Vitamin B Helps in PMS

The risk of pre-menstrual syndrome (PMS) decreases by being on a diet rich in vitamin B, say researchers whose study appears in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Interestingly, they discovered that while foods that have a high level of the vitamin like spinach and fortified cereal bring the risk down by 25 per cent, vitamin supplements do not seem to have the same effect.

Researchers also warned that taking the vitamin, that includes thiamine and riboflavin, is not the only thing to do to resolve the problem. Vitamin B works in conjunction with other health habits that women have, to bring the risk of PMS down. Nevertheless, according to Elizabeth Bertone-Johnson, associate professor of public health at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, women who suffer from PMS could find it beneficial to add thiamine and riboflavin to their diet.

Moderate to severe PMS manifests itself through anxiety, depression, irritability, abdominal pain, fatigue and bloating and in the study out of 3000 women, 1050 developed these symptoms. It was seen that 1.9 milligrams of thiamine or 2.5 milligrams of riboflavin a day brought the problem down. According to Bertone-Johnson, that was about two to three bowls of fortified cereal, three quarters of a cup of dried beans, about three ounces of red meat, for thiamine; about one to 2 bowls of cereal, or a 3-ounce portion of cow's liver for riboflavin.

Ellen Freeman, professor of obstetrics/gynecology and psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia said, that this is the first time that food nutrients have been linked to PMS.

Severe PMS is treated with birth control pills or antidepressants, and the treatment can be quite expensive and have side effects. The latest study about including vitamin B in the daily diet promises to be a healthy and an inexpensive option that sufferers need to consider.



Source: Medindia