Caffeine-containing beverages, total fluid consumption, and premenstrual syndrome.

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to evaluate whether daily consumption of caffeine-containing beverages is related to the prevalence and severity of premenstrual syndrome apart from any effects of daily total fluid consumption. A secondary objective was to determine whether daily total fluid consumption itself is related to premenstrual syndrome. The study is based on 841 responses to a questionnaire probing menstrual and premenstrual health, and daily fluid consumption, which was mailed to female university students in Oregon. Analysis of the data revealed that consumption of caffeine-containing beverages was strongly related to the prevalence of premenstrual syndrome. Among women with more severe symptoms, the relation between consumption of caffeine- IntroductionPrevious investigations have indicated that the consumption of caffeine-containing beverages is strongly related to the prevalence and severity of premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and that such effects exist for a wide variety of premenstrual symptoms. -4 Further work demonstrated that the association between premenstrual symptoms and consumption of caffeine-containing beverages occurs even among women who lack other putative causes of the syndrome.5 Such putative causes included alcohol use, cigarette use, lack of exercise, oral contraceptive use, and a diet high in beef and refined sugar products.6-'8One possible explanation for the observed association between consumption of caffeine-containing beverages and premenstrual symptoms is that consumption of these beverages is related to daily total fluid consumption, and that it is daily total fluid consumption which is causally related to premenstrual symptoms. Such an explanation might be consistent with the retention of fluid experienced by many women who report premenstrual symptoms.This study was undertaken to assess the relation between premenstrual syndrome and caffeine-containing beverage intake, and between premenstrual syndrome and total fluid intake, controlling for any confounding effects attributable to the other variable. In addition, we wanted to describe the dose-response relation between premenstrual syndrome and consumption of caffeine-containing beverages and of total fluid, and to discover which types of caffeine-containing beverages might exert an effect.

Prevalence and Predictors of Premenstrual Syndrome Among College–Aged Women in Saudi Arabia

“…9,11,[13][14][15][16][17][18][19] Several series have also reported that premenstrual syndrome is more common among young, urban literate women, 16,20 especially among those involved in professional studies, than older, rural and illiterate women. 20 This may be related to an increased level of perception and reporting of these symptoms in this group.…”

“…This points to the need for educating PMS sufferers on curtailing these dietary items. Several studies [9][10][11]36 have observed a strong association between caffeine and caffeinecontaining beverages and PMS. Phillis 37 has suggested that the depressive action of adenosine on central neurons is the mechanism by which caffeine might cause PMS.…”

A Controlled Trial of Chinese Herbal Medicine for Premenstrual Syndrome

“…Studies carried out in America (Perry et al 2004;Rossignol & Bonnlander 1990) and in a mailed survey of 14,779 women in Australia (Mishra 2000) suggest that higher alcohol consumption, caffeine ingestion and smoking have been associated with increased premenstrual symptoms, but whether as cause or effect remains unclear. The outcome of another Australian study on overweight women with PMS (Cross et al 2001) found that changes of food intake occurring in the menstrual cycle in PMS sufferers also indicate a significantly greater intake premenstrually (p < .001) of energy producing foods from all macronutrients found in cereals, cakes, desserts and high-sugar foods.…”

What Are Women Being Exposed to? A Review of the Quality, Content and Ownership of Websites on Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder

“…Self-help approaches include exercise (Daly, 2009), dietary modifications, and use of supplements in the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle. Possible dietary modifications include reducing consumption of alcohol, caffeine, and sugar (Cunningham, Yonkers, O'Brien, & Eriksson, 2009;Rossignol & Bonnlander, 1990) and increasing complex carbohydrate intake (Sayegh, Schiff, Wurtman, Spiers, McDermott, & Wurtman, 1995). Supplements may include vitamin B6 (e.g., Wyatt, Dimmock, Jones, Shaughn O'Brien, 1999) and calcium (e.g., Thys-Jacobs, Starkey, Bernstein, & Tian, 1998), of which the latter has been acknowledged as showing some promise as a non-pharmacological potential treatment for PMDD (Rapkin & Lewis, 2013).…”