--- title: Does caffeine intake cause or worsen PMS? | Niyora description: No. Total caffeine intake was not associated with PMS development, and high coffee intake also was not associated with PMS. Current recommendations for women url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/a-prospective-study-of-caffeine-and-coffee-intake-and-premenstrual-syndrome-2016/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Does caffeine intake cause or worsen PMS? Case-control study, 2016 # Does caffeine intake cause or worsen PMS? No. Total caffeine intake was not associated with PMS development, and high coffee intake also was not associated with PMS. Current recommendations for women to reduce caffeine to prevent PMS may not be helpful. Strong study design 1,234 nurses with clinically significant PMS and 2,426 control nurses from the Nurses' Health Study II ## What they did A case-control study nested within the Nurses' Health Study II tracked women from 1991 to 2005. All were free from PMS at baseline in 1991. PMS cases reported a new clinician diagnosis and confirmed moderate-to-severe symptoms. Controls had no or mild symptoms. Researchers measured caffeine, coffee, and tea intake every 4 years using questionnaires. ## What they found After adjusting for age, smoking, and other factors, highest caffeine intake (543 mg/day) versus lowest (18 mg/day) was not associated with PMS (odds ratio 0.79, 95% CI 0.61-1.04). High caffeinated coffee (4 or more cups per day compared to less than 1 per month) also was not associated with PMS (odds ratio 0.73, 95% CI 0.48-1.12) or breast tenderness. ## What it means for you Caffeine does not appear to cause or worsen PMS, so current advice to cut caffeine for PMS prevention may not help. This is important because women are often told to avoid caffeine. However, this is an observational study, so we cannot prove caffeine definitely does not cause PMS, only that it was not associated in this large sample. 543 mg/day highest caffeine intake 18 mg/day lowest caffeine intake 0.79 odds ratio for PMS ## About the study Original title A prospective study of caffeine and coffee intake and premenstrual syndrome Authors Purdue-Smithe AC, Manson JE, Hankinson SE et al. Journal The American journal of clinical nutrition Year 2016 Study design Case-control study Participants 2,426 What was tested Observational study of caffeine, coffee, and tea intake Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.115.127027](https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.115.127027) ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Diet and nutrition](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-diet/)[Alcohol, smoking and substance use](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-substance-use/) Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits. Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor. ## Related studies Cohort study, 2026 Are diet and lifestyle linked to premenstrual symptoms in college students? Study, 2024 How do lifestyle factors like diet, exercise, and stress affect menstrual health and PMS? Survey study, 2022 What diet, stress, and lifestyle factors are linked to PMS symptoms? Survey study, 2020 Is period pain common in Polish women and what causes it? Survey study, 2019 What diet and lifestyle factors are linked to PMS in university students? Systematic review, 2018 Does drinking alcohol increase the risk of premenstrual syndrome? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗