Decreased dysmenorrhea pain in girls by reducing oxidative stress and inflammatory biomarkers following supplementation with oleoylethanolamide: A randomized controlled trial

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the oleoylethanolamide (OEA) effects on oxidative stress and inflammatory factors in girls with primary dysmenorrhea. This double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was done on population consisted of female students who had dysmenorrhea pain based on the visual analogue scale (VAS) questionnaire. Patients were randomly allocated to groups consuming a capsule containing 125 mg of OEA per day (n=22) or placebo (n=22) for 2 months. The severity of the pain, total antioxidant capacity (TAC), malondialdehyde (MDA), C-reactive protein (CRP), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) were measured at the beginning and the end of the study. In this study, SPSS software was used to analyze the data. According to the results, oral supplementation with OEA for 60 days significantly increased TAC (p=0.022) and decreased the menstrual pain (p=0.040), MDA (p=0.011), CRP (p=0.01), and TNF-α (p=0.038) compared to the placebo group. Also, intragroup changes were statistically significant on the mean of pain (p=0.042), TAC (p=0.032), MDA (p=0.023), CRP (p=0.027), and TNF-α (p=0.029) at the end of the study in the intervention group. Changes in the studied factors at the end of the study compared to the beginning of the study in the placebo group were not statistically significant. Considering the reducing effects of OEA on menstrual pain, using of this supplement can be introduced as an alternative medicine to reduce the use of anti-inflammatory drugs.