Women who have previously been underweight are more likely to have an early menopause compared to those who maintained a healthy weight, new research suggests.
The study, in the journal Human Reproduction, found that underweight women who lost 20lbs (9kg) or more at least 3 times as young adults were most at risk.
All about menopause and perimenopause
Oestrogen Levels
The menopause – when a woman stops having periods and is no longer able to conceive naturally – usually occurs between 45 and 55 as levels of the hormone oestrogen dip.
The average age for the start of the menopause in the UK is 51.
However, around 10% of women experience an early menopause.
The research team, led by the University of Massachusetts, based their findings on 78,759 women enrolled in the US Nurses’ Health Study II in 1989. By 2011, the records showed that 2,804 of the women had reported an early menopause, defined as being before the age of 45.
Main Findings
They found that:
· Women who had been underweight at any point in their lives – with a body mass index (BMI) of less than 18.5 had a 30% higher risk of an early menopause compared with lean or healthy weight women with a BMI of between 18.5 and 22.4
· Overweight women with BMIs between 25 and 29.9 had a 21-30% lower risk of early menopause compared to healthy weight women
· Women who were underweight at 18 with a BMI of less than 17.5 had a 50% higher risk of early menopause compared to lean or healthy weight women
· Women who had a BMI of less than 18.5 when they were 35 had a 59% increased risk
They also found that underweight women who reported losing 20lbs (9kg) or more on at least 3 occasions between the ages of 18 and 30 had a 2.4-fold higher risk of early menopause. But the researchers say this particular finding should be treated with caution as it applied to only 7 of the women.
SOURCES:
Adult adiposity and risk of early menopause, Szegda K et al, Human Reproduction
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