A single large dose of vitamin D can help women with painful periods feel more comfortable and skip analgesics, report Italian researchers.
Antonino LaCo, MD, from the University of Messina and his team compared the use of the dose of vitamin D with placebo pills. They studied 40 women, aged between 18 and 40 years. Everyone had painful menstrual periods known as dysmenorrhea. It affects almost half of the women who menstruate.
Besides pain, there may be nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and sleep problems.
"We observed a significant reduction of pain in vitamin D group compared to the placebo group for the duration of two months of our study," writes Lasco. The study is published in the files of internal medicine.
The used dose was very high: 300,000 international units (UI). A dose of 4,000 IU per day is termable "" tolerable top "by the US Medicine Institute. This would be about 240,000 UI over two months.
Women should not try this approach on their own, Warning Tarek Bardawil, MD, Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Miller Miller School of Medicine. He revised the WebMD conclusions. "The number of patients studied is very few," he says. "The dose is very high. Before we go to conclusions, we need more studies. "
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Excess production of similar substances to hormones Called prostaglandins can trigger painful periods. Vitamin D is known to reduce their production.
The lip team randomly assigned 40 women to get vitamin D or placebo pills. Women took them five days before the start of the expected cycle.
For two months, women traced their menstrual pain. They said if they made any analgesics off the shelf, such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (AINES).
Those in vitamin D not only reported less pain, none said they took any analgesic from AINE during the two months.
Forty percent of women at placebo said they took a painkiller at least once.
ANIN analgesics are typically prescribed for painful periods. However, long-term use can carry risks such as gastrointestinal problems.
However, they say the study is just a starting point. Larger studies are needed, with longer follow-up.
It is not known if a single dose would suffice. If repeated doses are required, the focus must be in keeping the dose on a safe level, they say.
Researchers also need to analyze the risks and benefits of long term, they say. Women would probably take this medicine, if that endure, for many years.
"I would call more than a pilot study," says Bardawil. "Logic to use 300,000 UI needs to be justified."
The cost for the dose would be low, about $ 10.
