The effect of the menstrual cycle on energy intake and dieting habits of adolescents

Abstract

The effect of the menstrual cycle on energy intake and the dieting habits of adolescents was examined retrospectively for three years in 64 eighth and ninth grade girls. Dieting episodes were found to be evenly distributed across the five menstrual phases with no greater proportion of dieting occurring during the follicular phase. Media, peers, family members, and social pressures have a larger impact on adolescent dieting behaviors as opposed to the menstrual cycle. Comparisons of energy intake between the pre- and postovulatory phases revealed no significant differences in any year. Fifty to eighty percent of the girls' cycles may have been anovulatory the first two years of the study. Variations in energy intake are not observed in anovulatory cycles due to low ovarian hormone levels. Changes in food consumption that correspond to menstrual phases may be observed in girls who are six years or more beyond menarche, when cycles are predominantly ovulatory.