Painful Periods
Introduction
Painful Periods (Dysmenorrhoea)
It is estimated that between 50 and 70 percent of women endure some
degree of period pain and cramping. Of those, approximately 10 percent
experience contractions so extreme that they are one and a half times
more powerful than labour pains.
How painful is painful?
Every month many women suffer from pain around the time of their periods.
For some women the pain can be so debilitating that they are forced
to take time off work or can only get through their periods by dosing
themselves with painkillers. Pain is normally considered to be a message
from your body, telling you that something is wrong and that an investigation
is in order. However, painful periods are viewed somewhat differently
by the medical profession and many women who complain of period pains
are advised to take a painkiller and to get on with it.
Every one of us has a different pain threshold, and it is impossible to imagine what another person might be experiencing. Only you know whether or not your period pains are unacceptably high for you, and if the pain is affecting the quality of your life, it's time to do something about it.
What symptoms could you experience?
Obviously pain is the overriding symptom in dysmenorrhoea, but many
women will experience other symptoms, including:
- nausea
- vomiting
- diarrhoea/constipation
- fainting
- light-headedness
- feeling dizzy
- headaches
- exhaustion and lethargy
The pain itself can vary and women will often experience two types of pain:
- a constant low back ache like a dull ache (congestive dysmenorrhoea)
and/or
- cramping pains like contractions (spasmodic dysmenorrhoea)
Because pain is usually a warning signal from your body, it is important that the pain is investigated. But period pains can, however, be unusual in that there may actually be nothing medically wrong and are simply an abnormal functioning of your body around the time of your period. This is pretty good news because it means that if you can get things back into balance, you'll not only get rid of the pain but you'll prevent it from returning. What the natural approach aims to do is to treat the condition, not simply mask the pain or 'turn off' your cycle. Furthermore, if you work to put your body back into balance, all aspects of health and well-being will be improved.
Supplements
The supplements recommended below have been studied in clinical trials
and have been found to be effective in connection with painful periods.
For best result you should take them over a period of three months,
at the end of which you should be reassessed in order to monitor improvements
and changes and then adjust the supplement programme according to your
new condition.
Multivitamin and Mineral
A good quality multivitamin and mineral would form the foundation of
your supplement programme to make sure that you are getting a 'little
bit of everything'. You then add in those nutrients in slightly higher
amounts which are known to be helpful for painful periods.
Vitamin B6
Vitamin B6 is needed to help produce 'good' prostaglandins which help
to relax and widen blood vessels as opposed to 'bad' prostaglandins
which increase the womb contractions and increase the pain. So it is
worth taking a good B-complex supplement. This vitamin has been shown
to significantly reduce the intensity and duration of period pains.
Vitamin B1
This B vitamin is very effective in helping with period pain. In one
study, it was given to 556 women (aged 12 to 21 years) who had moderate
to severe dysmenorrhoea. Some of the women were given the B1 first for
90 days and then changed to a placebo. Others were given the placebo
first for 90 days and the B1 next. A full 87 percent of the women were
completely cured after starting the B1 treatment. This effect remained
for at least two months after the B1 was stopped.
Vitamin B12
Because both vitamins B1 and B6 are helpful with treating period pains,
the best approach is to take a vitamin complex. This also gives you
vitamin B12 and it has been found that a combination of fish oil and
B12 is actually more effective than just fish oil on its own for relieving
dysmenorrhoea.
Vitamin E
Up to 70 percent of women have found the supplementation of vitamin
E to be useful in treating painful periods.
Vitamin C and bioflavonoids
Bioflavonoids are helpful with period pain because they help to relax
smooth muscle and reduce inflammation. Bilberry is one of the best bioflavonoids
for this, but other bioflavonoids can be helpful. Include berries of
any kind (including blackberries, blackcurrants, raspberries and even
grapes) in your diet.
Magnesium
Magnesium acts as a muscle relaxant and it has been shown to have a
beneficial effect on painful periods and lower back pain so it is worth
taking as a supplement.
Magnesium also has the ability to lower the 'bad' prostaglandins that may be causing the womb to overcontract.
Finally, along with vitamin B6, magnesium is required by your body to help convert the essential fats into beneficial prostaglandins. Try always to take them together.
Zinc
This mineral is important for eliminating period pains because it is
needed for the proper conversion of essential fatty acids.
Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs)
Taking EFAs in supplement form is extremely important in the treatment
of painful periods. Research has shown that women with low intakes of
Omega 3 fatty acids (the ones that come from fish, linseed and walnuts),
have more painful periods than women who have a good intake. The study
that found this link also discovered that the extent of the pain was
connected to the ratio or balance of the Omega 3 and Omega 6 fats. The
women with the worst period pains ate a much lower ratio of Omega 3
fats in relation to Omega 6 fats - a 1 to 4 ratio.
I would suggest adding either fish (EPA) or linseed oil capsules in order to keep the 'bad' prostaglandins under control.
Bromelain
This is an enzyme contained in pineapples and it has been found to be
extremely useful for treating painful periods. It has anti-inflammatory
properties and helps as a natural blood thinner. Bromelain also acts
as a smooth muscle relaxant and is thought to decrease the 'bad prostaglandins
and increase the 'good' prostaglandins.
Tests are extremely useful, in that they can tell you what deficiencies you have at the moment and then for you to know what supplements would be useful to take to correct those deficiencies. You would then be re-tested after three to four months to monitor your progress and to adjust the supplement programme accordingly.
Mineral Analysis Test
with Supplement and Nutritional Assessment Programme
This test measures the deficiency and excess levels of 7 different minerals
and 5 heavy toxic metals that may be present in your body.
Online Personalised
Supplement Assessment Programme
The analysis of this comprehensive questionnaire will give you a three
monthly supplement programme to help balance any vitamin and mineral
deficiencies you may have.
After three months you would then have a re-test in order to monitor your progress and adjust your supplement programme according to your new condition.
If you need help in obtaining any of the supplements, herbs or tests mentioned above, click, The Natural Health Practice. They can supply all of them for you online or if you prefer to talk to somebody first you can also order by mail order on the telephone. The products supplied by this company are always of the highest quality.
Nutrition
Ensure you are getting the right nutrition:
Follow dietary recommendations outlined on the Foundation
of Health page.
And for more information on the special dietary recommendations for
painful periods, see the rest of the chapter on Painful Periods (Dysmenoorhoea) e-book at The Natural Health Practice
The supplement programme below should be taken for at least three months in order to achieve best results
- A good multivitamin and mineral tablet
- B complex (100 mg of each B vitamin per day; including the what you get from your multivitamin and mineral tablet)
- Magnesium (300 mg per day)
- Vitamin E (300iu per day) as d-alpha tocopherol
- Zinc citrate (15mg per day)
- Vitamin C with bioflavonoids (1000 mg twice per day)
- Linseed (flaxseed) oil (1000 mg per day)
- Bromelain (500mg, 3 times a day between meals)
At the end of three months you should reassess your condition and adjust your supplement programme accordingly.
The tests below have been specially selected to be the most helpful if you are concerned about dysmenorrhoea.
Mineral Analysis Test with Supplement and Nutritional Assessment Programme
Online Personalised
Supplement Assessment Programme
After three months you would then have a re-test in order to monitor your progress and adjust your supplement programme according to your new condition.
If you need help in obtaining any of the supplements, herbs or tests mentioned above, click, The Natural Health Practice. They can supply all of them for you online or if you prefer to talk to somebody first you can also order by mail order on the telephone. The products supplied by this company are always of the highest quality.
The section above forms part of a larger 11 page chapter on Painful Periods taken from my book,. In the rest of the chapter you will learn what the medical approaches to painful periods are and how to combine them with the natural approach. This is called Integrated Medicine and is the way that healthier of the future is moving towards. You will also learn what medical tests will give you an accurate diagnosis of your condition and if you really need to have them. The medical treatments for painful periods are then examined which can include looking at either drugs or surgery. Each treatment is then discussed and the pros and cons of the options explained. The Integrated Approach to painful periods is considered in some detail so that if appropriate you can know how to combine the best of both conventional and natural medicine.
At the end of the chapter is a practical step by step summary of what you can do to help yourself.
If you would like to read the rest of this chapter click, Painful Periods (Dysmenoorhoea) e-book at The Natural Health Practice and
you will be given details of how you can download the whole chapter.
The contents of this site are for information only and are intended to assist readers in identifying symptoms and conditions they may be experiencing. This site is not intended to be a substitute for taking proper medical advice and should not be relied upon in this way. Always consult a qualified doctor or health practitioner, especially if you are pregnant, taking the pill or on any medication. Your situation will need to be looked at individually and you should not attempt to self treat. The author and publisher cannot accept responsibility for illness arising out of the failure to seek medical advice from a doctor.
The views expressed by third parties placing material on these pages are not representative of the views of the author or publisher. The Author and Publisher cannot monitor the content not produced by us and has not reviewed all the third party material published on this site and the Author and Publisher accept no liability whatsoever in relation to the content of third party material placed on these pages.
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