Randomised trial, 2004
Does PMDD change how women respond to alcohol during their menstrual cycle?
Yes, women with PMDD show reduced sensitivity to alcohol in the late luteal phase of their cycle, while women without PMDD do not show this change.
What they did
12 women with PMDD and 12 women without PMDD received a low dose of alcohol through an intravenous infusion on two separate days: once during the mid-follicular phase and once during the late luteal phase. Researchers measured eye movement responses to the alcohol and asked women to rate how intoxicated they felt.
What they found
Women with PMDD showed significantly blunted eye movement responses to alcohol in the late luteal phase compared to the follicular phase (p<0.01 for both measures). Women without PMDD showed no difference in their eye movement responses between cycle phases.
What it means for you
Women with PMDD may process or respond to alcohol differently in the late luteal phase. This could explain higher alcohol vulnerability during this time. However, this is a very small laboratory study using eye movement as a measure of intoxication.
12
women with PMDD
12
women without PMDD
p<0.01
significance of eye movement differences
About the study
- Original title
- Altered sensitivity to alcohol in the late luteal phase among patients with premenstrual dysphoric disorder
- Authors
- Nyberg S, Wahlström G, Bäckström T et al.
- Journal
- Psychoneuroendocrinology
- Year
- 2004
- Study design
- Randomised trial
- Participants
- 12
- What was tested
- Low-dose IV alcohol, tested in mid-follicular and late luteal menstrual cycle phases
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/s0306-4530(03)00121-5
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