Women who started smoking when they are young teenagers appear to be at increased risk for severe menstrual cramps. This finding comes from a long-term study of women's health that was done in Australia.
The study found that women who currently smoked and who started by age 13 were 60% more likely to regularly have severe menstrual pain. Severe menstrual pain was defined as pain that lasted longer than two days a month.
About 14% of women taking part in the study said they regularly had very painful cramps during their menstrual periods. In general, about 30% of women say they have painful cramps during their period. However, at sometime during their lives, around 90% of women suffer pain just before or during their menstrual periods.
The Australian study also found that women who were unemployed, who started having periods at a younger age, and who were obese were more likely to have painful cramps. The study looked at information from more than 9,000 Australian women who are taking part in the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health, which started in 1996 and is on-going. Women in the study are surveyed every few years about their lifestyles and habits. As part of the study, they were asked if they had painful periods and if they smoked or had ever. If they ever smoked, they were asked when they started smoking.
This finding is from an observational study, which means that there is a correlation between smoking and painful periods, but that may not mean that smoking causes the painful periods. However, smoking is known to narrow blood vessels and reduce blood flow, which can cause pain. Smoking may also have an effect on the hormones that are involved in menstruation.
The study was conducted at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. It was published on-line at the journal Tobacco Control.
