Elham Shakoor; Payman Izadpanah; Mohsen Salesi; Farhad Daryanoosh; Ahmad Mehrez
Abstract
Cardiovascular diseases are known to be the leading cause of death around the world, accounting for more than 17 million deaths annually. The main cause of this type of disease is high blood pressure. Prevention and treatment of hypertension are of great importance given the high prevalence and side ...
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Cardiovascular diseases are known to be the leading cause of death around the world, accounting for more than 17 million deaths annually. The main cause of this type of disease is high blood pressure. Prevention and treatment of hypertension are of great importance given the high prevalence and side effects of high blood pressure. Research has shown that high blood pressure (BP) is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Hypertension (HTN), or a chronic increase in arterial blood pressure, affects one billion people all over the world annually and is the main factor for mortality of about 7 million people globally, which imposes a significant financial and public burden on societies. That said, 33% of adults in the world are afflicted with HTN, whose incidence of course increases with age.
Arezu Farzaneh; Maryam Koushkie Jahromi; Mohsen Salesi; Robabeh Rostami
Abstract
Background: Menopausal symptoms severely affect a woman’s lifestyle and health. Lifestyle, including physical activity, is known to be an effective factor on the menopausal-associated symptoms. We conducted the present study to evaluate the effects of an eight-week Pilates training on menopausal-related ...
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Background: Menopausal symptoms severely affect a woman’s lifestyle and health. Lifestyle, including physical activity, is known to be an effective factor on the menopausal-associated symptoms. We conducted the present study to evaluate the effects of an eight-week Pilates training on menopausal-related symptoms, including somatic, psychological and sexual symptoms, body mass index (BMI), and anxiety as possible effective factors on menopausal symptoms. Methods: This was an experimental study conducted in the summer of 2020. The participants in this study were 27 postmenopausal women (aged 60-65, BMI: 24-30) who participated in the study voluntarily. They were randomly divided into two groups of control (n=12) and exercise (n=15). The subjects in the training group participated in Pilates training for eight weeks, three sessions per week and each session lasted 75 minutes with progressive intensity. BMI was measured and the participants completed anxiety and depression questionnaires (HADS) and menopausal symptoms rating scale (MRS) before and after the exercises. We utilized paired t-test and analysis of co-variance (ANCOVA) to analyze the data. Results: BMI (P=0.023), anxiety (p <0.001), physical score (p <0.001), psychological score (P=0.001), and the total (p <0.001) score of menopausal symptoms reduced significantly following Pilates training compared to the control group. No significant changes were observed in the sexual symptoms of menopause following Pilates training compared to the control group (P=0.60). Conclusion: An eight-week Pilates training reduced most of the postmenopausal symptoms (somatic, psychological, and total) as well as potentially aggravating menopausal symptoms, including anxiety and BMI