Disclaimer: None of the information in this article constitutes medical advice, and is just the opinion of the writer(s) and published for informational purposes only. We recommend that patients follow their doctor’s guidance in regard to over-the-counter (OTC) medication.
Midol is a popular OTC medication that claims to relieve period symptoms such as cramps, bloating and fatigue. It’s manufactured and sold by Bayer, which is one of the largest international pharmaceutical companies.
Many consumers turn to Midol when they’re experiencing uncomfortable period symptoms, but are its ingredients actually proven to work based on medical research? Are there any questionable additives in the product?
These are the questions we’ll seek to answer in this article.
Midol Complete Active Ingredient Review
The standard Midol product is called “Midol Complete” and claims to provide 6 hours of symptom relief. It contains three active ingredients.
The first active ingredient, acetaminophen, is a pain reliever that’s common in many OTC drugs. As we documented in our recent DayQuil ingredients article, of another brand containing this ingredient, acetaminophen is backed by significant medical research. It’s proven in medical trials to reduce pain significantly. We consider this an effective ingredient for pain relief.
Caffeine is the second active ingredient, at a dosage of 60 milligrams (mg). This is around two-thirds of the caffeine content in a standard cup of coffee.
Bayer doesn’t seem to explicitly state why caffeine is included. The manufacturer notes that caffeine is a diuretic, so presumably it’s included to reduce water-weight gain. A clinical trial published in the Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism medical journal found that coffee intake was associated with greater reductions in water weight short-term. Coffee, and by proxy caffeine, increased fluid excretion.
This suggests that coffee is an effective diuretic, but we can’t find any medical research suggesting that caffeine is effective for bloating.
Pyrilamine maleate is the final active ingredient, and is an antihistamine. This ingredient appears to be particularly effective for treating premenstrual syndrome (PMS)-related pain according to medical research, so we find it to be a high-quality ingredient inclusion.
Antihistamines may also reduce other symptoms of PMS such as headache and fatigue.
Overall we consider this to be a well-formulated drug that’s likely to reduce the severity of period symptoms and provide relief. We cannot locate much medical research suggesting that this product is effective for bloating, but there does appear to be demonstrated efficacy for the other health claims.
Midol Complete Inactive Ingredient Review
Midol Complete contains two inactive ingredients that we recommend consumers avoid.
The first is FD&C Blue #2, which is an artificial food dye. As we’ve mentioned in many of our articles, we recommend that people avoid artificial food dyes as much as possible as they provide no nutritional benefits and may be harmful to human health.
A medical review of the toxicology of food dyes, published in the International Journal of Occupational Medicine and Environmental Health, concluded the following: “The inadequacy of much of the testing and the evidence for carcinogenicity, genotoxicity, and hypersensitivity…indicates that all of the currently used dyes should be removed from the food supply and replaced, if at all, by safer colorings.”
This product also contains titanium dioxide which is banned in the European Union (E.U.) for use as a food additive due to toxicity concerns. The E.U. has much better consumer protections than the U.S.
We would not recommend this product due to the inclusion of these additive ingredients.
Better Alternative
We recommend that patients speak with their doctor about taking magnesium and Vitamin B6 to naturally reduce PMS symptoms.
A clinical trial found that this combination decreased PMS scores on average. It’s unclear whether this is because patients suffering from PMS have lower levels of these nutrients or whether they have other biological effects, but we consider this combination to be a relatively safe and natural treatment that’s free of additives like artificial dye.
The dosages used in the trial were 250 mg of magnesium and 40 mg of Vitamin B6.
We’re not suggesting that this treatment will be as effective as Midol; we just consider it to be a healthier option and likely to be at least somewhat effective for most patients.
Can Men Take Midol?
Because Midol treats a number of discomforting symptoms like bloating and headache that either sex can experience, male consumers are often curious if they can take this OTC drug to relieve those same symptoms.
According to Midol’s FAQ page, it’s safe for men to take Midol if they’re experiencing similar symptoms to women with PMS. The brand notes that the formulation was created specifically for women.
While we don’t believe that Midol is likely to be harmful to men, we wouldn’t recommend that men take this drug because there are other options to treat headache and bloating that aren’t formulated specifically for painful periods, and are free of artificial dye and titanium dioxide.
