A Creative Arts Therapy and Nutrition Education Approach for Postmenopausal Women

Abstract

Postmenopausal women are at an increased risk for cardiovascular disease as well as a reduction in psychosocial well-being. The objective of this study was to create and implement an innovative intervention that would address the health needs of overweight postmenopausal women. In this virtual pilot project, named Integrative Intervention with Creative Arts Therapy and Nutrition, three postmenopausal women received 16 weeks of alternating creative arts therapies and nutrition education sessions. Survey scores and verbal responses showed that the participants improved in the areas of quality of life, affect, self-efficacy, stress, anxiety, and body image while also reporting physical gains. The findings suggest that a multimodal intervention with physical and creative aspects is beneficial for weight management in this population.