More overweight, obese women with PCOS remain sedentary despite recommendations

Sedentary behaviour remains extremely prevalent among overweight or obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), with a recent study reporting that only one in two women meets physical activity (PA) levels recommended for weight loss.

Researchers used data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health. They included 7,847 women in the analysis of PA level (n=796 PCOS; n=7,051 non-PCOS) and 3,525 in the analysis of sitting time (ST; n=377 PCOS; n=3,148 non-PCOS).

In the entire cohort, 71.0 percent and 56.7 percent of women achieved PA levels recommended for weight maintenance and weight loss, respectively. Women with vs without self-reported PCOS had lower PA levels (median, 899 vs 999 MET-min/week; p=0.003) and higher ST (mean daily total, 10.3 vs 9.5 hours; p=0.006).

In each body mass index (BMI) category, the number of women who met the PA guidelines was similar between the PCOS and non-PCOS group, although the overall number became smaller as BMI category increased.

Specifically, fewer overweight or obese women with vs without PCOS aligned with PA recommendations for weight maintenance (58.7 percent vs 65.7 percent; p=0.003) or weight loss (45.1 percent vs 50.3 percent; p=0.032). Two‐thirds of women with and without self‐reported PCOS had prolonged ST (≥8 h/d), and this number remained the same after stratification by BMI.

In light of the findings, the researchers underscored a need for interventions to motivate overweight or obese women with PCOS to engage in sufficient PA and make sustainable healthy lifestyle choices.