New research reveals that carbonated soft drinks may increase the severity of menstrual pain, while moderate coffee consumption offers a surprising protective effect against severe dysmenorrhea. Study: Associations between soft drinks intake and primary dysmenorrhea among Chinese undergraduate female students . Image Credit: Kmpzzz / Shutterstock.
com A recent study published in Scientific Reports investigates the potential role of soft drink intake on the development of primary dysmenorrhea (PD) in Chinese women. What is PD? PD, which is one of the most common painful conditions affecting women throughout the world, causes affected individuals to experience pain during menstruation without pelvic disease. Current estimates indicate that 45-95% of female undergraduate students suffer from PD throughout the world, including 40% of young Chinese undergraduates.
The cramping lower abdominal pains associated with PD can negatively affect an individual’s quality of life, cause loss of working hours, and increase healthcare costs. In the United States, PD is responsible for the loss of 600 million work hours at an economic cost of two billion U.S.
dollars (USD). Similarly, total healthcare costs for patients with PD in Japan can reach up to 2.2 times higher than costs incurred by women without PD.
Rural women are more affected by soft drinks: Women from rural areas who consumed carbonated soft drinks were 40% more likely to experience PD compared to their non-consuming counterpart.