(IJIRSE) International Journal of Innovative Research in Science & Engineering ISSN (Online) 2347-3207 Study on The Prevalence of Pre Menstrual Syndrome and Its Relationship With Age at Menarche, Anthropometric Measure and Anemia Rafia Bano*, Khairiyah Ahmad Al Mulyhan *, *College of Applied Medical sciences, Department of Clinical nutrition, University of hail, Hail, KSA Abstract:-Background : Menstrual cycle is the cycle of changes that occurs in the uterus and ovary for the purpose of sexual reproduction.1,2 Premenstrual symptoms are defined as one or more types of physical, physiological or emotional changes before the starting of menstrual cycles. Objectives: The objectives of the present study were to find the prevalence and severity of premenstrual symptoms in the selected sample of staff and students of Hail university in Saudi Arabia, and its correlation with BMI and different parameters of the menstrual cycle. Methodology: Survey was carried out on a sample of 206 female students and staff of Hail university using a pretested and modified questionnaire. The questionnaire included questions related to the menstrual cycle, anthropometric measures, and the prevalence of PMS and dysmenorrheal. Hemoglobin estimation was done to know the presence of anemia. Analysis was done using SPSS-17.0 software. Results: The present study shows mean age at menarche as 12.94±1.61 years. Majority of the subjects (96.1%) reported any 2 or more premenstrual symptoms. Prevalence of dysmenorrhea was found to be 90.3%. This could be attributed to the high prevalence rate of obesity, however the BMI was not significantly correlated to Premenstrual symptoms (PMS). On the other hand correlation between PMS and percent body fat was statistically significant. Conclusion: Both PMS and dysmenorrhea as well as obesity was found to be highly prevalent in the present study. Therefore it could be concluded that there is a need of intervention and health education programs for the overall health promotion to the effected population. Further studies need to be done on large scale to find out the cause of this high prevalence rate. Key word : Premenstrual symptoms, menarche, Anthropometry, anemia, Hemoglobin I. INTRODUCTION Menstruation is a natural process which takes place in woman's body every month. Before explaining the Premenstrual symptoms, it seems ap- propriate to discuss, in short, tha t why does this take place? God has created the woman such that she plays the major role in the perpetuation of the human race. The primary reproductive organs of a woman are her ovaries. When a girl is born, her ovaries already con- tain about 400,000 immature eggs (which are known as ova). At puberty, the eggs start maturing, usually one ovum each month. The maturing of the ovum takes place roughly halfway between two menstrual cycles. After maturing, it finds its way from the ovary to the fallopian tube and ends up in the womb. Meanwhile the womb (while preparing for the possi- ble arrival of a fertilized egg) develops a thick, soft, velvety lining which is made up mostly of blood vessels.3 This thick, soft lining in the womb is called endometrium. If an egg is fertilized, it will be embedded in endometrium and continues its growth. But if no egg is fer- tilized, the endometrium (i.e. the lining of the womb) is no longer needed and is shed or discarded. This process of discarding the endometrium is known as menstruation.3 From this biological explanation it is clear that menstruation is neither "the curse" on woman nor a result of the so‑called original sin of Eve. Rather it is a very normal biological process that ensures the perpetuation of the human race.3 In humans, the length of a menstrual cycle varies greatly among women (ranging from 21 to 35 days), with 28 days designated as the average length.4 Each cycle can be divided into three phases based on events in the ovary (ovarian cycle) or in the uterus (uterine cycle).1 The ovarian cycle consists of the follicular phase, ovulation, and luteal phase whereas the uterine cycle is divided into menstruation, proliferative phase, and secretory phase. Both cycles are controlled by the endocrine system and the normal hormonal changes that occur can be interfered with using hormonal contraception to prevent reproduction.5