Abstract
Background: Physical activity (PA) programs are inexpensive, non-pharmaceutical and universally accessible options with demonstrated efficacy in reducing menopausal symptoms. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of a behavioral strategy for initiating and sustaining PA with the hope to reduce or eliminate menopausal symptoms. Methods : Menopausal and perimenopausal women (n=190) were randomly assigned to intervention (n=95) and non-intervention (n=95) groups using a random-numbers table. The intervention group consisted of 18 neighborhood network subgroups, each consisting of five to six women known to one another. They participated in a 12-week regular PA program, augmented by eight interactive group education and discussion sessions. The Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) self-report instrument was used to determine perceived severity of menopausal symptoms. Results: The intervention group showed a significant reduction in the frequency and severity of menopausal symptoms (P < 0.001). Those whose symptoms rated severe/very severe for hot flushes were reduced from 30.1% to 11.8%. Also, participants whose sleep problems and joint discomfort rated severe/very severe declined from 28% to 6.5% and joint discomfort rated severe or very severe was reduced from 52.7% to 4.4%, respectively. Conversely in the nonintervention group, hot flushes, sleep problems and joint problems got significantly worse(P < 0.05). Conclusion: Implementing educational program that increases awareness of PA benefits in combination with existing neighborhood networks that facilitate communication and cooperation may increase PA levels and decrease menopausal symptoms. Such networks offer alow-cost means of improving quality of life (QOL) for perimenopausal and menopausal women.
Highlights
Proper physical activity and formation of neighborhood networks to promote physical activity
This makes strategies that respond to these challenges valuable, especially for conditions that affect a substantial portion of the population such as adverse symptom resulting from menopause.[1]
Multiple studies have demonstrated the positive impact of Physical activity (PA) on menopausal symptoms, with Elavsky and McAuley concluding that, “The results indicated that walking and yoga were effective in enhancing positive affect and menopause-related quality of life (QOL) and reducing negative affect
Summary
Proper physical activity and formation of neighborhood networks to promote physical activity. Conclusion: Implementing educational program that increases awareness of PA benefits in combination with existing neighborhood networks that facilitate communication and cooperation may increase PA levels and decrease menopausal symptoms. Such networks offer a low-cost means of improving quality of life (QOL) for perimenopausal and menopausal women. In many parts of the developing world, the use of sophisticated medical resources is limited by both cost and geographic accessibility This makes strategies that respond to these challenges valuable, especially for conditions that affect a substantial portion of the population such as adverse symptom resulting from menopause.[1]. Even when patients have access to a physician, there is reluctance on the part of many doctors to prescribe MHT as a first-line treatment due to increased risk of heart disease, breast cancer, endometrial cancer, and thromboembolic events such as stroke.[5,6] In Iran, MHT usage ranges from 4.5% to 12.5% of the menopausal women.[7,8]
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