Survey study, 2022
Is low vitamin D linked to obesity and severe PMS?
Yes. Women with PMS who were obese were more likely to have low vitamin D levels than normal-weight women, and women with low vitamin D reported more severe PMS. Both relationships were statistically significant.
What they did
Cross-sectional study of 250 Pakistani women aged 15-45 with a history of PMS. Researchers measured vitamin D blood levels, body weight (BMI), and PMS severity.
What they found
61.2% had vitamin D deficiency and only 4.8% had adequate vitamin D. 40.8% were obese and 42.8% had normal weight. The relationship between obesity and low vitamin D was significant (p=0.001). Among obese women, 35.6% had low vitamin D. Among normal-weight women, 22.8% had low vitamin D. The relationship between PMS severity and low vitamin D was significant (p=0.001).
What it means for you
Low vitamin D appears connected to both obesity and worse PMS symptoms. Women with PMS may benefit from checking vitamin D levels and supplementing if deficient. The main limitation is we cannot determine cause and effect. Low vitamin D might cause these problems, or other factors might cause all three.
250
women studied
61.2%
vitamin D deficient
40.8%
obese
About the study
- Original title
- Association of Vitamin D with Obesity in Premenstrual Syndrome: A Study of Female Population of Hyderabad, Sindh
- Authors
- Aqsa Naeem, Sarwat Batool, Urooj Bhatti et al.
- Journal
- Pakistan Journal of Medical and Health Sciences
- Year
- 2022
- Study design
- Survey study
- What was tested
- None
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.53350/pjmhs20221611656
Topics
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