Company creates garment with two-pronged method of easing discomfort of periods

That time of the month can literally be a pain for many women.

But now a company has created a bodysuit with a two-pronged way to help ease the discomfort of periods.

Called Artemis, it costs £194 and features gel pads which can block pain signals reaching the brain plus in-built heat panels to soothe the uterus and surrounding muscles. The intensity of both is controlled by an app.

The washable bodysuit, made of materials including merino wool and Lenzing Lyocell, is designed to look like a fashion item to blend in with the wearer’s outfit.

The gel pads feature TENS technology, or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, which is often used in childbirth and feels like light vibrations. 

For Artemis wearers, the pads are powered by a palm-sized battery pack that fits in a small pocket on the suit and is connected to an app.

Four in five women suffer period pain at some stage as it can affect them from the early teens up to the menopause. 

Ten per cent find it so severe that it disrupts their daily life.

Volunteer Paula Fisher, 33, who had suffered pain so badly she could not get up, told how she now had little or even none with the bodysuit which she described as comfortable.

Ms Fisher said that one side effect was that her period appeared to be heavier than usual, adding: ‘I assume due to the muscle-relaxing effects.’

Period pain can affect women at any age – from the early teens right up until menopause – and is often worse on the first day.

In 40 per cent of women it is accompanied by premenstrual symptoms, such as bloating, tender breasts, swollen stomach, lack of concentration, mood swings, clumsiness and tiredness.

Anna Zsofia Kormos and Dora Pelczer, who co-founded the Hungarian start-up, said they wanted the bodysuit to look more like a fashion item than a medical device.

Makers Alpha Femtech, based in Hungary, said it would be available to buy in the UK later this year.