Period syncing: is it a real thing?

Many women tell the same story: they were living at home and had their period at the same time as their mother or sister, or they were in halls at university, and their menstrual cycle aligned with someone else’s living in close proximity.

Almost every woman can say their period appears to have synced with whoever they’re hanging out with at some point in their life. So, is it the case that we’re all so in tune with each other that our menstrual cycles shift to occur simultaneously? Or is there another explanation?

Period syncing comes from a theory proposed in the 70s called the “McClintock Effect”, that suggests that when women live together, their pheromones can influence each other, causing monthly cycles to shift and line up.² However, recent research fails to find any scientific basis for the phenomenon.

Three times during the academic year, McClintock asked each person to note down the date their last two periods began and the two people in their dormitory they saw most often. The data revealed an increase in menstrual synchronisation between roommates and close friends. McClintock questions whether pheromones could play a role in menstrual synchronisation.

Fast forward to 1998, and McClintock releases another study finding a link between compounds from the underarm secretions of women, or pheromones, and the length of the menstrual cycle of women exposed to the extracts.³ 

Specifically, McClintock’s research found that pheromones from women in the early follicular phase of a menstrual cycle appeared to shorten the cycle of other women. By contrast, exposure to pheromones from women at midcycle during ovulation seemed to lengthen the menstrual cycle of others. Exposure to pheromones after ovulation had no impact on the periods of others in this study. Human pheromones definitely exist, but whether they influence other people's periods is still hotly debated as since then, other studies haven’t been able to see these results and some researchers have implied there may have been some reporting errors in the original study. Others have since debunked this theory too.⁴

Scholars and philosophers throughout history have also drawn parallels between the menstrual and lunar cycles, especially since they share a similar cycle length. The menstrual cycle has a median duration of 28 days, while the lunar cycle is around 29.5 days.,^6,7 

Older research from 1986 discovered a synchronous relationship between the menstrual and lunar cycles in a population of women.⁸ Among 826 females with normal menstrual cycles, 28.3% of them began their period around the new moon. However, a longer-term 2013 study evaluating menstrual cycles over a calendar year found no such synchrony.⁹ Recently, the moon and menstrual cycle conversation has reignited. A 2021 study analysed long-term menstrual recordings of 22 women who tracked the start of their period for up to 32 years.¹⁰

The study revealed that menstrual cycles longer than 27 days temporarily synchronised with two out of three of the moon’s cycles: the luminance and gravimetric cycles. The luminance cycle had the most influence over the menstrual cycle. The researchers hypothesised that in ancient times, the female menstrual cycle was in sync with the moon, but artificial light and modern lifestyles may have significantly altered this synchrony. Further research with larger study populations is necessary to confirm these findings.

However, scientific studies have been unable to prove that menstrual synchrony exists, and when they have, researchers have explained it as coincidental.

A period tracking app teamed up with the University of Oxford in 2017 to review data from 1,500 women who suspected they’d experienced period syncing.¹³ Their data scientists found that the menstrual cycles of individuals living together didn’t align, demonstrating that it’s unlikely that women can disrupt each other’s monthly cycles by being in close proximity.

Factors contributing to irregular periods may include:^14-22

• perimenopause
  
• primary ovarian insufficiency
• losing or gaining a significant amount of weight 
• eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia 
• excessive exercise (especially running excessively) 
• stress 
• antidepressants 
• antipsychotics 
• steroids 
• weight loss medications 
• ADHD medications
• hormone contraception, including the contraceptive pill, injections and patches
• intrauterine system (IUS) 
• underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism) 
  
• overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism) 
• miscarriage
• fibroids 
• endometriosis 
  
• polycystic ovary syndrome 
  
• pelvic inflammatory disease

Irregular periods aren’t usually a sign of a medical condition.²³ However, if you notice a change to your usual menstrual pattern, your periods last longer than seven days, or you have other accompanying symptoms, consult your GP for advice.

Older studies found a link between women living together and period syncing. However, recent research using more extensive data sets reveals that women who live together don’t sync their periods and that earlier research was nothing more than coincidence. 

The jury is still out on whether the moon cycle can in any way influence menstruation. We’ll have to wait and see what new studies show. But, for now, if you’re having period irregularities, consult your doctor. 

They can rule out medical conditions that could be causing changes to your cycle and suggest the best treatment options.