Evaluation of the relationship between the emotional states of women diagnosed with hypothyroidism and their eating habits, body composition and physical activity levels

The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the emotional states of women diagnosed with hypothyroidism and their eating habits, body compositions and physical activity levels. The study was conducted with 90 female patients aged 25-65 years, who were diagnosed with hypothyroidism by a doctor, who applied to a special diet clinic in Ankara between July 15 and October 20, 2020. Information on body composition including general characteristics, dietary habits, anthropometric measurements such as body weight (kg), height (cm), waist circumference (cm) and body fat mass (kg) and body fat percentage (%) of the participants were prepared by the researcher. and it was recorded with a questionnaire applied by face-to-face interview method. Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was applied to obtain information about how much the participants wanted to eat certain foods, and a food consumption frequency form was applied to evaluate their nutritional status. In addition, the physical activity level of the individuals and their activities during the day were evaluated with the physical activity determination form and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) was applied to measure the mood of the participants. The mean age of the women participating in the study was determined as 39.8±10.60 years. The average body weight of the individuals is 73.1±12.2 kg, and the average Body Mass Index (BMI) is 27.5±4.9 kg/m². According to the BDI, 58.9% of individuals have minimal depression, 24.4% mild depression, and 16.7% moderate and severe depression. The mean BDI score was calculated as 7.0 ± 6.79. The physical activity level (PAL) was determined to be 1.3±0.1. It was observed that body weight, BMI, waist circumference, body fat percentage, body fat mass and waist/height ratio of individuals with sedentary activity level were significantly higher than individuals with light physical activity (p<0.05). The body weight and body fat mass of individuals who consumed milk or yogurt were found to be significantly lower than those who did not (p<0.05). When the daily energy and nutrient intakes of individuals are examined; It was found that they received an average of 1648.4±352.59 kcal energy per day. It was determined that an average of 50.8±6.54% of this energy came from carbohydrates, 15.1±2.60% from protein and 32.7±5.04% from fat. In addition, when the percentage of dietary Reference Intake (DRI) met, it was determined that dietary folate (58.5%) intakes were insufficient. According to the applied VAS scores, the most requested food was determined as chocolate and its products. It was found that the mean weight, BMI and body fat percentage of individuals with minimal depression were lower than those with moderate and severe depression. However, statistically significant differences were not detected (p>0.05). Adequate physical activity has been shown to have positive effects on body composition. Nutrition education should be given by dietitians and they should be supported to gain healthy eating habits in order to prevent unhealthy food cravings and increase in body weight due to disease conditions. In this group of patients, depressive symptoms should be considered and treated if necessary.