An international nonprofit organization, known as the Cochrane Collaboration, studied the effectiveness of Chinese herbal medicine in relieving menstrual pain compared to western drugs.  Their conclusion:  Chinese herbal medicine for primary dysmenorrhea roughly doubled pain relief and improvement in overall symptoms compared with conventional Western pharmaceuticals. (1)

Chinese herbal medicine has been mixed together to treat a wide array of ailments. One of them being menstruation. Here is a common herbal soup mix used to treat menstrual cramps. 

Here are a few common Chinese herbs used for painful menstrual cramps:

1. Chinese Angelica Root (Dang Gui/Dong Quai) - Highly valued for the treatment for a host of women's illnesses, dong quai root has been shown to affect estrogen and other hormones in animals. It has the ability to nourish the blood, strengthen the female reproductive organs, regulate menstruation and alleviate period side effects.                                                               
2. Sichuan Lovage Root (Chuan Xiong) - Because it moves Qi, this herb is widely used for various pain caused by blood stasis or qi stagnation. It is commonly used for various gynecological diseases to move blood and regulate menstruation, treating irregular menstruation, amenorrhea, postpartum abdominal pain due to blood stasis and qi stagnation.                             
3. White Peony Root (Bai Shao) - Excellent at alleviating painful menstruation because of its analgesic and spasmolytic actions. This herb relaxes muscles, reduces painful menstruation, as well as lowers serum and free testosterone levels in women.                                                                                 
4. Rehmannia (Shu Di Huang) - A longevity herb known for nourishing Yin depletion, and to provide potent restorative, building properties that are beneficial for increasing fertility as well as sex drive. It strengthens tendons, bones and bone marrow in addition to supplying nutrients to the ears and    eyes.                                                                                                                                    

Chinese herbal medicine can be a bit intimidating when you don't know anything about these herbs, and the four herbs above are only a few of the herbs beneficial for menstrual cramps in the Chinese herbal encyclopedias.  Asian pharmacies sell prescriptions of herbal teas and pills daily, and Asian cultures have used herbs successfully for hundreds of years. You can use Chinese herb supplements to be pain free and PMS symptom free all month long.  

You can purchase the soup mix here.