Is diet quality linked to how severe PMS is in college students?

Rationale: Diet is one of the modifiable lifestyle factors associated with premenstrual syndrome(PMS), and college students are especially influenced by PMS. There is little research investigating therelationship between diet and PMS occurrence among female college students.Objective: This study aimed to examine the current status of PMS occurrence among female collegestudents in the U.S. and the relationship of diet with the presence and severity of PMS.Methods: A cross-sectional design was conducted using convenience sampling methods. Inclusioncriteria were females 18 years or older, and having regular menstrual cycles. An online survey wasconducted during spring 2025 at a public university in northern New Jersey. The short Healthy EatingIndex was used to assess diet quality as Needs Improvement or Poor. Participants' reports of PMSpresence and severity were used to determine PMS occurrence and pattern. Descriptive statistics, binarylogistic regression, and a paired sample t-test were performed.Findings: A total of 369 students participated in the study. They were mostly undergraduate students(67%), had a mean age of 22.6 years, and 44% were White. The prevalence of PMS in the samplewas 34%. In individuals with Needs Improvement diet, the risk of having PMS was reduced by 3.6%(RR=0.964, 95%CI [0.617, 1.506]), whereas the risk of experiencing severe PMS was 2.2 times higher(RR=2.224, 95%CI [0.712, 6.947]). Participants rated their PMS symptoms as less severe when theirperceived diet quality was balanced than not (severity mean=2.33 vs. 3.49, p<.001). Participants ratedtheir diet as balanced when PMS was less severe than when it was severe (diet quality mean=3.21 vs.2.17, p<.001).Conclusions: Future research should further investigate the relationship between diet and PMS byassessing diet across multiple menstrual cycles or through serial within-subject measurements.

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