---
title: How common are premenstrual and menstrual symptoms in women? | Niyora
description: Menstrual symptoms are very common in women in the community and increase with age. Women with anxiety are more likely to report menstrual problems.
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/the-zurich-study-xix-patterns-of-menstrual-disturbances-in-the-community-results-1993/
---

- [Niyora](https://niyora.com/)
- [Research](https://niyora.com/research/)
- [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/)
- How common are premenstrual and menstrual symptoms in women?

Cohort study, 1993

# How common are premenstrual and menstrual symptoms in women?

Menstrual symptoms are very common in women in the community and increase with age. Women with anxiety are more likely to report menstrual problems.

 Strong study design

Young adults in Zurich, Switzerland

## What they did

10-year prospective cohort study of young adults in Zurich, Switzerland. Researchers measured emotional and physical symptoms during the pre- and peri-menstrual phases and looked for associations with age, education, life events, contraceptive use, and psychiatric diagnoses.

## What they found

Menstrual symptoms are common in the community and become more frequent with age. Women with menstrual problems were more likely to be childless, have higher education, experience distressing life events, not use birth control, have psychiatric disorders, and have certain personality traits. There was a strong association between menstrual symptoms and anxiety in both the women and their relatives.

## What it means for you

Premenstrual and menstrual symptoms are normal and widespread. They may be more linked to anxiety than to hormones alone. The study is from one country in one time period and may not reflect all populations.

10 years

study duration

## About the study

Original title The Zurich Study. XIX. Patterns of menstrual disturbances in the community: results of the Zurich Cohort Study Authors Merikangas KR, Foeldenyi M, Angst J Journal European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience Year 1993 Study design Cohort study What was tested None - observational study Read the paper [doi.org/10.1007/bf02191520](https://doi.org/10.1007/bf02191520)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Menstrual cycle and mood](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-cycle-mood/)[Anxiety and tension](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-anxiety/)[Oral contraceptives and drospirenone](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-hormonal-contraceptives/)[Anxiety disorders and OCD](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-anxiety-disorders/)

Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits.

Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor.

## Related studies

Randomised trial, 2020

How should premenstrual syndrome be diagnosed and treated?

Cohort study, 2010

How do anxiety disorders differ across different life stages?

Survey study, 2008

Do healthy women without PMDD have mood changes during their menstrual cycle?

Systematic review, 2022

Do mental health disorders get worse during the menstrual cycle?

Randomised trial, 1999

Does calcium reduce PMS symptoms?

Study, 2026

Do anxiety and depression get worse before your period if you already have a mental health condition?

Ask AI about this page

Copy prompt

ChatGPT

↗

Claude

↗

Perplexity

↗

Google AI Mode

↗

Grok

↗