Cohort study, 1979
Do women's moods change with the menstrual cycle?
Many women report cyclical mood changes across their menstrual cycle with irritability and depression in the premenstrual and menstrual phases and better moods mid-cycle, but scientists do not know whether hormones, psychology, or social factors cause these changes.
What they did
Review of retrospective and prospective studies examining mood changes throughout the menstrual cycle.
What they found
Negative mood changes such as irritability, headache, tension, anxiety, sleep disturbance, and depression occur more frequently in the premenstrual and menstrual phases. Positive mood changes including pleasantness, increased vigor, and elation are reported more often in the follicular or mid-cycle phases. Various explanations proposed include psychodynamic, sociological, and biological theories, but only one study conclusively demonstrated a hormonal basis for cyclical symptoms.
What it means for you
Cyclical mood changes are real for many women, but the cause remains unclear. Hormones may play a role but the evidence is not conclusive. Main limitation is that this is a review of older studies with methodological limitations; more rigorous research is needed.
About the study
- Original title
- Affect and the menstrual cycle
- Authors
- Dennerstein L, Burrows GD
- Journal
- Journal of affective disorders
- Year
- 1979
- Study design
- Cohort study
- What was tested
- None; review article
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/0165-0327(79)90027-2
Topics
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