1. Introduction
sleep disturbance, fatigue
OXIDATIVE STRESS
To investigate the effects of flavanol-rich cacao extract on healthy middle-aged women’s fatigue and mood conditions, we conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in women aged 40–60 years who had reported fatigue and had shown high levels of a serum oxidative stress marker. We randomized the participants (Middle-aged women in the transition to menopause may experience symptoms such as fatigue, sleep disturbance, psychological problems, and vasomotor symptoms. In 2005, Satoh and Ohashi reported that nearly one-quarter of community-dwelling healthy Japanese women in the peri- and postmenopausal states suffered from menopausal symptoms that decreased their quality of life (QoL) [The flavanols derived from cacao beans are thought to have antioxidant properties and to contribute to cardiometabolic health by regulating blood pressure and lipid profiles [We thus hypothesized that healthy middle-aged women with high levels of both oxidative stress and fatigue could achieve reductions in fatigue and mood changes by consuming cacao flavanols, which are antioxidants. We conducted this study to investigate the effect of flavanol-rich cacao extract on fatigue and mood in healthy middle-aged Japanese women.