Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Innsbruck Medical University, Innsbruck, Austria.
Int J Eat Disord. 2013 Sep;46(6):609-16. doi: 10.1002/eat.22157. Epub 2013 Jul 11.
No published studies, to our knowledge, have examined the association of menopausal status with eating disorders and body image in women. We assessed these associations in a large sample of middle-aged women.
We administered an anonymous questionnaire to a randomly selected nonclinical sample of women aged 40-60 in Innsbruck, Austria. The questionnaire covered demographic items, menopausal status, weight history, measures of body image, and current eating disorders as diagnosed by DSM-IV criteria. Using modified WHO criteria, we classified the respondents' current stage of menopausal transition as premenopausal (N = 192), perimenopausal (N = 110), or naturally postmenopausal (N = 134). In a separate analysis, we also examined the small group of women with surgically induced menopause (N = 12).
The three groups were similar in all demographic features except age, and did not differ significantly on current body mass index (BMI), weight-control behaviors, or dieting history after age adjustment. However, perimenopausal women reported a significantly greater prevalence of eating disorders as compared to premenopausal women. Perimenopausal women also reported significantly higher self-ratings of "feeling fat" and higher Body Shape Questionnaire scores than premenopausal women. Women with surgically induced menopause also showed an elevated prevalence of eating and body image pathology.
Our data suggest that the menopausal transition is associated with an increased prevalence of eating disorders and negative body image. Menopause, like puberty, may perhaps represent a window of vulnerability to these conditions, likely because of changes in hormonal function, body composition, and conceptions of womanhood.
据我们所知，目前尚无研究探讨女性绝经状态与饮食障碍和身体意象之间的关系。我们评估了这些关联在一个大型中年女性样本中的情况。
我们对奥地利因斯布鲁克的一个随机选择的非临床样本的 40-60 岁女性进行了匿名问卷调查。问卷涵盖了人口统计学项目、绝经状态、体重史、身体意象测量以及目前根据 DSM-IV 标准诊断的饮食障碍。我们使用修改后的世界卫生组织标准，将受访者目前的绝经过渡阶段分为绝经前（N=192）、围绝经期（N=110）或自然绝经后（N=134）。在单独的分析中，我们还检查了接受手术绝经的小群体（N=12）。
除了年龄外，三组在所有人口统计学特征上都相似，并且在当前的体重指数（BMI）、体重控制行为或年龄调整后的节食史方面没有显著差异。然而，围绝经期女性的饮食障碍患病率明显高于绝经前女性。围绝经期女性也报告说，“感觉肥胖”的自我评分和身体形状问卷评分明显高于绝经前女性。接受手术绝经的女性也表现出更高的饮食和身体意象病理学患病率。
我们的数据表明，绝经过渡与饮食障碍和负面身体意象的患病率增加有关。绝经，就像青春期一样，可能代表了这些情况的易感性窗口，可能是因为激素功能、身体成分和女性概念的变化。
