--- title: Does meditation reduce stress markers in women with PMS? | Niyora description: Yes. Four weeks of daily meditation significantly reduced blood pressure, heart rate, and stress hormone levels in women with PMS. url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/effect-of-meditation-on-premenstrual-syndrome-in-female-medical-students-2023/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Does meditation reduce stress markers in women with PMS? Survey study, 2023 # Does meditation reduce stress markers in women with PMS? Yes. Four weeks of daily meditation significantly reduced blood pressure, heart rate, and stress hormone levels in women with PMS. Early or limited evidence 30 female medical students with PMS ## What they did Thirty female medical students with PMS did 4 weeks of daily Shavasana meditation at the same time each day. Researchers measured heart rate, blood pressure, and cortisol before and after the meditation period. ## What they found Systolic blood pressure dropped significantly (p=0.0002), diastolic blood pressure dropped (p=0.0001), and heart rate dropped (p<0.0001). After 4 weeks of daily meditation, baseline systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and serum cortisol all fell substantially. ## What it means for you Meditation may help reduce stress during the menstrual phase. The main limits are small sample size and no control group to compare against. 30 Female medical students with PMS 4 weeks Duration of daily meditation 0.0001 Lowest p-value (diastolic blood pressure) ## About the study Original title Effect of meditation on premenstrual syndrome in female medical students Authors Harminder Kaur, Nimarpreet Kaur, Gangadhar Reddy Akula et al. Journal European Journal of Clinical and Experimental Medicine Year 2023 Study design Survey study What was tested 4 weeks of daily Shavasana meditation Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.15584/ejcem.2023.3.18](https://doi.org/10.15584/ejcem.2023.3.18) Original abstract Introduction and aim. A symptom complex of cyclic irritability, depression and lethargy is known as the premenstrual syndrome (PMS). Since ages women suffered from PMS. As varied as the etiology, innumerable treatment modalities have been put forward for PMS. Stress is accompanied most closely associated in PMS. Practicing yoga and meditation significantly important for PMS symptoms in reducing its symptoms and period crams as well. The present study aims the impact of meditation in people with PMS. The aim of the study was to see any effect of Shavasana (meditation) training on stress parameters in premenstrual syndrome in female medical students. Material and methods. The present study was approved by institutional ethical committee. Thirty clinically healthy female medical students who were suffering from PMS selected using a premenstrual questionnaire. The values of heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and serum cortisol were measured before meditation. Subjects were then taken through Shavasana (meditation) session for 4 weeks at the same time daily. On the last day of meditation session all above parameters were again recorded and the data was analyzed statistically. Results. The baseline values of all parameters in premeditation session compared to post meditation session. The basal SBP, DBP and HR of female medical students with PMS were significantly higher in pre meditation session than post meditation session with p value of SBP=0.0002, DBP=0.0001, HR<0.0001 respectively which indicated the presence of stress. Following a 4weeks of Shavasana meditation a significant fall in baseline SBP, DBP, HR and the serum Cortisol value was observed. Conclusion. These findings proves that Shavasana is an effective treatment modality to get rid of stress during premenstrual phase. Reproduced under CC-BY. ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Stress](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-stress/)[Mindfulness and meditation](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-mindfulness/)[Students and academic performance](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-education/) 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 Randomised trial, 2023 Does a mindfulness stress reduction program reduce PMS symptoms? Non-randomised trial, 2024 Does cognitive-behavioral or mindfulness stress management help reduce PMS in high school girls? Survey study, 2020 Can teaching about yoga techniques improve girls' knowledge about managing PMS? Cohort study, 2017 Is acceptance therapy (ACT) more effective than other treatments for PMS? Randomised trial, 2026 Does mindfulness training reduce PMS symptoms and fear about childbirth? Survey study, 2026 Is PMS worse in medical students with higher stress? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗