Randomised trial, 2019
Do diets with whole grains reduce PMS symptoms in nurses?
Yes. Nurses who ate whole grains instead of refined grains showed clear reductions in general, mood, physical, and behavioural PMS symptoms compared to those who continued their regular diet.
What they did
Parallel controlled clinical trial over 3 months. 100 nurses with PMS were randomly divided into an intervention group of 50 and a control group of 50. The intervention group replaced at least four daily servings of refined grains with whole grains, given as 120 g of whole flour bread daily. The control group continued eating grains as usual.
What they found
The intervention group showed significant decreases in general, mood, physical, and behavioural PMS symptoms compared to the control group. No specific percentages were given, but differences were clear between the groups.
What it means for you
Eating whole grains instead of refined grains can reduce PMS symptoms across multiple categories. The main limits are that the study only included nurses (which may not represent all women) and only 50 women were in each group.
100
nurses with PMS
120
grams whole flour bread daily
50
women in each group
About the study
- Original title
- Diets enriched with whole grains reduce premenstrual syndrome scores in nurses: an open-label parallel randomised controlled trial
- Authors
- Esmaeilpour M, Ghasemian S, Alizadeh M
- Journal
- The British journal of nutrition
- Year
- 2019
- Study design
- Randomised trial
- Participants
- 100
- What was tested
- Daily consumption of whole grains, replacing refined grains (120 g whole flour bread daily)
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1017/s0007114519000333
Topics
Related studies
Systematic review, 2025
Do nutritional interventions help with emotional symptoms of PMS?
Systematic review, 2025
How common are PMS, PMDD, and painful periods in nursing students, and do they affect their schooling?
Case-control study, 2014
How common is severe period pain and what causes it?
Survey study, 2026
How do pain, sleep quality, and appetite change across the menstrual cycle?
Case-control study, 2026
Does vitamin D help PMS symptoms?
Systematic review, 2025
Do diet changes or supplements help PMS symptoms?