The Effect of Menopause Stage and Exercise on Perceived Body Image and Depression

This study investigated the impact of menopause stage and level of exercise on depression and perceived body image with 101 women aged 40-60 years. Instruments included a demographic information sheet, the Life Experience Survey (LES), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and the Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire (MBSRQ). The relationship between menopause stage and depression was not significant. The relationship between menopause stage and perceived body-image was also not significant. Menopausal women do not appear to be more depressed or to have lower body-image perceptions when compared to premenopausal women. The main effect for amount of exercise and perceived body image was significant on some scales on the MBSRQ. Women who exercised were more interested in fitness and were more concerned about their health. The main effect for estrogen use and perceived body-image was also significant on some scales on the MBSRQ. Women who were taking estrogen felt better about their fitness, appearance, and reported more positive body-image scores when compared to women who were not taking estrogen.