Young women who suffer from PMS or PMDD are 10% more likely to develop heart disease later in life, a new study finds.
Young women who suffer from premenstrual disorders may face an increased risk of heart disease later in life, a new study finds.
These disorders include premenstrual syndrome, or PMS, and the more severe form, premenstrual dysphoric disorder.
Symptoms, which are wide-ranging, appear a few days before menstruation and can have a profound impact on a person's emotional, mental, and physical well-being.
In this study, researchers followed more than 99,000 women with premenstrual symptoms for up to 22 years.
They compared their health to women without symptoms from the general population and, when possible, with their own sisters to account for hereditary factors and upbringing.
The results showed women with premenstrual symptoms had about a 10% higher risk of developing heart disease.
The link was especially strong for heart rhythm disorders – where the risk was 31% higher — and stroke caused by a blood clot – where the risk was 27% higher.
The lead author says, “The increased risk was particularly clear in women who were diagnosed before the age of 25 and in those who had also experienced postnatal depression, a condition that can also be caused by hormonal fluctuations.”
More research is needed to determine what’s causing the association, but researchers say hormone dysfunction, increased inflammation in the body and metabolic problems may play a role.
Source: Nature Cardiovascular Research
Author Affiliations: Karolinska Institutet, Center for Epidemiology and Community Medicine, Region Stockholm
University of Iceland
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
University of Massachusetts Amherst
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