Vitamin E helps relieving menstrual cramps

Taking vitamin E for a few days might help relieving the menstrual cramps in women.In a recent study, of teenage girls, researchers from the University in Tehran found that the girls who took vitamin E two days before their periods suffered less cramps as compared to their peers who used the standard pain medication. After four months, the girls who took vitamin E had cramps for less than two hours, on average, during their periods as compared to 17 hours in those who did not take the vitamin. Common menstrual cramps, or primary dysmenorrhea, are thought to result from the release of hormone-like substances called prostaglandins. Prostaglandins cause the uterus to contract in order to expel the uterine lining, resulting in menstrual blood flow. Vitamin E, by acting on two enzymes in the body, can inhibit the formation of prostaglandins and, potentially, menstrual cramps.

To investigate whether vitamin E helps in relieving menstrual cramps, the researchers assigned 278 girls, 15 to 17 years of age, with primary dysmenorrhea to take either vitamin E or an inactive placebo pill. Girls in the vitamin E group took 200 milligrams (mg) of the vitamin twice a day, starting two days before they expected their periods and continuing through the third day of menstruation. Both groups were allowed to take ibuprofen if they needed to.After four months, girls in the vitamin E group showed a sharp reduction in the number of hours they suffered cramps each month. Few 4 per cent reported using ibuprofen, compared with 89 per cent of girls in the placebo group.

Girls in both groups said their periods got lighter during the study period, but the change was greater in the vitamin group.
The dose of vitamin E used in the study, 200 mg twice a day is significantly higher than the recommended daily intake of 20 mg, but still well within the range that experts consider unlikely to cause adverse effects. U.S. health officials set the upper tolerable intake level for vitamin E at 1,000 mg per day.