Opinion of South African pre- and post-menopausal women on the potential menopause-related health benefits of soy and soy products

Abstract

The increased use of alternative treatment for menopausal symptoms is mainly due to women’s changing opinions of conventional hormone replacement therapy (HRT). The objective of this study was to assess the opinion of pre and post-menopausal South African women regarding the potential menopause-related health benefits of soy. The sample used for the study was a sub-dataset of 825 respondents, which included only pre- and post-menopausal women that had heard of soy before, selected from a representative sample of the adult South African metropolitan and rural populations. A structured questionnaire was used. Neither age nor racial groups differed practically significantly in opinion regarding any of the various statements. The study also shows that a practically significant lower proportion of women in the sub-population across both age and race groups had a positive opinion on the health benefits of soy as an alternative to HRT and reliever of menopausal symptoms than those who acknowledged its benefit for preventing cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis. Practically significantly more women who used soy than women who never used soy agreed that soy keeps bones strong. In addition, more women who were of opinion that soy has few or no health benefits disagreed that soy could be used as an alternative to HRT compared to women who held a positive opinion.

Opsomming
Die toenemende gebruik van alternatiewe behandelings vir menopousale simptome kan aan vroue se veranderende opinies oor konvensionele hormoonvervangingsterapie (HVT) toegeskryf word. Die doel van hierdie studie was om pre- en post- menopousale Suid-Afrikaanse vroue se opinie aangaande die potensiële menopouseverwante gesondheids-voordele van soja te bepaal. Die steekproef vir die studie het uit ‘n subdatastel bestaan van 825 vroue in hul pre- en post-menopousale stadium wat al voorheen van soja gehoor het, en is vanuit ‘n verteenwoordigende steekproef van die volwasse Suid-Afrikaanse metropolitaanse en plattelandse bevolking gekies. ‘n Gestruktureerde vraelys is gebruik. Geen prakties betekenisvolle verskille is tussen die verskillende ouderdoms- of rasgroepe se opinie oor enige van die stellings gevind nie. Die studie dui ook daarop dat ‘n prakties betekenisvolle laer verhouding Suid-Afrikaanse vroue, van beide ouderdoms- en rasgroepe, ‘n positiewe opinie oor die gesondheidsvoordele van soja as HVT en verligter van menopousale simptome gehad het as oor soja se voordele om kardiovaskulêre siektes en osteoporose te voorkom. Prakties betekenisvol meer van die vroue wat soja gebruik het as dié wat dit nooit gebruik het nie, het saamgestem dat soja bene sterk hou. Meer vroue wat van die opinie was dat soja geen of min gesondheidsvoordele het nie was ook negatief teenoor die gebruik van soja as ‘n alternatief vir HVT as dié wat ‘n positiewe opinie daaroor gehad het.