The association between cardiorespiratory fitness, cardiovascular disease risk factors, and quality of life in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women: a cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVES: Cardiovascular disease risk increases for women during the menopause transition. While cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is linked to lower cardiovascular disease risk, its predictive relationship with cardiovascular health and quality of life during menopause is unclear. This study investigated the relationships between CRF, cardiovascular health markers, and quality of life in peri- and postmenopausal women. METHODS: Fifty-eight participants underwent a graded exercise test to assess CRF, alongside measurements of vascular function, blood lipids, blood pressure, and anthropometrics. Questionnaires were used to evaluate physical activity (International Physical Activity Questionnaire [IPAQ]) and quality of life (Menopause-Specific Quality of Life [MENQOL] questionnaire and general health [EQ-5D]). Linear and ordinal regression analyses were conducted to assess associations. RESULTS: After adjusting for age and physical activity, regression models indicated that CRF was significantly associated with high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, waist-to-hip ratio, and triglycerides, explaining 11%-15% of their variance. Higher CRF was also linked to a lower burden of self-reported menopause-related symptoms in the MENQOL physical domain (odds ratio = 0.91 per unit increase in CRFs). However, no significant associations were found between CRF and vascular function measures. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that CRF is independently associated with a more favorable cardiometabolic risk profile and may be related to fewer menopause-related symptoms in midlife women. In our sample, we did not find an association with vascular function, which may indicate that other factors might play a more prominent role in vascular health during the menopause transition.