Breast pain during menstruation

It is a normal physiological phenomenon for girls to have breast pain during their menstrual period, because the breasts will develop during menstruation, and the secretion of estrogen will increase, the breasts will swell, and girls will experience varying degrees of pain. At this time, we can massage the breasts appropriately, which can relieve pain and promote breast development. Now let us understand the causes of breast pain during menstruation.

1. Is it normal to have breast tenderness before menstruation?

Breast tenderness before your period is normal.

Before menstruation, estrogen levels increase, causing breast swelling and even varying degrees of pain and tenderness; after menstruation, estrogen and progesterone levels drop rapidly. The stimulation of estrogen on the mammary gland is weakened, the mammary gland undergoes involution changes, the secretion of mammary duct epithelial cells decreases, the cells shrink and fall off, the edema subsides, the breast becomes smaller and softer, and the pain disappears.

2. What causes breast pain before menstruation?

1. Endocrine factors

Breast tenderness before menstruation may be related to endocrine factors, psychological factors, or water and salt retention in the body. It may also be due to abnormal release of endorphins, leading to dysfunction of the hypothalamus-pituitary-ovary-uterus axis or a lack of B vitamins in the body.

2. Pathological factors

Breast tenderness before menstruation is a manifestation of premenstrual syndrome caused by increased estrogen levels in the body, breast hyperplasia, and edema of breast tissue. Symptoms usually disappear after menstruation. If nodules or lumps appear in the breast and do not disappear after the menstrual period, the possibility of breast hyperplasia or breast malignancy cannot be ruled out. Regular checks are necessary for early prevention and treatment.

3. Premenstrual breast pain is related to the liver and stomach

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the breasts belong to the stomach meridian and the nipples belong to the liver meridian, so premenstrual breast pain is also related to the liver and stomach.

Liver depression and qi stagnation

Liver depression and qi stagnation are related to bad mood or excessive stress. In addition to breast pain, these women may also experience restlessness, irritability, nausea, and clumpy and dark menstrual blood.

Liver depression and spleen dampness

Common symptoms of liver depression and spleen dampness include obvious breast pain before menstruation, lower abdominal pain accompanied by a feeling of heaviness, poor appetite, weakness in the limbs, heavy and light-colored menstruation and excessive leucorrhea after menstruation.

Liver and kidney yin deficiency

People with liver and kidney yin deficiency may experience premenstrual breast pain, as well as irritability, poor sleep, headache and dizziness, hot hands and feet, thin body, sore waist, weak knees, red lips, and easy oral ulcers.

From the introduction in this article, we can know that breast pain before menstruation is generally normal, but some breast pain is pathological. Therefore, you'd better carefully refer to the contents of this article to find out what is causing your breast pain so that you can take the right medicine and receive the necessary treatment.