Photo Credit: Anastasia Usenko

Current treatment strategies for endometriosis primarily involve surgical intervention or hormone-suppressing medications, researchers note in JAMA Network Open. Emerging evidence suggests the gut microbiome plays a role in regulating pain associated with inflammatory diseases, including endometriosis, and dietary modifications have been explored as a potential approach to alleviate symptoms.

Philippa Saunders, PhD, and colleagues sought to understand which dietary strategies women with endometriosis use and how these impact pain management. They conducted an online survey asking women with this neuroinflammatory reproductive disorder about dietary changes they made and any supplements they used, as well as whether they found these beneficial for managing pain.

 A total of 2,388 women with a confirmed diagnosis of endometriosis completed the 24-question survey. Most of the respondents reported experiencing pelvic pain (96.9%) and frequent abdominal bloating (91.2%). Of the respondents, 83.8% had made at least one dietary change, and 58.8% used supplements, with 66.9% and 43.4% reporting that these strategies improved their pain, respectively.

Pain Relief Associated With Different Diet Changes

The authors found that some of the most popular dietary modifications women had tried improved endometriosis pain. These included:

• Reducing alcohol consumption (53.2%)
• Eating less gluten (45.4%)
• Consuming less dairy (45.2%)
• Reducing caffeine intake (43.4%)

The survey results indicated that fewer people tried structured diets like the low-FODMAP diet, with only 32.1% finding it helpful for pain. Among those who used magnesium supplements, 32.3% reported pain relief.

Participants were also asked to rate their pain scores on a 0-10 scale. Respondents who reported symptom improvement had significantly lower pain scores than those who did not. Those who reported pain relief from dietary changes and supplement use had a median pain score of 4.0 vs 5.0 for those who saw no benefit (P<0.001).

The researchers acknowledged a few limitations of the research, including that participants were already interested in dietary changes, a lack of alternative language options, and questions regarding the lengths of diet use and impact on abdominal bloating.

“These data supported the findings of previous surveys and clinical trials that suggested dietary modifications may help individuals manage pain associated with endometriosis,” Dr. Saunders and colleagues wrote. “However, no single modification was uniquely perceived as beneficial, and none of the changes were helpful for some individuals.”