Survey study, 2018
What causes irregular periods?
About 14.3% of Korean women aged 19-40 have irregular periods. Stress and depressive mood are the main causes, not medical conditions. Stress is the strongest factor.
What they did
3194 Korean women aged 19-40 answered questions about their menstrual cycle regularity, stress levels, mood, weight, and education. They were not taking hormonal contraceptives and had no history of thyroid disease, cancer, or kidney failure.
What they found
14.3% of the women had irregular cycles. Women with higher perceived stress were more likely to have irregular cycles. Women with depressive mood were also more likely. Higher body weight was associated with irregular cycles. Younger age and higher education were associated with lower odds. Perceived stress was the strongest factor overall.
What it means for you
This shows stress and mood are major factors in cycle regularity, which is hopeful because these are things women may address through stress management or mental health support. The main limitation is this is a cross-sectional study, so it shows these factors are linked but doesn't prove stress causes irregularity.
3194
women studied
14.3%
had irregular menstrual cycles
About the study
- Original title
- Prevalence and related factors of irregular menstrual cycles in Korean women: the 5th Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES-V, 2010-2012)
- Authors
- Jung EK, Kim SW, Ock SM et al.
- Journal
- Journal of psychosomatic obstetrics and gynaecology
- Year
- 2018
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 3,194
- What was tested
- None—observational study
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1080/0167482x.2017.1321631
Topics
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