---
title: Does drinking and craving change across the menstrual cycle in women treated for alcohol use disorder?
description: Yes. Women drank most during the mid-late luteal phase and menses. Women with less depression who felt less emotional stress during these times reported stron
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/menstrual-cycle-phase-alcohol-consumption-alcohol-cravings-and-mood-among-women-2020/
---

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- Does drinking and craving change across the menstrual cycle in women treated for alcohol use disorder?

Study, 2020

# Does drinking and craving change across the menstrual cycle in women treated for alcohol use disorder?

Yes. Women drank most during the mid-late luteal phase and menses. Women with less depression who felt less emotional stress during these times reported stronger alcohol cravings.

 Moderate study design

59 regularly cycling women in treatment for alcohol use disorder

## What they did

Fifty-nine regularly cycling women in alcohol treatment kept daily logs for 3 months recording drinks consumed, alcohol cravings, and menstruation. They also reported baseline depression and emotional distress during the mid-late luteal phase and menses.

## What they found

Women drank more during the mid-late luteal phase and menses than at other times. Among women with lower baseline depression, those with lower emotional distress reported more intense cravings during the mid-late luteal phase (0.77 points higher) and menses (0.51 points higher). Women with lower baseline depression and higher emotional distress had more intense cravings during menses. Women with higher baseline depression reported consistently high cravings throughout their cycle.

## What it means for you

For women with alcohol use disorder, drinking and craving peak during the luteal phase and period, with depression level affecting how menstrual changes influence cravings. The limitation is that the study tracked drinking through daily self-reported logs and did not directly measure hormone levels.

59

women tracked

3

months of daily logs

0.77

craving increase at mid-late luteal

## About the study

Original title Menstrual cycle phase, alcohol consumption, alcohol cravings, and mood among women in outpatient treatment for alcohol use disorder Authors Hayaki J, Holzhauer CG, Epstein EE et al. Journal Psychology of addictive behaviors : journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors Year 2020 Study design Study What was tested Daily tracking of drinking and cravings across the menstrual cycle Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.1037/adb0000576](https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000576)

## Topics

[Menstrual cycle and mood](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-cycle-mood/)[Low mood and depression](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-depression-mood/)[Appetite and food cravings](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-food-cravings/)[Alcohol, smoking and substance use](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-substance-use/)

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