Abstract
Objective
We aimed to investigate the effect of omega-3 supplements on relief of vasomotor symptoms
among menopausal women.
Study design
The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, SCOPUS, EMBASE, ProQuest, Google Scholar, Web of Science,
CINAHL, IranMedex and SID databases were searched until September 2017. Inclusion
criteria were (1) women were experiencing vasomotor symptoms in the menopause period,
(2) intervention was omega-3 supplements (3) randomized controlled trial (RCT) or
quasi-RCT, and (4) outcome measures included changes in the frequency and severity
of hot flush or night sweats, sleep problems and side effects.
Results
Three randomized controlled trials involving 483 women in the age range of 51 to 54.7
years were included in the review. Overall, the risk of bias in the included studies
was moderate. All the participants were found to be blinded. Meta-analysis of the
data showed no difference in the frequency and severity of hot flushes, insomnia severity,
sleep quality, quality of life and adverse effects between the two groups. Compared
to placebo group, women who received omega-3 supplements experienced lower frequency
(mean difference: -1.82, 95% CI: -2.81, -0.83) and severity (mean difference: -.89,
95% CI: -1.25, -0.53) of night sweats.
Conclusions
RCTs which investigate the impact of omega-3 supplements on vasomotor symptoms in
menopausal women are scarce. A comprehensive search in a wide range of databases found
only three relevant papers. Our analysis suggests that omega-3 supplements may alleviate
night sweats but have no benefit in reducing hot flushes, or improving sleep quality
and quality of life during the menopausal period. We recommend high quality RCTs along
with a longer follow-up period to investigate this important subject, as there was
insufficient evidence to conclude that omega-3 supplements are of benefit in alleviating
vasomotor symptoms in menopausal women.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: July 20, 2018
Accepted:
July 7,
2018
Received in revised form:
July 5,
2018
Received:
May 22,
2018
Identification
Copyright
© 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
