Women with PCOS more prone to Unhealthy Eating Behaviors at midlife: Study

A new study published in the journal of Fertility and Sterility showed that women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) at midlife are more prone to unfavorable eating behaviors. Therefore Weight management counseling should be sensitive and holistic, addressing psychological distress and eventually targeted support can help reduce disordered eating patterns in this population.

Adults with at least 2 of the following symptoms; clinical or biochemical oligomenorrhea (OA), hyperandrogenism (HA), polycystic ovarian morphology (PCOM), or increased antimüllerian hormone (AMH) levels, are diagnosed with PCOS based on the updated Rotterdam criteria. Despite variations in body weight among PCOS phenotypes, obese women are more likely than non-PCOS women to gain weight starting in childhood. Consequently, this study was set to examine the domains of eating behavior (uncontrolled, emotional, and cognitive restraint eating) in midlife women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) who exhibited various PCOS symptoms and those who did not.

This prospective cohort study with domains of eating behavior were evaluated at 46 years of age. Variables gathered at the ages of 31 and 46 were used to assess eating behavior predictors. Using the modified Rotterdam criteria, women who were diagnosed with PCOS (n = 251) at age 31 were compared to those who did not meet any PCOS criteria (n = 935). Classic A+B-phenotype women (hyperandrogenism and oligomenorrhea, with or without elevated antimüllerian hormone, n = 60), C-phenotype women (hyperandrogenism and elevated antimüllerian hormone, n = 84), and D-phenotype women (oligomenorrhea and elevated antimüllerian hormone, n = 86) were included in the PCOS population.