Endometriosis is a chronic, often painful condition affecting millions of women worldwide. While traditional treatments like surgery and hormone therapy are common, dietary and supplement intervention may help to manage symptoms, especially pain, fatigue, and digestive discomfort.
A recent international survey, published in JAMA Network Open, explored this very topic. With responses from over 2,300 women with a confirmed diagnosis of endometriosis, the study aimed to understand which dietary and supplement strategies were being used, and whether they were helping.
What Did the Study Find?
A significant 83.8% of participants had tried at least one dietary modification, and 58.8% had used supplements.
Of those who made dietary changes, 66.9% felt it helped reduce their pain.
For supplement users, 43.4% reported pain relief.
Pain scores were noticeably lower among those who found dietary or supplement strategies effective.
Most Common Dietary Changes That Helped:
Reducing alcohol (53.2% reported benefit)
Cutting back on gluten (45.4%)
Reducing dairy (45.2%)
Lowering caffeine intake (43.4%)
Eliminating processed sugars (41%)
Interestingly, specific diets like low-FODMAP were less commonly used, and fewer respondents found them beneficial.
Supplements that helped participants:
Magnesium was the most popular supplement, with about a third of users (32.3%) noting improvement in pain levels.
Vitamin D was also shown to be beneficial (15%) reporting improvements in pain.
The data supports findings from previous surveys and clinical trials suggesting that dietary modifications may help individuals manage pain associated with endometriosis.
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