Eating behavior associated with pelvic floor disorder symptoms in middle-aged women

According to a recent study conducted at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland, eating behavior is associated with symptoms of pelvic floor disorders in middle-aged women. For example, higher consumption of highly processed ready-made foods and fast food increased the risk for experiencing symptoms of stress and urgency urinary incontinence. Higher consumption of fruits and an overall higher quality diet decreased the risk for stress urinary incontinence.

The prevalence of pelvic floor disorders increases as women approach their menopausal years. Estrogen deprivation during menopause, natural aging, reproductive history, and factors increasing intra-abdominal pressure may lead to structural and functional failure in the pelvic floor. In addition, lifestyle choices such as quality of nutrition and eating behavior may have a significant effect on the mechanisms of pelvic floor disorders.

Eating behavior has been minimally studied as a potential risk factor for pelvic floor disorders. We studied how disordered eating can affect the onset of the symptoms."

Mari Kuutti, doctoral researcher from the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä

Disordered eating includes overeating, restrictive eating as well as alternating between the two behaviors.

"We found that women who reported disordered eating were more likely to experience the symptoms of pelvic floor disorders than were women who had reported normal eating," Kuutti says.

The disorders studied were stress urinary incontinence, urgency urinary incontinence, fecal incontinence, and constipation and defecation difficulties.

Pelvic floor disorders are common

Over half of the participants of the study had symptoms of pelvic floor disorders. Most common was stress urinary incontinence. The study revealed that eating behavior and consuming some dietary items were associated with onset of the symptoms of pelvic floor disorders.

"We studied the potential negative and positive associations of common Finnish food items with the symptoms of pelvic floor disorders," Kuutti says.

"For example, higher consumption of highly processed ready-made foods and fast food increased the risk for experiencing the symptoms of stress and urgency urinary incontinence. Higher consumption of fruits and overall higher quality diet decreased the risk for stress urinary incontinence."

As a preventive measure, the eating behavior of women at risk for these symptoms should be assessed, and guidance towards healthy eating patterns should be provided.

The research is part of the ERMA study, the participants of which included over 1,000 women between the ages of 47 and 55 living in the Jyväskylä region. Participants self-reported their eating behaviour as along with demographic factors (age, body mass index, education, physical workload, and physical activity) and gynecological factors (gestations, parity, menopausal status, and hysterectomy) through questionnaires.