Hot Water Bottle Really Does Ease Period Pains
It is advice women have passed
down through the generations - a
hot water bottle on the tummy can ease
period pain. Now scientists have proved
that granny really did know best. They
say placing something warm on the
skin can alleviate abdominal pain - such
as that caused by cystitis or menstrual
cramps - in a similar way to painkillers
for up to an hour. The research will be
welcomed by millions of women who
suffer debilitating period pains, which
can leave them bedridden. For some, the
pain can be so severe that their careers,
social lives and relationships are affected.
The scientists, from University College
London, found that heat treatment
works by blocking pain messages to
the brain. Presenting his findings to the
Physiological Society’s annual conference,
Dr Brian King said: ‘The pain of colic,
cystitis and menstrual period pain is
caused by a temporary reduction in
blood flow to organs, causing local tissue
damage and activating pain receptors.
‘The heat doesn’t just provide comfort
and have a placebo effect - it actually
deactivates the pain at a molecular level
in much the same way as pharmaceutical
painkillers work. Dr King did add however
that, ‘The problem with heat is that it can
only provide temporary relief.
