Lab study, 1991
Is resting heart rate different in women with PMS during their menstrual cycle?
Yes. Women with PMS had higher resting heart rates during the premenstrual phase compared to women without PMS. Heart rate also varied across the four cycle phases in women with PMS.
What they did
Followed 64 female university students for 3 months. They reported their symptoms daily. Then split them into two groups: those with PMS and those without. Measured their resting heart rate during four cycle phases: premenstrual, menstrual, postmenstrual, and ovulatory.
What they found
Women with PMS showed significantly higher resting heart rates in the premenstrual phase than women without PMS. Resting heart rate also varied significantly across the four cycle phases within the PMS group.
What it means for you
Women with PMS may have heightened nervous system activation during the premenstrual phase, shown by faster resting heart rate. This could reflect increased physical stress or arousal. Main limit: only university students, relatively small observational study.
64
Female university students studied
4
Menstrual cycle phases studied
About the study
- Original title
- Resting heart rate (HR) in women with and without premenstrual symptoms (PMS)
- Authors
- Palmero F, Choliz M
- Journal
- Journal of behavioral medicine
- Year
- 1991
- Study design
- Lab study
- Participants
- 64
- What was tested
- No intervention - observational comparison of resting heart rates
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1007/bf00846175
Topics
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