DOES THE INTAKE OF NUTS AND SEEDS ALTER THE APPEARANCE OF MENARCHE

Background. The nutritional state reportedly influences the age of men arche. In this work we investigated the potential relationship between the intake of various types of foods and the age of menarche, irrespe ctive of body weight. Methods. An overall 777 schoolgirls of ages betw een 8 and 16 years from Benalmadena (Malaga, Spain) were subjected to a cross-sectional study involving: the age of menarche as the dependen t variable; and the weight, body mass index, skinfold thickness, food intake (estimated from weekly food frequency questionnaires), and age of menarche in the proband's mother and sisters as independent variabl es. Several models were developed in order to calculate the strength o f association between the dependent variable (the presence or absence of menarche) and the independent variables. Results. The average age o f menarche was 12.4 years. The intake of the various types of foods wa s not consistent between the different age groups. In girls of 12 or y ounger, the age of menarche was found to be related to weight: Odds ra tio (OR)=7.06; (Confidence intervals (CI)=2.80-17.6). On inclusion of various foods groups, the OR rose to 49.89 (CI=40.85-60.84). In girls over 12, the age of menarche was essentially related to the intake of nuts and seeds (OR=0.71, CI=0.40-0.98). Inclusion of other foods group s decreased the OR (OR= 0.34, CI=0.14-0.39). Conclusions. Significant statistical relationship between intake of nuts and seeds and the age of menarche was found.