Objectives: The aim of the present study is to assess differences in body composition between female participants in the study group who suffer from PCOS versus a healthy control group.
Material and methods: The study included 85, 14-22-year-old, female participants. Participants belonged to one of two groups. Thirty seven participants with a diagnosis of PCOS were in the clinical group, and 48 participants were in the healthy control group with no prior diagnosis of PCOS.
Results: A statistically significant difference between groups was found in their answer regarding diet. A correlation was found between the body fat index and the use of dieting among participants; participants with a lower body fat index (in kilograms) were less likely to be on a diet.
Conclusions: The young female participants with PCOS were shown to have similar body composition to age-matched healthy controls. However, the clinical group with PCOS reported more frequent use of dieting, with less use of exercise.
Keywords: PCOS; body mass composition; dietary habits; young females.