A Little Zinc Provides a Lot of Help for Women With Painful Periods

An unacceptable 45-95% of women in Canada and the US suffer pain from their periods every month. Conventional solutions have side effects that women shouldn’t have to accept. A natural alternative that could relieve the pain without women paying the price of side effects would be very good news. Here’s the good news!

This study included 100 high school students between the ages of 13 and 21. All of them experienced dysmenorrhoea, or painful periods. For 3 cycles, half of them took a placebo while half took 40mg of zinc.

At the start of the study, the girls in the placebo group had an average pain score of 5.24, and the girls in the zinc group had an average pain score of 5.28. By their second cycle, pain had improved significantly more in the zinc group. By the third cycle the improvement was even greater. While the girls in the placebo group now had an average pain score of 3.95, the girls in the zinc group had dropped their pain scores to a significantly better 1.95.

Importantly, the zinc also passed the test of being a safe alternative to conventional treatments:there was an “absence of undue side effects.”

This study had another interesting and important finding. Painful periods can be severe for some women, and, for many women, they affect quality of life. This study found that zinc can have a major impact on improving daily life. At the beginning of the study, 36% of the women in the zinc group and 44% of the women in the placebo group said that their painful periods affected their academic performance. By the end of the study, while the same 44% of the placebo group still felt their painful periods were harming their academic studies, in the zinc group, the number had dropped from 36% to only 12%, demonstrating a significant effect of zinc on quality of life.

This study suggests zinc as an effective way to reduce the incidence and severity of painful periods with “minimal or no adverse effects.” That’s just what you’ve been looking for!

J Int Med Res. 2023 May;51(5):03000605231171489.

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For much more on treating dysmenorrhoea naturally, see our book The Family Naturopathic Encyclopedia and Linda’s Smart Woman’s Guide to PMS and Pain-free Periods.

For comprehensive natural help with menstrual health, including painful periods, make an appointment to see Linda Woolven now. Linda’s clinic is now open for virtual appointments.

The Natural Path is intended for educational purposes only and is in no way intended for self-diagnosis or self-treatment. For health problems, consult a qualified health practitioner for a comprehensive program.

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