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Does Early Menses Mean Early Menopause?

There is no significant medical evidence to prove that beginning menstruation at an early age causes early menopause.

Medical Studies on the Relation of Early Menstruation and Early Menopause

In fact, a study conducted specifically to show the relation between early menstruation and early menopause shows that there is no relation between these two occurrences.  In this study, 3,756 Dutch women who were born between the years 1911 to 1925, who were experiencing natural menopause, were examined as to whether they had their first menstruations at an early age.

In contrast, a study conducted in Sweden shows that women who experienced the early onset of their first menstrual cycles also experienced natural menopause at an earlier age. Another study that examined the correlation between early menopause and early menstruation concluded that although there was a positive correlation between these two factors, the said relationship was not statistically significant for it to be declared as a medical fact.

Factors that Contribute to the Age of Natural Menopause

The studies dealing on the subject of menopause show that there are various environmental and genetic factors that either accelerate or delay the onset of menopause.

A study conducted on 948 women shows that the age at which natural menopause occurs was significantly correlated to the age of their last full-term pregnancies, place of birth and the use of hormones before the onset of menopause.

Meanwhile, another study found that women who live in semi-urban residences experienced menopause at a significantly younger age than those who lived in urban areas.  Women who were married were found to experience menopause at a later age, as opposed to women who were single or divorced.

Women who reached a higher level of educational attainment were found to experience menopause at a later age, while those who were less educated or illiterate experienced menopause at an earlier age.