Prevention of painful periods (dysmenorrhea)

Prevention of painful periods (dysmenorrhea)

Basic preventive measures

Dietary recommendations to both prevent and relieve menstrual pain4,27

  • Reduce your consumption of sugars refined. The sugars cause an overproduction of insulin and the excess of insulin causes the production of pro-inflammatory prostaglandins;
  • Consume more oily fish (mackerel, salmon, herring, sardines), linseed oil and seeds, as well as hemp oil and seeds, which are important sources of omega-3s. According to a small epidemiological study, carried out in Denmark among 181 women aged 20 to 45 years, the women who suffered the least from dysmenorrhea were those who consumed the most omega-3 fatty acids of marine origin.5;
  • Eat less margarine and vegetable fats, which are sources of grass trans at the origin of pro-inflammatory prostaglandins;
  • Eliminate red meat, which have a high content of arachidonic acid (a fatty acid that is the source of pro-inflammatory prostaglandins). A 2000 study of 33 women suggests that a low-fat vegetarian diet is effective in reducing the intensity and duration of dysmenorrhea6.
  • Check with the help of a nutritionist for the presence of deficiency in vitamin C, vitamin B6 or in magnesium. These micronutrients would be essential for the metabolism of prostaglandins and their deficiency would cause inflammation.
  • Avoid drinking coffee when pain is present. Instead of relieving fatigue and stress, coffee will instead increase pain since its effects on the body are similar to those of stress.

See also the advice of nutritionist Hélène Baribeau: Special diet: Premenstrual syndrome. Some relate to the relief of menstrual pain.

Stress management

Le chronic stress would be just as harmful to the body as an unbalanced diet. This is because stress hormones (adrenaline and cortisol) cause the production of pro-inflammatory prostaglandins. The Mayo Clinic suggests that women who experience monthly painful periods integrate practices such as massage, yoga or meditation into their lifestyle7. You also have to understand where stress comes from and find strategies to manage it better. See also our file Stress and Anxiety.

 

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Omega-3, prostaglandins and pain relieving effect

Some experts, including the Dre Christiane Northrup (author of the book The wisdom of menopause)27, claim that a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids helps reduce menstrual pain due to their anti-inflammatory effect4,27. More precisely, the anti-inflammatory effect comes from substances produced by the tissues from ingested omega-3s, for example certain prostaglandins (see the explanatory diagram at the beginning of the Omega-3 and Omega-6 sheet). This type of diet would also reduce uterine contractions and therefore the pain they can cause.34-36 .

Prostaglandins have a wide variety of powerful effects. There are about twenty types. Some, for example, stimulate uterine contractions (see the box above “How is menstrual pain explained?”). Those which have anti-inflammatory activity are mainly obtained from omega-3 (fish oils, linseed and linseed oil, nuts, etc.). Prostaglandins, which in excess can have a pro-inflammatory effect, are rather taken from omega-6 contained in animal fats.

This is entirely in accordance with the proposal of other experts to return to a food providing an adequate ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 to reduce the frequency of inflammatory diseases and improve cardiovascular health1-3 . In fact, it is generally considered that the omega-6 / omega-3 ratio in the Western diet is between 10 and 30 to 1, while it should ideally be between 1 and 4 to 1.

 

Prevention of painful periods (dysmenorrhea): understand everything in 2 min

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