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Assessment of Nutritional Status among Post Menopause Women in Gaza City

Ayoub R Al-Dalou, Alhasan H Swairjo and Mahmoud Taleb

Diet is one of the most important and modifiable lifestyle determinants of human health. Both under nutrition, over nutrition and other nutritional problems, diet play a major role in morbidity and mortality and therefore assessment of nutritional status is a cornerstone of efforts to improve the health individuals and populations through the word. The menopause in women between forty and fifty is a normal physiological stage for all women and accompanied by many symptoms and diseases that have a close relations with nutritional status of women. Many researchers have been carried out over the world concerned the nutrition of menopause women, unfortunately little information are available in our area. Therefore, this research aims to study nutritional status of women in menopause period in the Gaza Strip in order to reach dietary factors that increase or decrease the symptoms of menopause and to determine the healthy diet of those women. A group of 116 women were selected from women attending some pharmacies and clinics in Gaza City, Jabalya and Shati refugee camp at the ages of 40 to 60 years, women who suffer from intermediate symptoms of menopause was 44%, while 36%of them have light symptoms and only 20% women have no symptoms of menopause. 56% of women have no daily physical activity and 51% are obese. Results showed statistical significance about physical inactivity and obesity among post menopause women. From nutritional point of view results showed significant dietary calcium intake insufficiency, Vitamin D insufficiency and bad dietary habits. The results showed that women have no knowledge about nutrition and lifestyle at pre and post menopause, so we recommend a health and nutritional education targeting this group of population. Finally, we recommended that menopause women should take healthy balanced diet and have regular physical activity and visit clinics regularly to make physical and laboratory examinations.