Statistical analyses
All analyses were performed using the R software version 4.1.1, free and available at For quantitative variables, the Shapiro-Wilk normality test was initially used to test the null hypothesis that the variable follows an approximately normal distribution versus the alternative hypothesis that the variable does not follow an approximately normal distribution. For variables considered approximately normal, Student's t-test was used for independent samples to verify whether there was a difference between groups for that variable. If the variable normality hypothesis was rejected, the Wilcoxon Mann–Whitney test was applied. As for qualitative variables, the chi-square test was initially used to test the null hypothesis that there is no association between the group and the variable classes versus the alternative hypothesis that there is an association between the group and the variable classes. For variables with any expected frequency of less than five, Fisher's exact association test was used to test the same hypothesis.To compare the metabolomic profile of women in each group, before and after the intervention, for each metabolite and each individual, the triplicate mean was calculated to obtain a single value for each individual. To compare the metabolomic profile in each group, the Shapiro-Wilk normality test was initially used to test the null hypothesis that the metabolite follows an approximately normal distribution versus the alternative hypothesis that the metabolite does not follow an approximately normal distribution. For metabolites considered approximately normal, Student's t-test was used for dependent samples to verify whether there was a difference before and after intervention for that metabolite. If the hypothesis of metabolite normality was rejected, the Wilcoxon test was applied.Data obtained from NMR were processed by the MestreNova software (version 6.02, MestreLab Research S.L) and chemical shifts were expressed in ppm using the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) statistical tool.