Changing eating habit and insufficient physical activity May lead to
cardiovascular events in postmenopausal women.
Menopause leads to an increase in the prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its complication
including cardiovascular events and cancer. Dr seyed Jalal Hashemi who is a principal
investigator in the ‘Hoveyzeh Cohort Study’ and his team have conducted a study to compare
metabolic risk factors, lipid indices, healthy eating index, and physical activity among
premenopausal, menopausal, and postmenopausal women. Their work has been published on the
“Rom J Intern Med, 2024” with the title of : “Comparison of metabolic risk factors, lipid indices,
healthy eating index, and physical activity among premenopausal, menopausal, and
postmenopausal women”
In this cross-sectional study, a total of 4,732 women participating in the Hoveyzeh Cohort Study
were placed into three groups of premenopausal (n= 736), menopausal (n= 396), and
postmenopausal (n= 917) women, according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results: The
prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 43.3%, 55.6%, and 62.8% in premenopausal,
menopausal, and postmenopausal women, respectively. After menopause, the prevalence of
hypertension (50.2%), dyslipidemia (61.2%), diabetes (37.7%), and abdominal obesity according
to the Iranian guidelines (75.9%) was higher than before menopause. Based on the results,
cardiovascular disease had the highest prevalence after menopause (23%). The weight-adjusted
waist index (WWI) had the highest odds ratio (OR) among indices, with values of 2.94 and 1.93
in menopausal and postmenopausal women, respectively (P< 0.001). According to the Healthy
Eating Index-2015 (HEI-2015), the total consumption of fruits, vegetables, seafood, and protein
was higher in premenopausal women than in postmenopausal women, and the consumption of
foods containing sugar was higher in menopausal women than in premenopausal women. The
results showed that the level of physical activity was the highest and the lowest in
premenopausal and postmenopausal women, respectively (P< 0.001).
They concluded that a healthy life style may be ameliorate the adverse effect of postmenopausal
condition in this group of women.
DOI: 10.2478/rjim-2024-0012
