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Researchers who analysed over 211 million supermarket transactions from more than 3.4 million customers in England found over a quarter of people bought pain relief with menstrual pain products.

The study by a team from Nottingham and Bristol universities looked at anonymised loyalty card data “from a major UK health and beauty retailer” between 2006 and 2015 and found 26.7 per cent of customers bought the two types of products at the same time.

Researchers, who said the findings “indicate high prevalence of menstrual pain” across the country, found people who menstruate are four times more likely to purchase pain relief with menstrual items than without.

However, the study also found average income across different regions in England was the “strongest predictor of menstrual pain co-purchases”. Lower income regions showed a 32 per cent lower menstrual-pain purchase than higher income regions.

“This disparity is likely linked to affordability and access to over-the-counter medication, rather than differences in the prevalence of menstrual pain itself, pointing to a potentially unmet need,” the University of Nottingham said.

It said the research “demonstrates the need for greater awareness of menstrual pain and targeted public health interventions to address inequalities in access to pain relief and menstrual healthcare”.

“As an additional validation of the methodology, researchers found the most common interval between menstrual product purchases was exactly 28 days, closely matching the average menstrual cycle,” the university said.

The study, which it said was the “first of its kind”, was published in PLOS Digital Health. The study’s co-author professor James Goulding said the research was “well overdue”.

“It is wonderful that smart data research in the UK is able to bring issues which may once have been overlooked in scientific settings, such as the sheer scale and impact of menstrual pain, to light,” he said.