Randomised trial, 2017
Does the birth control pill change how bad premenstrual symptoms feel?
Yes, women using cyclic hormonal contraception had slightly smaller swings in mood and physical symptoms around their period compared with women not using it, though the pill did not get rid of the symptom pattern entirely.
What they did
Researchers studied daily symptom diaries from two groups of women in a premenstrual syndrome study: one group of 103 pill users and 387 non-users who asked to join, and another of 41 pill users and 211 non-users who were randomly assigned. They compared symptom changes across four windows of days around the start of a period.
What they found
In both groups, hormonal contraception use affected how much symptoms changed around the period (p < 0.01), and the timing window also mattered (p < 0.0001). Overall, symptom changes were bigger in women not using hormonal contraception. Depression (p = 0.04), anger or irritability (p < 0.01), and physical symptoms (p < 0.01) rose more in the non-hormonal group. Symptoms worsened as the period got closer for everyone, with the biggest group difference in the window 4 days before to 2 days after the period started.
What it means for you
Cyclic hormonal contraception seems to slightly soften premenstrual symptom swings, especially mood and physical symptoms, but it does not remove the premenstrual pattern altogether. The days just before and just after a period starts seem to be when the difference between pill users and non-users is clearest.
103 vs 387
Screened cohort using hormonal contraception vs not
41 vs 211
Randomized cohort using hormonal contraception vs not
day -4 to day 2
Window with largest symptom change difference
About the study
- Original title
- The Influence of Cyclic Hormonal Contraception on Expression of Premenstrual Syndrome
- Authors
- Yonkers KA, Cameron B, Gueorguieva R et al.
- Journal
- Journal of women's health (2002)
- Year
- 2017
- Study design
- Randomised trial
- What was tested
- Cyclic hormonal contraception (the birth control pill) compared with no hormonal contraception
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2016.5941
Topics
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