overall, there was very little evidence that women with and without PMS/PMDD show systematic differences in cortisol levels or cortisol response to challenges. Differences in study methods (sample size, types of symptoms used for diagnosis, or type of cortisol measure) did not explain why some studies found effects and others did not.

## What it means for you

Cortisol dysregulation is unlikely to be the cause of PMS/PMDD. However, the researchers caution against fully accepting these null findings and recommend more rigorous research with specific symptom assessment and multiple cortisol measurements before drawing final conclusions.

38

studies reviewed

## About the study

Original title A lack of consistent evidence for cortisol dysregulation in premenstrual syndrome/premenstrual dysphoric disorder Authors Kiesner J, Granger DA Journal Psychoneuroendocrinology Year 2016 Study design Case-control study Participants 38 What was tested None - systematic review Read the paper [doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2015.12.009](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2015.12.009)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pmdd/)[Low mood and depression](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-depression-mood/)[Stress](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-stress/)

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