There is a medicine free alternative for treating PMS
PMS affects 2 out of 5 women once a month and 67% of us even have to take time off work because of the effects. Even celebrities like Keira Knightley have admitted to suffering and Keira claims she gets through PMS by playing pop music. Fortunately for us Holland & Barrett have come up with some tips for dealing with PMS naturally.
PMS affects everyone in some way, whether it is in the form of tender breasts a few days before your period, tearfulness, or you find yourself snapping at your partner or children. Some of the typical symptoms of premenstrual syndrome include abdominal bloating, acne, anxiety, backache, breast swelling and tenderness, cramps, depression, food cravings, fainting spells, fatigue, headaches, insomnia, altered sex drive, swelling of the fingers and ankles, and personality changes such as drastic mood swings, outbursts of anger, violence, and in extreme cases, thoughts of suicide.
Pre-Menstrual Syndrome, describes symptoms that start two weeks before a period and cease once the period has started, brings distress in varying degrees to many women. The good news however is that the majority of these symptoms can be relieved by taking appropriate supplementation.
Samar Tarabay, Nutritionist for Holland & Barrett advises eating starchy meals to help deal with PMS.Experts now believe that the type of starch is important too, as you need starch which releases its sugar into the blood stream in a sustained manner for a long period of time.
Starches which release their sugar quickly can cause a temporary lift, but this may be followed an hour or so later by a definite slump. Starches which do this include chips, mashed potato, highly refined breakfast cereals, most wheat crackers and crispbreads, rice cakes, white and wholemeal bread. You need to concentrate on starches which do not cause a sudden rise in blood sugar, followed by a rapid fall. Therefore the best starches include oat based cereals, oatcakes, rye crispbreads, granary or seeded bread, fruit breads, basmati or brown rice, pasta, yogurts, smoothies, fruit and fruit juices.
Magnesium has also been proven in clinical trials to help with PMS symptoms such as mood changes. In a double blind, randomised trial, researchers found that after two cycles, women taking magnesium instead of placebo found that their symptoms had significantly reduced. It also helps change B6 into its more effective form.
A paper published in the International Journal of Gynaecology and Obstetrics has shown that 45% of participants with PMS felt an improvement after taking Vitamin B6 each day. It helped to reduce breast tenderness, water retention, sugar cravings and mood swings.
It seems that you can deal with PMS symptoms without popping a pill. Try theses tips for more natural pain relief.