Healthy Eating for Women

There appears to be no distinctive type of woman likely to experience PMS, although in general it appears to be more common in women in their thirties and forties and in women who have children. Certain events may be linked to the onset of PMS, such as stopping the oral contraceptive, the birth of a child, or sterilization, which suggests a hormonal connection. PMS can still be experienced following hysterectomy if the ovaries remain. PMS seems to be common across all social classes although it seems that women who seek medical help specifically for PMS are more likely to be in social classes I and II. Therefore, the primary health care team should be alert to the possibility of PMS in women consulting for other problems, such as anxiety or depression. There also appears to be a general link between adverse life events and PMS. Women tend to experience PMS as more of a problem during times of stress, such as when there are problems at home or at work, or during examination times or when moving house.

Despite some views that PMS is a complaint of â neurotic women, there is no consistent relationship between women’s personalities and PMS. There do, however, appear to be links between PMS and general psychological health. Women who are psychiatrically ill may experience more, and more severe, premenstrual psychological symptoms than psychologically healthy women. Women with PMS are more likely to have had a depressive illness in the past and more likely to have had postnatal depression (Halbreight 1996). Recently, interest has focused on PMS in perimenopausal women. During the time leading up to the menopause, PMS can become more severe and blur into the menopause. It is possible that some women are more vulnerable than others to hormonal fluctuations and are therefore at risk of problems with PMS, the menopause, and a mild form of postnatal depression and so require extra support at these times.

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