The present experiment was conducted to determine the relationship between the human menstrual cycle and gustatory hedonic response. Hedonic response was defined as the perceived pleasantness or unpleasantness of a taste stimulus. Gender differences in taste hedonic have been observed; these may be due to differences in endocrine systems. Animal taste preferences are altered when reproductive hormonal status is experimentally manipulated. Previous researchers report that human females' hedonic responses to sucrose vary systematically with phase of menstrual cycle.

Bakgrund: Periodisering av träning kan vara av intresse för tränande kvinnor och deras coacher då hormonerna fluktuerar under menscykelns faser. Mycket forskning om styrketräning är gjorda på män. Att studera ökning av muskelstyrka hos kvinnor är komplext då deras hormoner fluktuerar månadsvis och anses kunna påverka studieresultat under menstruationscykeln. Syftet med litteraturstudien var att sammanställa studierna som finns inom ämnet och därefter dra nytta av kvinnors hormoner för att optimera muskelstyrka och att undvika risken för nya skador eller drabbas av de risker styrketräning kan minska. Syfte: Att granska och sammanställa studier gällande eventuella skillnader i muskelstyrka under menscykelns olika faser samt gällande eventuell effekt av periodiserad träning på muskelstyrkan i menscykeln faser.  Metod: En systematisk översiktsstudie med både interventionsstudier och observationsstudier inkluderade. En första sökning gjordes på PubMed och fem studier valdes ut och kvalitetsgranskades enligt PEDro scale. Därefter utökades sökningen för observationsstudier vilket gjordes på Google scholar. Där framkom ytterligare fyra studier och dessa granskades enligt SBU:s granskningsmall för observationsstudier.  Resultat: Resultatet tyder på att det inte finns någon tydlig skillnad mellan faserna då resultatet skiljde sig mellan de olika studierna. Forskningen inom ämnet är för bristfällig för att komma till någon adekvat slutsats gällande resultatet.  Konklusion: Vidare forskning, samt fler studier med samma utfallsmått behövs för att kunna dra slutsatser utifrån frågeställningarna. / Background: To periodize training can be of interest for athletic females and their coaches because the hormones fluctuate during the menstrual cycle. A large part of the research in strength training has been done on men. To study an increase in muscle strength in women is complex because their hormones fluctuate monthly and are considered to be able to influence study results during the menstrual cycle. The purpose of this literature study was to compile the studies available in the subject and then take advantage of women's hormones to optimize muscle strength and to avoid the risk of new injuries or suffer from the risks strength training can reduce.  Objective: The aim of this study was to review and to compile studies regarding the possible differences in muscle strength during the menstrual cycle and the possible effect of periodized training applied to the different phases of the menstrual cycle.  Method: A systematic review study included observational studies and intervention studies. The search was done on PubMed and five studies were included, then quality reviewed according to PEDro scale. The search for observational studies were made on Google scholar and four studies were selected, then reviewed according to the SBU’s review template for observational studies.  Results: The results indicated that there is no evident difference between the phases as the results were different between the different studies. The research on the subject is too insufficient to make an adequate conclusion. Conclusion: Further research, as well as more studies with the same outcome measure, are needed to be able to come to a conclusion based on the issues.

No description available.

Bakgrund:Menstruationscykelns påverkan på prestationenhos kvinnor inom träning och idrott har börjat bli ett mer beforskat ämne. Men det finns fortfarande brist på evidens och kunskap om hur den påverkar på prestationen samt hur kvinnornas egen upplevelse av påverkan på prestationenär. Syfte:Att undersökaden senaste forskningen gällande menstruationscykelns påverkan på prestationen samt kvinnors upplevelser av dess påverkan på prestationen inom träning och idrott. Metod:En systematisk litteratursökning gjordes i fyra databaser, både sökning av kvalitativa och kvantitativa artiklar genomfördes. Efter sökning och exkludering av artiklar resulterade det i 16 artiklar som sedan kvalitetsgranskades enligt GRADE. Resultat:Menstruationscykeln påverkar idrottsprestation negativt mestadels i sen luteal-fas och tidig follikel-fas. Detta ses framförallt i de kvalitativa artiklarna.Slutsats: Det föreligger fortsatt en oklarhet gällande menstruationscykelns påverkan på prestation. Fler studier behövs med ökad samstämmighet för att komma vidare i forskningen och möjliggöra större slutsatser och ökad evidens.

Bakgrund: Kännedom om menstruationscykelns samband med muskuloskeletal funktion kan vara relevant i det fysioterapeutiska arbetet för att uppnå en mer patientspecifik behandling och minimera skaderisken för menstruerande kvinnor. Tidigare översikter har huvudsakligen fokuserat på kroppsfunktion, denna studie ämnar istället att fokusera på funktionella tester. Syfte: Att utvärdera och kvalitétsgranska befintlig litteratur om eventuella samband mellan menstruationscykelns faser och muskuloskeletal funktion Metod: Litteraturstudie användes som design i studien. Systematiska sökningar gjordes i den medicinska databasen PubMed och sökresultatet granskades utifrån urvalskriterierna. De inkluderade artiklarnas risk för bias bedömdes utefter SBU:s granskningsmall för observationsstudier och tillförlitligheten för studiernas sammanvägda resultat utvärderades med GRADEstud.   Resultat: Två av de inkluderade studierna, oberoende av utfallsmått och mätmetod, visar på en tendens till nedsatt muskuloskeletal funktion under menstruationsfasen. Resterande resultat av de olika studierna visar däremot på variationer mellan övriga faser och inget mönster kan utläsas. Det föreligger en låg tillförlitlighet i det sammanvägda resultatet av de studier vars resultat jämförts.  Konklusion: Det går inte att med säkerhet dra några slutsatser om menstruationscykelns samband med muskuloskeletal funktion från denna litteraturöversikt, men resultatet tyder på att det kan finnas en tendens till  nedsatt muskuloskeletal funktion under menstruationsfasen. / Background: Knowledge of the relationship between the menstrual cycle and musculoskeletal function can be relevant in physiotherapy to achieve more patient-specific treatment and minimize the risk of injury for menstruating women. Previous reviews have mainly focused on bodily function, but this study intends to focus on functional tests.  Purpose: To evaluate the quality of existing literature on possible relationships between the phases of the menstrual cycle and musculoskeletal function. Method: The design of the study was a literature study design. Systematic search was made in the medical database PubMed and the search results were reviewed based on the selection criterias. The included articles' risk of bias was  assessed according to SBU's review template for observational studies, and the reliability of the studie´s’ combined results was evaluated with GRADEstud. Results: Two of the included studies, regardless of outcome measure and measurement methods, showed a tendency towards impaired musculoskeletal function during the menstrual phase. However, the remaining results of the studies show variations between the other phases and no pattern can be discerned. There is low reliability in the combined results of the studies whose results are compared. Conclusion: It is not possible to draw any certain conclusions  about the relationships between the menstrual cycle and musculoskeletal function from this literature review, but the results suggest that there could be reduced musculoskeletal function during the menstrual phase.

The uterine endometrium undergoes cyclical phases of cell proliferation, cell differentiation, and menstruation under the influence of the ovarian hormones, estrogen and progesterone. Since the data necessary to create a classical kinetic model of these signaling pathways is lacking, we used a Boolean network approach that includes the influences of various growth factors and the differential expression of their receptors under the influence of estrogen and progesterone. Results show a gain in endometrial tissue and loss of tissue during menstruation that mirrors what can be expected over the course of a normal menstrual cycle in women, where the endometrium typically reaches a thickness of approximately 10 mm. We utilized an existing model of the normal menstrual cycle that was used to predict hormonal changes following administration of GnRH analogues. We adapted this model to provide the hormonal and ovarian compartments that would interact with our model of the endometrial cycle.

Kilocalorie, protein, fat and carbohydrate intakes of five women were examined during the period of at least one menstrual cycle. Kilocalorie intake was significantly lower in the periovulatory phase of the cycle compared to the midluteal phase (t=2.10, p <.05). Carbohydrate and fat intakes were higher, although not significantly, during the midluteal phase compared to the periovulatory phase. Mean intake was 85 kilocalories higher in the postovulatory phase compared to preovulatory, but the difference was not significant. Mean carbohydrate and fat intakes were also increased, but not significantly, in the postovulatory phase. Protein intakes remained relatively stable when phases of the cycle were compared. A spectral analysis of variance produced two cycles showing monophasic sine component variations. Protein intake had a significant monophasic variation in two cycles; fat and carbohydrate had significant monophasic variation in one cycle each. The period of two to four days contained the most often significant sine components (10) and the period of five to seven days was next with five significant values. / Master of Science

Sex-differences in cardiometabolic physiology are evident; however, the inclusion of female participants in research studies for the purposes of exploration of sex-specific physiological responses is limited by the perceived complexity due to hormonal cycles. This dissertation examined the prevalence of sex-specific inclusion in human vascular exercise physiology research, investigate the influence of endogenous and exogenous sex hormones on cardiovascular, respiratory, and skeletal muscle metabolism, and consider sex- and gender-differences in peripheral vascular outcomes. The first study confirmed a sex-specific bias towards male inclusion in vascular exercise physiology research, with perceived hormonal complexity noted as one rationale for sex-specific exclusion. To address this perception, we reviewed the literature and identified a small effect of the menstrual cycle, and a more robust influence of oral contraceptive pills, on macrovascular endothelial function, with no influence on smooth muscle function or arterial stiffness. Our next set of studies objectively evaluated the influence of the natural menstrual and two generations of oral contraceptive pills on a comprehensive suite of cardiovascular, respiratory, and metabolic outcomes, and found largely no influence on these outcomes or the underlying vascular cellular regulation, apart from a small effect elevated endogenous and exogenous sex hormones on brachial artery endothelial function. Another area identified in our initial sex-inclusion review was the absence of gender-based research in vascular exercise physiology. Our final study found that biological sex aligned with gender identity, but not gender expression and influenced cardiovascular markers by including elevating systolic blood pressure, central arterial stiffness and endothelial function in males and men compared to females and women. Altogether, this dissertation provides substantial evidence for the lack of hormonal cycle influence of endogenous and exogenous sex hormones on three organ systems, which will open further incorporating females into research study design. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Females have been historically understudied in basic science and clinical research. This dissertation set out to explore sex-specific prevalence of research participants in human vascular exercise physiology studies and examined how sex hormones (through the menstrual cycle and oral contraceptive pill use) impact the cardiovascular, respiratory, and skeletal muscle metabolism systems. We found that there is an evident male-bias in vascular exercise physiology research, due in part to the perceived complexity of how sex hormones may impact the cardiovascular system. We also found that the menstrual cycle and oral contraceptive pill cycle have minimal influence on the biological systems examined. While there are evident sex-differences in cardiovascular outcomes, gender expression does not appear to have an impact in young adults. This research is foundational to further the inclusion of female participants in human physiology research and encourage future considerations of how sex/gender may influence physiological outcomes.

Interest in women's reproductive variation within the subfield of Physical Anthropology known as Human Reproductive Ecology is dominated by energetic models for fecundity that disregard genetic variation as a potential cause of differences in reproduction. Further, a strong correlation between ovarian and uterine markers of fecundity is assumed, although this assumption is not supported by the available data. A polymorphism in the progesterone receptor gene, called PROGINS, shows diminished progesterone response in vitro and is associated with a number of uterine disorders in women. To elucidate the discrepancy between ovarian and uterine markers of fecundity, carriers of the PROGINS variant were compared to non-carriers with regard to endometrial thickness and menstrual cycle characteristics. Gene-environment interactions between PROGINS and life history, lifestyle factors, progesterone levels, anthropometric measures, and physical activity were also considered. The PROGINS polymorphism was found to impact both luteal phase length and menses duration, as well as to modify endometrial sensitivity to life history factors, progesterone levels, anthropometric measures, and physical activity. These results support the notion that PROGINS diminishes progesterone response, and indicate that the polymorphism also alters endometrial sensitivity to acute and chronic energetic stress. The findings of this study indicate that Human Reproductive Ecologists must consider genetically-based variation in sensitivity to energetic stress in future adaptive models of women's reproduction. / Anthropology

Introduction: Women with bipolar disorder (BD) have higher rates of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). The primary goal of this thesis was to examine the neural correlates of bipolar disorder and comorbid PMDD and identify changes in brain structure or function that may mediate emotional and cognitive dysregulation in the late luteal phase. Results: In healthy women with no history of PMDD, absolute levels of estradiol, progesterone, allopregnanolone and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) were correlated with patterns of functional coupling in multiple regions associated with emotional and cognitive processes, in the mid-follicular and late luteal menstrual phases. A systematic review of the literature on resting state functional connectivity (Rs-FC) in BD during euthymia highlighted consistent patterns of resting state functional connectivity (Rs-FC) using ICA and SBA; including stability of the default mode network (DMN), salience network (SN) and fronto-parietal network (FPN) relative to controls. Available literature largely failed to control for sex, menstrual cycle phase or menstrual cycle disorders. Thus, we conducted the first fMRI studies to control for menstrual cycle phase in BD. During the mid-follicular phase, we found increased Rs-FC between critical nodes of the default mode and frontoparietal networks in BD compared to controls and increased functional connectivity between the somatosensory cortex and the insular cortex, inferior prefrontal gyrus and frontal orbital cortex in BD compared to controls. Voxel based morphometry analysis showed decreased gray matter in the somatosensory cortex in the same population compared to controls. Finally, women with BD and co-morbid PMDD displayed different patterns of Rs-FC using the right and left hippocampi as seed regions than women with BD without comorbid PMDD and controls with PMDD. Differences in cortical thickness between controls with and without PMDD and with and without BD were also found in regions central to emotional regulation and cognitive processing. Conclusions: Results highlight the influence of sex hormones on Rs-FC and support the need to control for menstrual phase and PMDD diagnosis. Differences in structural and functional connectivity, and the clinical profile of women with BD and those with BD and co-morbid PMDD highlights the impact of PMDD on BD and the need for future research in this area. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)