title: Effect of aerobic training on menopausal symptoms--a randomized controlled trial.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to assess whether aerobic training affects menopausal symptoms in recently postmenopausal sedentary women.
  
  
  METHODS
  Symptomatic women aged 45 to 63 years (N = 176; 3-36 months since last menstruation) were randomly assigned to an aerobic training or a control group. The intervention included unsupervised aerobic training for 50 minutes four times weekly for 24 weeks, whereas the control group attended health lectures twice a month. Symptoms were reported twice a day using a mobile phone. The perceived disturbance of menopausal symptoms (night sweats, mood swings, irritability, depressive mood, headache, vaginal dryness, and urinary symptoms) was evaluated on a scale from 1 (low) to 5 (high). Multilevel mixed-effect ordinal regression models were based on 17,000 responses during 24 weeks.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred fifty-four women continued until the end of the study (88% compliance rate). Baseline prevalence was as follows: night sweats, 50% to 60%; irritability and depression, 20% to 25%; mood swings, 25% to 30%; headache and urinary problems, 15% to 20%; and vaginal dryness, 10% to 15%. The prevalence of all symptoms except vaginal dryness decreased among intervention groups. According to multilevel mixed-effect ordinal regression analysis, night sweats and mood swings (P < 0.001) and disturbance of the mood swings (P < 0.001) and irritability (P < 0.001) were reduced more among the women in the intervention group than in the control group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In sedentary women, aerobic training for 6 months may decrease the typical menopausal symptoms, especially night sweats, mood swings, and irritability.
authors.affiliation: School of Health Sciences, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland. jaana.m.moilanen@uta.fi
authors.forename: Jaana M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Moilanen
authors.forename: Tomi S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Mikkola
authors.forename: Jani A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Raitanen
authors.forename: Reetta H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Heinonen
authors.forename: Eija I
authors.initials: EI
authors.lastname: Tomas
authors.forename: Clas-Håkan
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Nygård
authors.forename: Riitta M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Luoto
mesh_terms: D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006261:Headache / Q000453:epidemiology; D019584:Hot Flashes / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007508:Irritable Mood; D008593:Menopause / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D013546:Sweating; D014570:Urologic Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology; D014623:Vaginal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology