effects of zinc supplementation on premenstrual syndrome: a systematic review of observational and randomized clinical trials

Background and objectives: premenstrual  syndrome is  a  common  problem  in  young  females, characterized by a variety of physical, psychological, emotional and behavioral symptoms. studies on the effectiveness of zinc supplementation in decreasing premenstrual syndrome symptoms have shown contradictory results. therefore, the purpose of this systematic review was to summarize the available data, address discrepancies and pinpoint patterns in premenstrual syndrome zinc supplementation research.materials and methods: data within pubmed, scopus and isi web of science databases until december 2023 were searched to collect data on the associations between zinc and premenstrual syndrome. this systematic review included keywords such as “premenstrual syndrome,” “premenstrual dysphoric disorder,” “premenstrual tension,” “zinc,” “zinc sulfate,” and “zinc acetate”. inclusion criteria were original articles, human studies and articles published in english that assessed the association between zinc and premenstrual syndrome. randomized controlled trials and observational studies were included.results: out of 103 studies, 11 studies met the inclusion criteria. observational studies included moderate quality, while randomized controlled trials included high quality. due to data heterogeneity, no significant relationship was detected between zinc supplementation and premenstrual syndrome symptom decrease, preventing a meta-analysis. however, zinc levels were generally lesser in individuals with premenstrual syndrome and randomized controlled trials indicated that zinc supplementation could significantly decrease certain physical and psychological symptoms.conclusions: nutrients, including zinc, are vital for women's health. based on the available evidence, zinc supplementation may help alleviate some symptoms of premenstrual syndrome. however, further clinical trials with larger sample sizes and longer durations are needed to assess the effect of zinc on premenstrual syndrome further reliably.