Survey study, 2023
Is there a link between PMS symptoms and how the nervous system controls heart rate?
Possibly. Three women showed medium to high connections between their PMS symptoms and heart rate variability throughout the menstrual cycle, especially for mood symptoms.
What they did
Three participants completed daily measurements of heart rate variability using portable heart-rate devices and recorded their typical PMS symptoms throughout their menstrual cycle.
What they found
Medium to high correlations between PMS symptoms and heart rate variability in each participant. The link was stronger for psychological symptoms (mood) than for physiological symptoms (physical). Heart rate variability decreased during the mid to late luteal phase at the same time that PMS symptoms increased in each participant.
What it means for you
There may be a connection between how the vagus nerve affects the heart and PMS symptoms, particularly mood symptoms. However, this was a very small feasibility study with only 3 participants, so the findings cannot be applied to all women. Larger studies are needed.
3
participants
medium to high
correlations found
About the study
- Original title
- Associations between fluctuations in premenstrual symptoms and vagally mediated heart rate variability in daily assessments throughout the menstrual cycle: a feasibility study
- Authors
- Berenike Lisa Blaser, Mathias Weymar, Julia Wendt
- Year
- 2023
- Study design
- Survey study
- What was tested
- None
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.22541/au.170000985.55376250/v1
Topics
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