Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use among menopausal women: An examination of social cognitive factors

With menopausal symptoms reported by 75% of women between 45-65 years of age, a better understanding of the factors related to complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use in this population is necessary. This study was designed to address important gaps in the current understanding of CAM use among women experiencing menopause as well as describe the social cognitive variables associated with such CAM use. A total of 209 women successfully completed the online survey, which examined the influence of four social cognitive variables (philosophical beliefs, menopause knowledge, social support, and outcome expectancies) upon CAM use for menopause. Binary logistic regressions were used to examine the four social cognitive variables. A priori hypotheses were not supported as predicted. However, findings from this study indicate that 60% of women who were experiencing menopausal symptoms were likely to have used at least one CAM treatment. Supplemental analysis showed that symptom severity and perceived stress were significantly related to CAM use for menopause among the women in this study. Furthermore, philosophical beliefs and menopause knowledge were found to be significant predictors of number of CAM's used and average duration of CAM use among women experiencing menopausal symptoms. Further research is needed regarding social-cognitive factors that are associated with CAM use among menopausal women as well as clarification of the descriptive characteristics of those menopausal women who chose to use CAM to treat their symptoms.