A new set of guidelines recently released by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists reported that as many as 85 percent of women suffer from one or more symptoms of premenstrual syndrome. The most common complaints seem to center around mood symptoms such as irritability, anxiety or depression that occur in the week or two before menstruation.
Many women suddenly find themselves weeping while others find themselves screaming with anger or unusually tense with no real cause. Though the exact causes for premenstrual syndrome are not fully understood, researchers suspect that they are the result of a hormonal imbalance and an increased sensitivity to these hormones.
The end result of the hormone imbalance is a lowered level of a brain chemical transmitter, serotonin. Some studies indicate that in women with PMS, the ratio of estrogen to progesterone tends to be higher than in women who are free of PMS symptoms. Certain lifestyle changes are recommended to all women who suffer PMS, such as decreasing caffeine intake and increasing exercise levels.
Data is beginning to accumulate on the value of certain supplements as effective treatments for PMS. Doctors have observed one interesting association for years that has not been understood. Women who later developed osteoporosis were more likely to have had PMS when they were younger.
As it turns out, calcium is probably the common deficiency in both of these diseases. Calcium supplements are an effective treatment for PMS.
For example, women who received 1,000-1,200 mg. of calcium daily had a 48 percent reduction in PMS symptoms. We currently recommend that women (and men as well) supplement their diet with 1,000 mg. of calcium in four different forms - the citrate, carbonate, ascorbate, and gluconate forms.
All of these can be combined and taken in a basic-nutrient supplement. Remember, it is the citrate form that is the most easily absorbed of all the calcium supplements.
Some studies have also suggested benefits in taking magnesium (400 mg.) daily and vitamin E (800 IU natural form) daily as supplements. Vitamin B6 has been widely used for PMS, but several studies have failed to indicate any consistent benefit, though we still recommend taking vitamin B6 (pyridoxine -- 75 mg.) daily as part of a supplement.
An herbal supplement that can be very useful in improving PMS symptoms is the herb vitex, which is also known as chasteberry. Improvements in PMS symptoms were noted in 70-80 percent of women who used this herbal supplement, which tends to increase the levels of progesterone in the body in a natural way. Simply follow the directions on the bottle if God leads you to try this herbal supplement.
For more information about Dr. Cherry's ministry, visit his Web site, www.drcherry.org.
