ASSOCIATION OF DIETARY INTAKE WITH HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE IN POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN

Nutrition

BACKGROUD: Menopausal symptoms can significantly affect the quality of life in postmenopausal women. Understanding the relationships between dietary intake, anthropometric measurements, and health-related quality of life can inform effective health interventions. This study aims to explore the associations between anthropometric measurements, dietary intake, and health-related quality of life in postmenopausal women. METHOD: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 200 postmenopausal women aged 45 to 65 years in Mumbai. Data was collected through structured interviews, including demographic details, anthropometric measurements, the Menopause Rating Scale, dietary patterns using a Food Frequency Questionnaire and 24-hour dietary recalls, and health-related quality of life measured by the WHOQOL-BREF. Statistical analyses included descriptive statistics, ANOVA, and Pearson correlation coefficients. RESULT: This study examined the relationships between anthropometric measurements, dietary intake, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in postmenopausal women. The result indicated that 46.5% of participants experienced moderate symptoms, while 41.5% reported severe symptoms. Higher BMI and weight were linked to more severe symptoms. Nutrient intake analysis revealed trends of increased energy, carbohydrate, protein, and fiber intake with symptom severity. HRQOL analysis indicated significant differences in social relationship scores among symptom severity groups (p = 0.034), with milder symptoms associated with better social relationships. Correlations showed positive associations between weight and both energy and fat intake, and a strong positive correlation between BMI and fat intake. Higher energy and protein intakes were linked to better physical health outcomes. These findings suggest potential dietary and health trends in postmenopausal women, warranting further research to confirm these associations and understand their implications. CONCLUSION: Dietary intake may influence symptom severity and HRQOL in postmenopausal women. Higher energy, carbohydrate, and fiber intakes were associated with more severe menopausal symptoms, and higher BMI was linked to poorer physical health. Additionally, higher energy and protein intakes showed weak associations with better physical health outcomes. These findings suggest potential dietary and health trends among postmenopausal women, indicating the need for further research to confirm these associations and understand their implications.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.