EFFECTS OF INTEGRATIVE PRACTICES ON WOMEN'S HEALTH DURING THE MENSTRUAL CYCLE

AN INTEGRATIVE REVIEW

Abstract

The main complaints reported in female health are related to the menstrual cycle, such as premenstrual symptoms and pelvic pain, interfering with daily life and self-care. Research shows that non-pharmacological practices promote well-being, motivation and pain relief, restoring the physical, emotional and spiritual energies of this group. This study aims to: review the panorama of scientific health research published in the literature on the effects of complementary integrative practices on women's health during the menstrual cycle from the perspective of Western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine. To this end, an integrative review of the literature was carried out, with data collected from the following databases: PubMed portal of the US National Library of Medicine; Web of Science (WoS); Scopus; Latin American and Caribbean Literature in Health Sciences (LILACS) and Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online (MEDLINE) via the Virtual Health Library (VHL) portal; with the descriptors: women's health; self-care; menstrual cycle and complementary therapies; in Portuguese and English. The Ursi Instrument was used to collect data with information grouped and compiled into a Microsoft Office Excel® 2010 spreadsheet. After data collection, 37 articles made up the sample. It was found that the scientific evidence corresponds to integrative and complementary practices with mediations related to Premenstrual Syndrome, Dysmenorrhea, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome and Endometriosis. Likewise, it is noted that the studies analyzed use Phytotherapy, Aromatherapy, Acupressure, among other practices, whether from Western medicine or traditional Chinese medicine, demonstrating their effectiveness in women's health. In view of this, the research found that Integrative and Complementary Health Practices, such as acupressure, auriculotherapy, aromatherapy, phytotherapy and yoga, as well as nutritional and vitamin supplementation, when introduced into women's health, can contribute to the reduction of health problems caused by gynecological disorders and integration of health professionals in the individualization of treatment, contributing in a complementary way to therapeutic interventions.