Cohort study, 2023
Does recreational physical exercise reduce premenstrual symptoms in teenage girls?
Possibly. Girls who exercised 3 or more times per week had lower depression. However, older age and higher weight were linked to worse symptoms.
What they did
Prospective cohort study of 313 high school girls aged 14-17. Girls reported their premenstrual symptoms daily over 30 consecutive days and provided information about their exercise habits including type, duration, and frequency. Researchers used logistic regression to look for associations.
What they found
80.8% of girls experienced at least one premenstrual symptom. Girls who exercised 3 or more times per week had lower depression (odds ratio 0.333). Older girls were more likely to have poor concentration. Girls with higher weight were more likely to have bloating.
What it means for you
Girls who exercise regularly may have less depression. Age and weight also affect premenstrual symptoms. A main limitation is this was observational, so we cannot know if exercise caused the lower depression or if girls with less depression were simply more likely to exercise.
80.8%
experienced at least one premenstrual symptom
0.333
odds ratio for depression with 3+ exercise sessions per week
313
high school girls studied
About the study
- Original title
- The Relationship Between Premenstrual Symptoms And Recreational Physical Exercise In Senior High School Students
- Authors
- Zhuo Chen, Xiao Zhou, Kazuhiro Imai
- Journal
- Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise
- Year
- 2023
- Study design
- Cohort study
- Participants
- 313
- What was tested
- None - observational study of recreational physical exercise
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1249/01.mss.0000985452.99004.62
Topics
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