Q. I’ve heard that certain foods can relieve PMS symptoms. If this true, which ones should I eat? Is there a time of the month when they’re most helpful? I have severe cramps and emotional swings. – Kris, Penacook, N.H.
A. The best dietary solution for premenstrual syndrome, according to key research, is to be sure you get enough calcium and vitamin D — to which we’d add magnesium and DHA, our favorite form of omega-3 fatty acids. (We’d also emphasize that any D you take should be D-3, the type your skin naturally makes.) One of the biggest medical studies to peek at what women with PMS were or weren’t eating found that nurses who got plenty of calcium and D (about 1,300 milligrams of calcium and 700 IU of D daily) had far less PMS than those who ate the least. Here’s how the other nutrients may help:
