Period cramps could lead to chronic pain, study finds    

Period cramps are anything but harmless. In fact, according to a study conducted by the University of Oxford, these may be indicators of chronic body pain later in life. The Oxford study, published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, was an investigative piece into how painful period cramps, dysmenorrhoea, in adolescence may lead to body pains in young adults. Not only is this pain long-lived, but it may even extend to areas such as the head, the back, and the joints.

Menstrual pains have been known to disrupt the lives of young women and, more often than not, are brushed aside as a "natural" part of growing up. Women now understand that it did not have to be like this if the condition had been taken seriously from the very beginning.

Professor Katy Vincent, a gynaecologist and senior author of the study, noted that it is high time we recognised the seriousness of the ailment. Considering that there is an indisputable connection between menstrual pains and chronic body pain in young adults, Vincent feels that this is a very late wake-up call for everyone associated.

Immediate attention must be turned to improving education and awareness on menstruation, reducing stigma and ensuring that young women have access to proper support and treatment early on.

There are plenty of ways that one can reduce menstrual pain. Out of these, heat therapy, or using hot water bottles on the abdomen and lower back, is proven to be immensely helpful. Eating anti-inflammatory foods such as pineapples, tomatoes, and garlic can all contribute to reducing pain. As enticing as it may feel to reach for sugar- or sodium-heavy snacks, both can work against you, making you more inflamed and bloated. Over-the-counter medicines can help with mild pain, as can massages.

However, what can work more than any of this, what can truly be beneficial, is the support of doctors and professionals who accept that menstrual pains are a real form of discomfort that must be eased for young women, and not something that should simply be tolerated. Once menstrual pain is recognised as an actual ailment, more and more girls will feel empowered to discuss their predicament and benefit from proper diagnosis.