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"&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Menstrual cramps, also called dysmenorrhea, are cramping aches and pains that typically affect the lower abdomen but may also radiate to the lower back and thighs. Thought to be caused by excess levels of prostaglandins (hormone-like substances linked to pain and inflammation), menstrual cramps often occur just before and during the first few days of a woman&amp;amp;#39;s menstrual period. Some women also experience loose stools, headaches, nausea or dizziness.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;For many women, menstrual cramps occur without an underlying health condition (such as endometriosis). But if you&amp;amp;#39;re experiencing regular or severe cramping, consult your doctor to see if you&amp;amp;#39;re suffering from an underlying health issue that might be causing the pain (such as &amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;https://www.verywell.com/natural-treatments-for-endometriosis-89275&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;internalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;1&amp;quot;&amp;gt;endometriosis&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;, pelvic inflammatory disease, or uterine fibroids).&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;h3&amp;gt;Herbal Remedies for Menstrual Cramps&amp;lt;/h3&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;So far, scientific support for the claim that any remedy can treat menstrual cramps is limited.\u00A0Here&amp;amp;#39;s a look at four kinds of herbal medicine that are sometimes recommended by alternative medicine practitioners:&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;h3&amp;gt;1) Ginger&amp;lt;/h3&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;This warming herb may help ease cramps and soothe menstrual troubles by lowering levels of pain-causing prostaglandins (as well as fight the fatigue commonly associated with premenstrual syndrome). In a 2009 study, women who took 250 mg capsules of ginger four times a day for three days from the start of their menstrual period experienced a level of pain relief equal to that of study members who treated their menstrual cramps with ibuprofen.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Another study, published in &amp;lt;em&amp;gt;BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine&amp;lt;/em&amp;gt; in 2012, analyzed the use of ginger root powder or a placebo in 120 women with moderate or severe primary dysmenorrhea and found that there were significant differences in the severity of pain between the ginger and placebo groups. Those taking ginger root powder two days before the onset of their menstrual period and continuing through the first three days of their menstrual period had the shortest duration of pain.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Find out more about the &amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;https://www.verywell.com/health-benefits-of-ginger-89213&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;internalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;2&amp;quot;&amp;gt;health benefits of ginger&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; and learn how to make your own &amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;https://www.verywell.com/ginger-tea-recipe-88180&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;internalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;3&amp;quot;&amp;gt;ginger tea&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;h3&amp;gt;2) Fennel&amp;lt;/h3&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;An herb with a licorice-like taste and celery-like crunchy texture, fennel contains anethole (a compound with anti-spasm effects) that may help to ease menstrual cramps in some women.\u00A0The available research includes a study published in the &amp;lt;em&amp;gt;Iranian Journal of Nursing and Midwifery Research&amp;lt;/em&amp;gt;\u00A0in 2015 that examined the effects of a fennel extract (fennelin) and vitagnus compared to the pain medication mefenamic acid for primary dysmenorrhea. For the study, 105 women with mild to moderate dysmenorrhea took either fennel extract, vitex extract, mefenamic acid, or a placebo. During the two cycles after the intervention, both fennelin and vitagnus had a greater effect compared with the mefenamic acid.\u00A0&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;3) Raspberry Leaf Tea&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Sipping soothing &amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;https://www.verywell.com/the-benefits-of-red-raspberry-leaf-88646&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;internalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;4&amp;quot;&amp;gt;raspberry leaf tea&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt; may help relieve menstrual cramps, possibly by relaxing the muscles in the uterus. Pregnant or nursing women and people with hormone-sensitive conditions (such as breast cancer) should avoid red raspberry leaf.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;h3&amp;gt;4) Pycnogenol\u00AE&amp;lt;/h3&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Extracted from the bark of pine trees, the supplement Pycnogenol\u00AE was found to significantly diminish pain and reduce the need for analgesic pain medication among a group of women with menstrual cramps in one 2008 study.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;5) Chinese Herbs&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;In a 2007 report, scientists sized up 39 studies (involving a total of 3,475 women) and concluded that Chinese herbs may alleviate menstrual cramps more effectively than over-the-counter pain medications. Most study participants were given formulas containing five or six herbs (used in\u00A0&amp;lt;a href=&amp;quot;https://www.verywell.com/emotions-in-traditional-chinese-medicine-88196&amp;quot; data-component=&amp;quot;link&amp;quot; data-source=&amp;quot;inlineLink&amp;quot; data-type=&amp;quot;internalLink&amp;quot; data-ordinal=&amp;quot;5&amp;quot;&amp;gt;traditional Chinese medicine&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;), such as Chinese angelica root, fennel fruit, licorice root, cinnamon bark, and red peony root.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;According to a survey published in the &amp;lt;em&amp;gt;Journal of Ethnopharmacology&amp;lt;/em&amp;gt; in 2014, the herbal formula most frequently recommended for primary dysmenorrhea in Taiwan is &amp;amp;#34;Dang-gui-shao-yao-san&amp;amp;#34; which contains Dang gui (&amp;lt;em&amp;gt;Angelica sinensis&amp;lt;/em&amp;gt;)\u00A0and Peony powder and is believed to have sedative and anti-inflammatory compounds.&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;h3&amp;gt;Using Herbs for Menstrual Cramps&amp;lt;/h3&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;If you&amp;amp;#39;re considering using herbs (or other forms of alternative medicine) for menstrual cramps, it&amp;amp;#39;s important to talk with your doctor first to weigh the pros and cons.\u00A0&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;sub&amp;gt;Sources&amp;lt;/sub&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;sub&amp;gt;Bokaie M1, Farajkhoda T, Enjezab B, Khoshbin A, Karimi-Zarchi M. Oral fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) drop effect on primary dysmenorrhea: Effectiveness of herbal drug. Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2013 Mar;18(2):128-32.&amp;lt;/sub&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;sub&amp;gt;Kohama T, Suzuki N, Ohno S, Inoue M. Analgesic efficacy of French maritime pine bark extract in dysmenorrhea: an open clinical trial. J Reprod Med. 2004 Oct;49(10):828-32.&amp;lt;/sub&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;sub&amp;gt;Pan JC, Tsai YT, Lai JN, Fang RC, Yeh CH. The traditional Chinese medicine prescription pattern of patients with primary dysmenorrhea in Taiwan: a large-scale cross-sectional survey. J Ethnopharmacol. 2014 Mar 14;152(2):314-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2014.01.002. Epub 2014 Jan 10.&amp;lt;/sub&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;sub&amp;gt;Suzuki N, Uebaba K, Kohama T, Moniwa N, Kanayama N, Koike K. &amp;amp;#34;French maritime pine bark extract significantly lowers the requirement for analgesic medication in dysmenorrhea: a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.&amp;amp;#34; Journal of Reproductive Medicine 2008 53(5):338-46.&amp;lt;/sub&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;sub&amp;gt;Zeraati F, Shobeiri F, Nazari M, Araghchian M, Bekhradi R. Comparative evaluation of the efficacy of herbal drugs (fennelin and vitagnus) and mefenamic acid in the treatment of primary dysmenorrhea. Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2014 Nov;19(6):581-4.&amp;lt;/sub&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;sub&amp;gt;Zhu X, Proctor M, Bensoussan A, Smith CA, Wu E. &amp;amp;#34;Chinese herbal medicine for primary dysmenorrhoea.&amp;amp;#34; Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2007 17;(4):CD005288.&amp;lt;/sub&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;&amp;lt;em&amp;gt;Disclaimer: The information contained on this site is intended for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for advice, diagnosis or treatment by a licensed physician. It is not meant to cover all possible precautions, drug interactions, circumstances or adverse effects. You should seek prompt medical care for any health issues and consult your doctor before using alternative medicine or making a change to your regimen.&amp;lt;/em&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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