Abstract:
Objective: Mental activity and physical activity appears to affect body functions differently. Both activities appear to have impact on reproductive functions of the women. Aim of the current study was to compare the students undertaking mental activity based education (MABE) and physical activity based education (PABE) on menstrual cycle parameters. Methods: A total of 390 female students participated to the study. However, the students who were using any drugs (painkiller, contraceptives, etc.) were removed and the groups consisted of 171 MABE students (faculty of medicine) and 169 PABE students (faculty of sports sciences). Participants were asked to provide information about their menstrual cycles, sleep quality, pain perception. Moreover, they filled in a questionnaire about their preferences for visual, verbal, gustatory, mental, auditory, and physical activities. Results: Length of the menstrual cycle was similar between the MABE and PABE (29.5±0.3, 29.0±0.2 days, respectively, p>0.05) but length of menstruation was longer in MABE students (6.0±0.1 and 5.5±0.1 days, p=0.007). MABE students fall asleep quicker in the night, slept one h less and woke up earlier with better sleep quality. PABE students wanted to do shopping and have their hair cut and dyed while MABE students wanted to chat with a friend or make a voyage. Conclusion: Longer menstrual bleeding in MABE students requires special attention as it may result in iron deficiency anemia. Moreover, different physiological (menstruation, sleep-wake cycle) characteristics and everyday life priorities suggest that format of education and social activities of female students might require differential approaches for each education types. © 2021. All rights reserved