Survey study, 1998
Does education level affect how severe premenstrual symptoms are in Mexican women?
Yes. Women in professional studies reported more severe symptoms than less educated women. Living in a city versus a rural area made much less difference.
What they did
Cross-sectional study of 89 rural Mexican women (no schooling to middle school) and 182 urban Mexican women (elementary school to professional studies). All women filled out a questionnaire about physical and emotional symptoms during both the premenstrual and postmenstrual phases of one menstrual cycle.
What they found
87% of women reported mild somatic symptoms and 86% reported mild psychological symptoms. Women in professional studies reported more severe symptoms than other groups. Urban women reported more severe psychological symptoms than rural women. When women in professional studies were excluded from the analysis, there were no differences between rural and urban women.
What it means for you
Education level, especially being in professional studies, affects premenstrual symptoms more than location. The study only measured symptoms during one menstrual cycle per woman, so results may not reflect typical patterns.
89
Rural women
182
Urban women
87%
Mild somatic symptoms
About the study
- Original title
- Premenstrual symptoms in Mexican women with different educational levels
- Authors
- Marván ML, Díaz-Erosa M, Montesinos A
- Journal
- The Journal of psychology
- Year
- 1998
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 182
- What was tested
- None
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1080/00223989809599284
Topics
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