The Mayo Clinic Diet Book, learn more

Free

E-newsletter

Subscribe to Housecall

Our weekly general interest
e-newsletter keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics.

Sign up now

Risk factors

By Mayo Clinic staff

Menopause is a normal phase in a woman's life. But it may occur earlier in some women than in others. Although not always conclusive, some evidence suggests that certain factors may make it more likely that you start perimenopause at an earlier age, including:

  • Smoking. The onset of menopause occurs one to two years earlier in women who smoke, compared with women who don't smoke.
  • Family history. Women with a family history of early menopause may experience early menopause themselves.
  • Cancer treatment. Treatment for cancer with chemotherapy or pelvic radiation therapy has been linked to early menopause.
  • Hysterectomy. A hysterectomy that removes your uterus, but not your ovaries, usually doesn't cause menopause. Although you no longer have periods, your ovaries still produce estrogen. But such surgery may cause menopause to occur earlier than average. Also, if you have one ovary removed, the remaining ovary might stop working sooner than expected.
Complications Causes

  • See Also

    • Hand Scheduled
    Section Focus
    Related Links
    Related Guides
    Children
    Parent
  • Menopause
References
  1. Lentz GM, et al. Comprehensive Gynecology. 6th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2012. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/linkTo?type=bookPage&isbn=978-0-323-06986-1&eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-323-06986-1..C2009-0-48752-X--TOP. Accessed March 10, 2013.
  2. Casper RF. Clinical manifestations and diagnosis of menopause. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed March 10, 2013.
  3. Melmed S, et al. Williams Textbook of Endocrinology. 12th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2011. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/191205553-3/0/1555/0.html#. Accessed March 10, 2013.
  4. AskMayoExpert. What are the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved clinical indications for menopausal hormone therapy (HT) prescribing? Rochester, Minn.: Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research; 2012.
  5. Menopause and menopause treatments. Office on Women's Health. http://www.womenshealth.gov. Accessed March 8, 2013.
  6. Harlow SD, et al. Executive Summary of the Stages of Reproductive Aging Workshop + 10: Addressing the Unfinished Agenda of Staging Reproductive Aging. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. 2012;97:1159.
  7. Casper RF, et al. Menopausal hot flashes. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed March 10, 2013.
  8. Sood R, et al. Paced breathing compared with usual breathing for hot flashes. Menopause. 2013;20:179.
  9. Welt CK. Ovarian development and failure (menopause) in normal women. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed March 11, 2013.
  10. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) Committee on Practice Bulletins — Obstetrics. ACOG Practice Bulletin No. 128. Diagnosis of Abnormal Uterine Bleeding: in Reproductive-Aged Women. Clinical Management Guidelines. Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2012;120;197.
  11. Goodman AK. Initial approach to the premenopausal woman with abnormal uterine bleeding. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed March 4, 2013.
  12. Bedell S, et al. The pros and cons of plant estrogens for menopause. Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. In press. Accessed April 7, 2013.
  13. MenoNote: Vaginal dryness. The North American Menopause Society. http://www.menopause.org/docs/for-women/mndryness.pdf. Accessed April 4, 2013.
  14. Zacur HA. Managing an episode of severe or prolonged uterine bleeding. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed March 4, 2013.
  15. 15. Lo JC, et al. Bone and the perimenopause. Obstetrics & Gynecology Clinics of North America. 2011;38:503.
  16. 16. Leach MJ, et al. Black cohosh (Cimicifuga spp.) for menopausal symptoms. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD007244.pub2/abstract. Accessed March 11, 2013.
  17. Lentz GM, et al. Comprehensive Gynecology. 6th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2012. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/linkTo?type=bookPage&isbn=978-0-323-06986-1&eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-323-06986-1..C2009-0-48752-X--TOP. Accessed March 10, 2013.
  18. Fisher TE, et al. Lifestyle alterations for the amelioration of hot flashes. Maturitas. 2012;71:217.
  19. Kang HS, et al. The use of acupuncture for managing gynaecologic conditions: An overview of systematic reviews. Maturitas. 2011;68:346.
  20. Rosen HN, et al. Overview of the management of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. http://www.uptodate.com/home. Accessed March 11, 2013.
  21. 21. Metzger ML, et al. Female reproductive health after childhood, adolescent and young adult cancers: Guidelines for the assessment and management of female reproductive complications. Journal of Clinical Oncology. 2013;31:1239.
  22. Longo DL, et al. Harrison's Online. 18th ed. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2012. http://www.accessmedicine.com/resourceTOC.aspx?resourceID=4. Accessed Dec. 6, 2012.
  23. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Committee on Gynecologic Practice and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine Practice Committee. Committee Opinion No. 532: Compounded bioidentical menopausal hormone therapy. Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2012;120:411.
DS00554 April 20, 2013

© 1998-2013 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research (MFMER). All rights reserved. A single copy of these materials may be reprinted for noncommercial personal use only. "Mayo," "Mayo Clinic," "MayoClinic.com," "EmbodyHealth," "Enhance your life," and the triple-shield Mayo Clinic logo are trademarks of Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.

  • Reprints
  • Print

  • Share on:

  • Email

Advertisement


Text Size: smaller largerlarger