Vasomotor symptoms and cardiometabolic risk factors in menopausal women: a MONET Group study.

INTRODUCTION: Conflicting results have been reported concerning the prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors in women experiencing vasomotor symptoms (VMS). OBJECTIVES: To compare cardiometabolic risk factors between women with and without VMS during the menopause transition and to determine the influence of physical activity on the prevalence of VMS. METHODS: Yearly assessment of women transitioning through menopause included self-reported VMS (hot flushes and night sweats), body composition and fat distribution, fasting glucose, insulin and lipids, and physical activity levels. RESULTS: Eighty-five of the 102 premenopausal women at baseline were included (age: 49.9 ± 2.0 years; body mass index: 23.2 ± 2.2 kg/m(2)). According to linear mixed model analyses, no statistically significant differences were observed for fat mass, lean body mass, body fat distribution indices and cardiometabolic risk factors, when comparing symptomatic vs. asymptomatic women. Neither physical activity levels nor intensity were associated with the prevalence of VMS. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that women transitioning through menopause who reported VMS did not show greater deteriorations in body composition, body fat distribution and cardiometabolic risk factors. Furthermore, physical activity levels were not associated with lower prevalence of vasomotor symptoms in the present cohort.

Light physical activity is a better determinant of lower adiposity during the menopausal transition.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between time spent performing physical activity (PA) and adiposity across the menopausal transition. METHODS: Body weight and body composition were analyzed in 65 women (47-54 years old; body mass index 23.2 ± 2.4 kg/m(2)) in a 5-year prospective study. Time spent in PA of varying intensities (sedentary, light, moderate and vigorous) was determined from 7-day accelerometer measurement and energy intake with a 7-day food diary. RESULTS: Significant negative correlations were observed between the time spent in light-intensity PA and fat mass (FM) (r = -0.38, p < 0.005), central FM (r = -0.36, p < 0.005), peripheral FM (r = -0.33, p < 0.01), and percent body fat (r = -0.42, p < 0.001) at year 1, respectively. No significant correlations were noted between measures of adiposity and time spent performing either moderate or vigorous PA. Analyses using tertiles of time spent in light PA at year 1 showed that FM (20.7 ± 4.0 vs. 20.3 ± 6.6 vs. 16.6 ± 4.6 kg, p < 0.05), central FM (10.1 ± 2.6 vs. 10.0 ± 3.8 vs. 7.8 ± 2.4 kg; p < 0.05) and percent body fat (34.5 ± 5.1 vs. 32.2 ± 7.7 vs. 28.1 ± 6.2%, p < 0.01) were all significantly lower in women in the highest tertile. These differences remained significant after covariate analyses using time spent in moderate- and high-intensity PA and total energy intake. Finally, lower levels of FM, percent body fat, central and peripheral FM persisted in women who spent more time in light PA (highest tertiles) over the 5-year follow-up. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that the time spent performing light PA may have a greater impact on adiposity than moderate and/or vigorous PA, an observation independent of the menopausal status.

Relationship between the percentage of predicted cardiorespiratory fitness and cardiovascular disease risk factors in premenopausal women: a MONET study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the relationships between the percentage predicted cardiorespiratory fitness (%CRF) and the anthropometric and metabolic cardiovascular disease risk factors in asymptomatic, premenopausal women. METHODS: Data are baseline values obtained in 97 healthy premenopausal women (age 49.9 +/- 1.9 years; body mass index 23.2 +/- 2.2 kg/m(2)) participating in a longitudinal study from 2004 to 2009. The outcome measures were peak oxygen consumption (VO(2) peak), body mass index, body composition (percentage fat, fat mass, fat-free mass), waist circumference, abdominal subcutaneous fat, visceral fat, resting blood pressure and fasting lipids, glucose and insulin levels. RESULTS: The %CRF was negatively associated with body mass index, fat mass, percentage fat, waist circumference, abdominal subcutaneous fat, visceral fat, triglycerides, triglyceride/high density lipoprotein cholesterol, total cholesterol, total cholesterol/high density lipoprotein cholesterol, fasting insulin levels and HOMA-IR (- 0.59 < or = r < or = - 0.20; 0.01 < p < 0.05) and positively associated with insulin sensitivity index (r = 0.23; p < 0.05). VO(2) peak was associated with the same variables; however, correlations were slightly better (- 0.70 < or = r < or = 0.30; 0.01 < p < 0.05). Stepwise multiple regression analysis showed that %CRF was only independently correlated with plasma triglyceride levels. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that %CRF was not a major predictor of anthropometric and metabolic variables associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in asymptomatic premenopausal women. Finally, the VO(2) peak is a better predictor than the %CRF to assess the risk of cardiovascular disease in asymptomatic premenopausal women.