Pre-menstrual syndrome - what is it?

PMS is a cluster of various physical and emotional symptoms that develop from 7 to 14 days before your period begins each month.

More than one third of women suffer from PMS. Almost half of these use drugs to get them through. Some of these suffer so severely, even strong medication doesn't allow them to work, play and do normal things.

Some symptoms include - Headaches Backache Breast tenderness Irritability Bloating Diarrhea or constipation Cravings Acne Ankle or finger swelling Nervousness Uterine cramping Most commonly your friends will notice - Mood swings Irritability Aggressiveness Depression

Cause

There are special female hormones - estrogen and progesterone. One of the causative factors in PMS is an excess estrogen to progesterone ratio. Several strange things have been linked to a blow out in this ratio; brain endorphin levels reduce, vitamin B6 levels drop, other hormones which cause the body to hold water (aldosterone) increase.

Sometimes the central nervous system isn't responding properly to changes in these and other hormones. Some PMS sufferers have reduced serotonin levels in their blood. (Serotonin is a chemical in the brain which is often linked with feeling happy and not depressed.)

It is now understood that certain dietary issues can play a role in the above causes, as can poor activity levels, poor postural movements, overall mood and stress levels, and amount of sleep.

What to do?

There is no single way to prevent PMS. It is a compound problem, and can be different in every single person, but here are some tips on how to start helping yourself.

Nutrition

Eat less fat and more fibre. Estrogen levels get higher in high fat diets. Fibre helps the body to excrete estrogen. So stop the fat, and eat more raw vegetable products. Soy products may also be useful in the fight against PMS.

Extra nutritional aids which have been shown to reduce PMS include vitamin B6 supplements, Vitamin E, Magnesium at doses of 200mg per or greater, and Black Cohosh - you may need to see a naturopath to get this product.

Exercise

In last month's article (Get Moving) we mentioned that exercise can help to mildly improve the amount of serotonin in the brain. It has also been shown to improve endorphin levels. Both of these are chemicals which make us feel happy, reduce our awareness and care of pain, and definitely improve mood and reduce anxiety and depression.

It is recommended that you exercise aerobically for about 45 minutes every second day to get the results we are talking about.

Chiropractic

Chiropractic has been shown to maximally stimulate certain parts of the nervous system which have a massive effect on the amount of serotonin in the brain. The nervous system is the very thing which helps regulate the amount of hormones in the body, and by stimulating the nervous system properly, chiropractic has been shown to have large positive effects on the management of PMS symptoms.

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It is obvious that PMS requires whole body and mind approach. By improving diet, increasing the amount of exercise, having some natural supplements and booking in for a chiropractic assessment, PMS can be extremely well controlled and may even become a thing of the past for many sufferers.