Psychological well-being and personality in relation to weight loss following behavioral modification intervention in obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Objective Little is known about how lifestyle affects psychological well-being in overweight women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). We investigated the effects of behavioral modification on psychological well-being and the impact of well-being and personality traits on successful weight loss. Design A 4-month randomized controlled trial with a 12-month follow-up at a University Hospital. Methods Sixty-eight women with PCOS, aged 18 to 40 years with a BMI ≥27 kg/m2, were randomized (1:1) into a behavioral modification program (intervention) or minimal intervention (control). The outcome measures were the psychological well being index and the Swedish universities scales of personality. Results At baseline, 60% had a global psychological well being index corresponding to severe distress and 40% to moderate distress. There was no significant change in mean global well-being score at 4 months within or between groups. However, after 4 months, the intervention group expressed less anxiety (P = .035), higher general health (P = .012) and lower depressed mood (P = .033). Anxiety and general health tended to differ between groups (P = .06, respectively) favoring intervention. In the whole population, women achieving ≥5% weight loss at 12 months (n = 18) were less anxious at baseline compared to those who had not (P = .004). Personality trait-analysis showed that the weight-loss group had higher social desirability (P = .033) and lower embitterment (P = .023). Conclusions Psychological well-being is severely impacted in overweight women with PCOS. Behavioral modification can positively impact dimensions of well-being, although not fully significant, compared to control treatment. Personality factors could contribute to the understanding of successful weight loss.

Update on PCOS: Consequences, Challenges, and Guiding Treatment

“…There was evidence of improved anxiety, lower depressed mood and overall higher general health in the intervention group with no change in the minimal intervention group. 86 Exercise alone as intervention in PCOS has been studied. 87 Most studies of exercise intervention are small and involved varying exercise interventions-aerobic, resistance and combined exercise.…”

Effects of multidimensional life management on healthy behavior in polycystic ovary syndrome patients: A randomized controlled trial

“…In the present study, the unplanned outpatient admission rate of patients with PCOS in the experimental group (8.57%) was lower than that in the control group (35.48%). The reason for this phenomenon may be that with the healthy behavior and negative emotions regarding improving metabolic disorder relief, participants experienced a reserve in the physiological and mental system (Jiskoot et al, 2020;Oberg et al, 2020), which may explain the healthier lifestyle and the lower unplanned admission rates in our study. A previous study reported that unplanned admission would also increase the psychological burden and economic pressure (Bosco et al, 2014).…”

Lifestyle management in polycystic ovary syndrome – beyond diet and physical activity

“…More recently, a cross-sectional study in 501 women with PCOS [ 131 ] and two RCTs [ 44 , 132 ] explored the use of self-management strategies [ 131 ] and behavioural modification interventions [ 44 , 132 ] in PCOS. In the cross-sectional study, implementation of physical activity self-management strategies improved the likelihood of meeting physical activity recommendations, but had no association with BMI.…”

“…In the RCTs, only the behavioural modification programme and not the control (general healthy lifestyle recommendations) produced significant weight loss after four months. A significantly greater proportion of women in the intervention group also improved menstrual regularity [ 44 ] and psychological well-being (lower anxiety and depressive symptoms) [ 132 ] when compared to the control group. The women who achieved greater weight loss reported higher social desirability and lower embitterment scores on a personality trait assessment measure [ 132 ].…”