--- title: Do dietary changes or sun exposure reduce PMS symptoms in adolescent girls? description: Yes. Both dietary intervention and sun exposure significantly reduced PMS symptoms compared to health education alone. Sun exposure was slightly more effectiv url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/dietary-intervention-sun-exposure-and-health-education-on-premenstrual-syndrome-2026/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Do dietary changes or sun exposure reduce PMS symptoms in adolescent girls? Non-randomised trial, 2026 # Do dietary changes or sun exposure reduce PMS symptoms in adolescent girls? Yes. Both dietary intervention and sun exposure significantly reduced PMS symptoms compared to health education alone. Sun exposure was slightly more effective, with 52.3% of girls showing clinical improvement compared to 46.5% in the diet group. Moderate study design 130 girls aged 16-18 years with PMS in Palangka Raya, Indonesia ## What they did Quasi-experimental study of 130 girls aged 16-18 years with PMS in Indonesia. Three groups: dietary intervention with supervised lunch boxes (600-700 kcal per day), sun exposure (30 minutes, 3 times a week), or health education only. All interventions lasted 8 weeks, conducted October 2024 to April 2025. ## What they found Clinical success rates were 52.3% for sun exposure, 46.5% for diet, and 11.6% for education only (p<0.001). Median PMS scores decreased by 23.0 points (sun), 20.0 points (diet), and 11.0 points (education). Serum vitamin D increased by 1.8 ng/mL in both active groups but declined by 2.1 ng/mL in controls (p<0.001). Strong negative correlation between vitamin D change and PMS reduction (rs=-0.746, p<0.001). ## What it means for you Both interventions worked much better than education alone, apparently by raising vitamin D levels. Sun exposure was slightly more effective and is cheap and practical for school programs. Study was quasi-experimental (not randomized) and conducted in Indonesia with adolescents, so results may differ in other populations. 130 girls with PMS studied 52.3% clinical success rate with sun exposure 1.8 ng/mL vitamin D increase in active groups ## About the study Original title Dietary intervention, sun exposure, and health education on premenstrual syndrome severity and serum 25(OH)D among adolescent girls in Palangka Raya, Indonesia Authors Cia Aprilianti, Antono Suryoputro, Martha Irene Kartasurya et al. Journal Rawal Medical Journal Year 2026 Study design Non-randomised trial Participants 130 What was tested Dietary intervention (600-700 kcal supervised lunches) and sun exposure (30 minutes, 3 times per week), both for 8 weeks Read the paper [doi.org/10.5455/rmj.20260213091836](https://doi.org/10.5455/rmj.20260213091836) ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Psychotherapy, counselling and education](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-psychotherapy/)[Diet and nutrition](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-diet/)[Vitamin D](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-vitamin-d/)[Students and academic performance](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-education/)[Adolescents and young people](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-adolescents/) Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits. Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor. ## Related studies Non-randomised trial, 2026 Does a lifestyle education program reduce PMS symptoms? Survey study, 2026 Does low calcium intake relate to PMS in teenage girls? Survey study, 2026 How common is PMS in Yemen and what lifestyle factors affect it? Survey study, 2024 Can yoga and diet reduce premenstrual syndrome symptoms? Non-randomised trial, 2022 Is nutrition status linked to PMS, and does health education help? Survey study, 2022 Is body weight linked to PMS in teenage girls? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗