The frequency and severity of HFs are related to cardiovascular disease risk in peri-menopausal women. The cause of HFs is still unknown; however, some reports suggest self-reported physical activity (PA) may mediate the subjective HF experience. The hot flash experience can be measured with an ambulatory monitor and is separated into subjective (only reported by participant), objective (recorded by a monitor), and concordant (reported by participant as a monitor recorded it). The overall goal of this project is to determine whether the hot flash experience, as broken down by the three mentioned categories, is altered by objectively-measured physical activity. Physical activity can be broken down by intensity into: Light, Moderate, Vigorous, and Moderate-to-Vigorous (MVPA). In bivariate analyses, objective HF frequency (HF/hour) was associated with duration in moderate PA (r = 0.285, p = .020) and duration in MVPA (r = 0.303, p = .013). Concordant HF frequency was correlated with time in vigorous PA (r = 0.376, p = .002) and time in MVPA (r = 0.286, p = .020). In hierarchical models controlling for age and monitor wear time, objective HF frequency was predicted to increase per minute of MVPA (β = 0.291, p < 0.05), and concordant HF frequency was predicted to increase by per minute of vigorous PA (β = 0.301, p < 0.05) and of MVPA (β = 0.265, p < 0.05). The subjective HF experience was not associated with any form of PA. Overall, our data suggest greater amounts of time in moderate and vigorous PA predicts increases in objective and concordant HFs. Understanding the role of physical activity on hot flash experience can advance efforts to optimize therapies and provide accurate information to women undergoing menopause. A poster derived from the STRIDE program with Dr. Sarah Witkowski, Associate Professor of Exercise & Sport Studies.
by Rose Evard ‘23