Skip to content

Survey study, 2024

Does nutrition and physical activity affect PMS symptoms?

Women with worse PMS symptoms eat fewer nutrients. More physical activity was linked with worse PMS symptoms, which is opposite to what researchers expected.

Early or limited evidence 404 women aged 18 to 45 attending a nutrition center

What they did

404 women aged 18 to 45 attending a nutrition center answered questionnaires about diet, physical activity, and PMS symptoms. They also kept records of everything they ate for 3 days.

What they found

As PMS symptoms got worse, women ate less protein, fat, various types of fat, omega-3, omega-6, vitamin E, all B vitamins, biotin, folate, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, and copper. As physical activity increased, PMS symptoms also increased.

What it means for you

Women with more severe PMS tend to eat fewer nutrients overall. The finding about physical activity is surprising. Better nutrition might help reduce PMS symptoms. This study measured women once, so we cannot be sure about cause and effect.

404

women surveyed

About the study

Original title
The Relationship Between Macro-Micro Nutrients and Physical Activity and Premenstrual Syndrome
Authors
Hatice Kübra Duman, Müge Arslan
Journal
Journal of General Health Sciences (JGEHES) Necmettin Erbakan University
Year
2024
Study design
Survey study
What was tested
None
Open access
Yes

Topics