Survey study, 2021
Do diet, exercise, and stress affect menstrual cycle problems?
Yes. Women with poor diet, lack of exercise, and high stress had more menstrual problems. But this study is observational so we cannot prove these factors cause the problems.
What they did
Cross-sectional survey of 300 women aged 18-26 using questionnaires about diet, physical activity, and stress.
What they found
Altered diet (67% of 300 women) linked to heavy menstrual bleeding (73% with altered diet, P<0.0001) and irregular periods (63% with altered diet, P<0.0001). Limited physical activity (61% of 300) linked to period pain (94% with limited activity, P<0.0001) and heavy bleeding (78% with limited activity). High stress levels (81% of 300) linked to irregular periods (71%) and premenstrual symptoms (93%).
What it means for you
Poor diet, lack of exercise, and high stress may be linked to menstrual problems. But this is observational so we cannot prove these factors cause the problems. The study was a cross-sectional snapshot.
67%
Had altered diet
61%
Had limited physical activity
81%
Had high stress
About the study
- Original title
- Effect of Diet, Physical Activity, and Psychosocial Factors, on Menstrual Cycle Abnormalities in College Students of Karad, Maharashtra, India
- Authors
- Divya Sachin Gupta, Neha Anandrao Jadhav, Suraj Bhimarao Kanase
- Journal
- Journal of Evolution of Medical and Dental Sciences
- Year
- 2021
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 300
- What was tested
- None
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.14260/jemds/2021/224
Topics
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