---
title: Does the menstrual cycle affect the risk of suicide and psychiatric hospital admission?
description: Yes. During menstruation, the risk of suicide death is 26% higher, suicide attempts 17% higher, and psychiatric hospital admission 20% higher compared to othe
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/menstrual-cycle-effects-on-mental-health-outcomes-a-meta-analysis-2019/
---

- [Niyora](https://niyora.com/)
- [Research](https://niyora.com/research/)
- [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/)
- Does the menstrual cycle affect the risk of suicide and psychiatric hospital admission?

Systematic review, 2019

# Does the menstrual cycle affect the risk of suicide and psychiatric hospital admission?

Yes. During menstruation, the risk of suicide death is 26% higher, suicide attempts 17% higher, and psychiatric hospital admission 20% higher compared to other times of the cycle. During the premenstrual phase, psychiatric admission risk is 13% higher.

 Moderate study design

Combined data from 32 published studies with 3,791 women total (specific countries and demographics vary across studies)

## What they did

Meta-analysis combining data from 32 published papers covering 3,791 women total. They examined whether suicide deaths, suicide attempts, suicidal thoughts, and psychiatric hospital admissions occurred more often at different stages of the menstrual cycle.

## What they found

During menstruation, there was 26% greater risk of suicide death, 17% greater risk of suicide attempts, and 20% greater risk of psychiatric hospital admission. During the premenstrual phase, there was 13% greater risk of psychiatric admission. Suicidal thoughts were not linked to cycle stage. These patterns were consistent across the 32 studies reviewed.

## What it means for you

Menstruation and the premenstrual phase are times when serious mental health crises are significantly more likely. This suggests hormonal changes during your cycle may have major effects on mental health. Limitations include variable study quality and studies that did not control for other factors that might explain the link.

3791

women in meta-analysis

26%

higher suicide risk at menstruation

20%

higher psychiatric admission risk at menstruation

## About the study

Original title Menstrual Cycle Effects on Mental Health Outcomes: A Meta-Analysis Authors Jang D, Elfenbein HA Journal Archives of suicide research : official journal of the International Academy for Suicide Research Year 2019 Study design Systematic review What was tested None - observational study Read the paper [doi.org/10.1080/13811118.2018.1430638](https://doi.org/10.1080/13811118.2018.1430638)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pmdd/)[Suicidality](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-suicidality/)

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

Interview study, 2025

How common is suicidal thinking in women with PMDD?

Cohort study, 2021

Do women with premenstrual disorders have a higher risk of injury?

Systematic review, 2021

Are women with PMS or PMDD more likely to think about or attempt suicide?

Systematic review, 2021

Does PMDD increase the risk of suicidality?

Survey study, 2026

Are PMS and PMDD linked to suicidal thoughts and violence toward family?

Cohort study, 2026

Does suicidal thinking and self-harm follow the menstrual cycle in PMDD?

Ask AI about this page

Copy prompt

ChatGPT

↗

Claude

↗

Perplexity

↗

Google AI Mode

↗

Grok

↗