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Background: Understanding prevalence of various menopausal symptoms and symptom severity in Iran will enhance reproductive health care. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence and severity of menopausal symptoms among menopausal women in Babol, Iran. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted on the 150 healthy postmenopausal women aged between 45–65 years in Babol city (located in Northern Iran), and cluster sampling was used as a method of sampling. The questionnaires used in this study include: symptom score card for measuring the frequency and severity of menopausal symptoms and socio demographic data. Results: The mean ± SD age at natural menopause was 48.5 ± 4.1 years. The most prevalent symptoms were back pain and joint pain (48.7%), anxiety and unusual tiredness (48.0%), irritability (46.7%), muscle pains (44.0%) and hot flashes (42.7%). The average overall symptom score card in the study for menopausal symptoms was 22.1 ± 9.8. The severity of symptoms was in the range of mild to moderate in 42% of samples, and 58% of samples had moderate to severe symptoms. Conclusion: This study showed that more than half of the women had moderate to severe menopausal symptoms and an earlier mean age of menopause (48.5 y) for women in Babol, Iran.

Introduction: The hormonal changes that happen during pregnancy may have effects on weight, blood pressure, dyslipidaemia, and possibly metabolic syndrome. The aim of this study was to determine the association between parity and metabolic syndrome in middle-aged women in Babol, Iran. Methods: A total number of 800 women, with the age range of 30 to 50, were selected through a systematic random sampling method and sampling propionate to size from Babol. The metabolic syndrome was diagnosed based on the criteria set by the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) III. The individuals' socio-demographic characteristics, the number of live births, pregnancies, lifestyles, current physical activity, and dietary factors were assessed. Logistic regression was used to determine the independent association between parity and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome. Results: The data were obtained from 633 participants (79.1%). The women, who reported a history of gravidity or parity, had a mean score of 2.4 ± 1.0. One hundred and ten (110, 17.4%) women had less than two parities and 523(82.6%) had two or more parties. Women who developed metabolic syndrome were more likely to have a higher parity at the time of interview (p= 0.001). Women with ≥ 2 parity had significantly higher odds of metabolic syndrome (OR= 1.91, 95% CI= 1.08-3.37). In addition, logistic regression analyses were then performed to assess the association of parity with each component of the metabolic syndrome. The women with ≥ 2 parity were significantly more likely to have abdominal obesity (p= 0.010). Conclusion: Higher parity or gravidity was associated with higher prevalence of metabolic syndrome in middle-aged women. Health policy makers should work with health providers to reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome in middle-aged multipar women.

Introduction: The hormonal changes that happen during pregnancy may have effects on weight, blood pressure, dyslipidaemia, and possibly metabolic syndrome. The aim of this study was to determine the association between parity and metabolic syndrome in middle-aged women in Babol, Iran. Methods: A total number of 800 women, with the age range of 30 to 50, were selected through a systematic random sampling method and sampling propionate to size from Babol. The metabolic syndrome was diagnosed based on the criteria set by the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) III. The individualschr('39') socio-demographic characteristics, the number of live births, pregnancies, lifestyles, current physical activity, and dietary factors were assessed. Logistic regression was used to determine the independent association between parity and the prevalence of metabolic syndrome. Results: The data were obtained from 633 participants (79.1%). The women, who reported a history of gravidity or parity, had a mean score of 2.4 ± 1.0. One hundred and ten (110, 17.4%) women had less than two parities and 523(82.6%) had two or more parties. Women who developed metabolic syndrome were more likely to have a higher parity at the time of interview (p= 0.001). Women with ≥ 2 parity had significantly higher odds of metabolic syndrome (OR= 1.91, 95% CI= 1.08-3.37). In addition, logistic regression analyses were then performed to assess the association of parity with each component of the metabolic syndrome. The women with ≥ 2 parity were significantly more likely to have abdominal obesity (p= 0.010). Conclusion: Higher parity or gravidity was associated with higher prevalence of metabolic syndrome in middle-aged women. Health policy makers should work with health providers to reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome in middle-aged multipar women.