--- title: Does garlic supplement reduce premenstrual symptoms? | Niyora description: Yes. Garlic reduced symptom severity much more than placebo over 3 months. url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/effect-of-garlic-allium-sativum-supplementation-on-premenstrual-disorders-a-2021/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Does garlic supplement reduce premenstrual symptoms? Randomised trial, 2021 # Does garlic supplement reduce premenstrual symptoms? Yes. Garlic reduced symptom severity much more than placebo over 3 months. Moderate study design 129 women in Iran with moderate-to-severe PMS ## What they did Double-blind randomized trial. 129 women with moderate-to-severe PMS took either 1 garlic tablet daily or placebo for 3 menstrual cycles. ## What they found Garlic group symptoms dropped from 34.09 to 11.21 on a severity scale. Placebo group went from 33.35 to 24.28. The difference between groups was 13.78 points. No serious side effects in either group. ## What it means for you Garlic may help reduce PMS symptoms more than placebo. The study was relatively small and done in one country, so more research is needed to confirm the benefit. 34.09 to 11.21 Garlic group symptom score change 33.35 to 24.28 Placebo group symptom score change 13.78 Difference between groups ## About the study Original title Effect of Garlic ( Allium sativum ) Supplementation on Premenstrual Disorders: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial Authors Jafari F, Tabarrai M, Abbassian A et al. Journal Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM Year 2021 Study design Randomised trial Participants 65 What was tested Daily garlic tablet for 3 menstrual cycles Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.1155/2021/9965064](https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/9965064) Original abstract Background: Premenstrual disorders involve physical, behavioral, and mood variations that affect women of childbearing age and interfere with family relationships, household responsibilities, professional duties, and social activities. Objectives: Considering the side effects of conventional medications, their use is not recommended except in severe cases of premenstrual disorders. Nowadays, there is a tendency to use traditional and complementary medicine that offers various treatments. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the impacts of garlic as a herbal medicine on the severity of premenstrual symptoms. Methods: This study was a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial. After identification of participants with moderate-to-severe PMS through the premenstrual symptoms screening tools questionnaire (PSST), they were randomly assigned to placebo ( n = 64) or garlic ( n = 65) groups. Each participant received one tablet daily for three consecutive cycles and logged the severity of their symptoms in the PSST questionnaire during the intervention period. Results: There was no significant difference between the two groups in the baseline level of premenstrual symptoms before the intervention. After treatment with garlic for three consecutive cycles, the total score of the severity of premenstrual symptoms significantly ( P < 0.001) reduced from 34.09 ± 7.31 to 11.21 ± 7.17. In the placebo group, this score changed from 33.35 ± 7.96 to 24.28 ± 7.22. The difference between mean changes in the two groups was 13.78, with a 95% Confidence Interval (CI) of 11.23-16.33. No serious side effects were observed in either group. Conclusion: Our findings highlight the potential effect of garlic in reducing the severity of premenstrual symptoms; therefore, the use of garlic can be considered as an alternative therapy in the prevention and treatment of premenstrual disorders. Reproduced under CC-BY. ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Other herbal medicine](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-herbal-other/) 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 Systematic review, 2026 Which traditional Chinese medicine treatments work best for PMS? Randomised trial, 2025 Do essential oils reduce PMS symptoms? Randomised trial, 2025 Which is more effective for PMS - Vitagnus, soy, or both together? Randomised trial, 2025 Does the PMSoff supplement help PMS and PMDD symptoms? Randomised trial, 2024 Is Jiawei Xiaoyao pill effective and safe for treating premenstrual syndrome? Randomised trial, 2024 Is Ganyushu Granule effective and safe for premenstrual syndrome? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗