PMT Please Help Me!

I have a friend who uses evening primrose oil and finds it really helps her (and the hubby and kids).

Yes I must admit for one wek a month, I have little or no patience with my children - poor little darlings:(

I agree with penny watcher, and say that exercise will help release endorphins and make you feel happier.

And chocolate. Plus with the exercise you avoid weight gain perfect combination

Calcium and vitamin D intake and risk of incident premenstrual syndrome. A high intake of calcium and vitamin D may reduce the risk of PMS...... Given that calcium and vitamin D may also reduce the risk of osteoporosis and some cancers, clinicians may consider recommending these nutrients even for younger women.

Cyclical Changes in Calcium Metabolism Across the Menstrual Cycle in Women with Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) when compared to asymptomatic women, women with PMS were shown to have exaggerated fluctuations of the calcium regulating hormones across the menstrual cycle with evidence of vitamin D deficiency and secondary hyperparathyroidism

The Potential for Dietary Supplements to Reduce Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) Symptoms the evidence of efficacy is most convincing for calcium (Tables 1 and 2). The controlled trial of calcium supplementation by Thys-Jacobs et al. URL="http://www.jacn.org/cgi/content/full/19/1/3#R7"][U][COLOR=#0000ff]7[/COLOR][/U][/URL is by far the largest and most rigorous of all the trials of dietary supplementation for PMS that have been completed to date, and its results point to a clear benefit of calcium in relieving PMS symptoms. The overall risk-benefit ratio for calcium supplementation is also favorable; calcium offers long-term benefits for bone health in addition to its immediate benefit in relieving PMS symptoms, and the recommended doses are safe even for women who may become pregnant. A recommendation for the use of a calcium supplement can and should be incorporated into the general dietary and lifestyle suggestions that are usually offered as first-line treatment for patients with PMS. It should be mentioned that the usual multivitamin contains only 10% of the calcium associated with reducing symptoms of PMS.

Do be aware that even using a low standard for Vitamin D sufficiency (75nmol/L as opposed to 80nmol/L) most UK residents are vitamin d insufficient. Optimal Vitamin D status (for peak muscle performance and optimal feelings of wellbeing) requires 125nmol/L. Raising your Vitamin D3 status by taking an EFFECTIVE amount of Vitamin D3 also regulates calcium metabolism.

PS: Remember that Vitamin D3 is free from sunlight. Regular limited (20-40mins) full body prone exposure at midday (when UVB<>UVA ratio is optimal) will raise your status for free but wearing clothes does reduce the amount your skin can synthesise. this shows that at the latitude of Rome men working outdoors all day only averaged 2800iu and were thus insufficient in Winter. It follows that it would be unwise to rely soley on sun exposure and diet to meet your daily use needs.
PPS: The human skin as a hormone target and an endocrine gland.
Hormones influence the development and function of human skin which also produces and releases hormones. Recently attention has been focused on identifying and understanding the complex endocrine properties of human skin, such as expression and function of specific hormone receptors, synthesis of hormones from major classes of compounds used by the body for general purposes, organized metabolism, activation, inactivation and elimination of the hormones in specialized cells of the tissue, exertion of biological activity and release of tissue hormones in the circulation. Specifically, hormones exert their biological effects on the skin through interaction with high-affinity receptors, such as several receptors for peptide hormones and neurotransmitters, steroid and thyroid hormones. Hormones exhibit a wide range of biological activities on the skin with distinct effects caused by growth hormone/insulin-like growth factor-I, neuropeptides, sex steroids, glucocorticoids, retinoids, vitamin D, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor ligands, eicosanoids, melatonin and serotonin. Human skin produces, activates or inactivates metabolically numerous hormones which are probably important for skin functions but also for functions of the entire human organism, such as sex hormones, especially in aged individuals, insulin-like growth factor and -binding proteins, neuropeptides, prolactin, catecholamines, retinoids, steroids, vitamin D and eicosanoids. These functions are undertaken in most cases by different skin cell populations in a coordinated way, indicating the endocrine autonomy of the skin. Characteristic examples are the metabolic pathways of the corticotropin-releasing hormone/propiomelanocortin axis, steroidogenesis, vitamin D and retinoids. The human skin is, thus, the largest, peripheral endocrine organ.

If you keep it covered up, with clothes or sunblock and never expose it to it powerhouse, sunlight, why do expect it to function as it evolution deemed natural?

Thankfully I don't suffer from PMT, just irregular cycles.

Since I improved the balance of my diet and included a lot more fresh, home cooked food instead of the junk that we used to eat my cycle has settled into a much steadier pattern.

This is not to say taking supplements wouldn't help, but trying to get a good, wideranging variety of foods into you may have the same effect.
(Does anyone else suspect Ted runs a vitaminD shop from home?:p )

And if do have chocolate (and yes, we must always before,during and after periods:j ) then the 70 or 80% stuff has even more of the good chemicals in it our brain needs- something to do with serotonin levels, iirc.

Pilot study of the efficacy and safety of a modified-release magnesium 250 mg tablet (Sincromag) for the treatment of premenstrual syndrome.We concluded that modified-release magnesium was effective in reducing premenstrual symptoms in women with PMS in this preliminary study.

You may find that 20minutes soaking in a bath in Dead Sea Salts (magnesium Chloride) does the trick.
Agricultural Merchants sell 25kg (enough for 50 baths) for £7.50ish. It's used for horses/pigs to calm them down but I think it's added to their drinking water.

I should have pointed out that chocolate is a good source of magnesium. So cocoa before bedtime.